English phonetics and phonology (Peter Roach)
English phonetics and phonology (Peter Roach)
7 Nasals and other consonants
7.1 Nasals
The basic characteristic of a nasal consonant is that the air escapes through the nose.
We will now look at some ways in
which the distribution of ŋ is usual.
i) In initial position we find m and n occurring freely, but ŋ never occurs in this position.
ii) Medially, ŋ occurs quite frequently
iii) A third way in which the distribution of ŋ is unusual is the small number of vowels it is found to follow,
It never occurs after a diphthong or long vowel, and in fact there are only five vowels ever found preceding this consonant: I, e, æ, Λ and D.
7.2 The consonant 1
A lateral consonant is one in which the passage of air through the mouth does not go in the usual way along the centre of the tongue;
7.3 The consonant r
This consonant is a post-alveolar approximant.
The tongue is slightly curled backwards with the tip raised; consonants with this tongue shape are called retroflex.
7.4 The consonants j and w
The most important thing to remember about these phonemes is that they are phonetically like vowels but phonologically like consonants