Summer- the time for outings and holidays

Key words:

1. retract [rI'trxkt]- отодвинуть назад 2. protrude [rq'trHd]-продвинуть вперед 3. palatalization ["pxlqlaI'zeISn] - пала- тализация 4. arching ['RCIN] - в форме арки, дуги 5. labialization ["leIbIqlaI'zeISn] - лабиа- лизация 6. prominent ['prPmInqnt] - выступаю- щий, выделяющийся 7. alveolar ["xlvI'qVlq] - альвеолярный 8. edge [eG] - край 9. circumstances ['sWkqmstqnsIz] - обстоятельства (сопутствующие) 10. tip of the tongue - кончик языка 11. Adam’s apple - зоб 12. obstruction [qb'strAkSn] - преграда 13. intermittent ["intq'mItnt] - прерывис- тый 14. hinder ['hIndq] - препятствовать 15. audible friction ['LdIbl 'frIkSn] – слышимое трение 16. indispensable ["IndIs'pensqbl] – необходимый, обязательный 17. bilabial [baI'leIbIql] – губно-губной 18. backlingual (=velar) ['bxk'lINgwql]– заднеязычный 19. labio-dental ['leIbIqV'dentql]–губно- зубной 20. pharyngeal [fx'rINgIql] – фарингаль- ный 21. mediolingual (=palatal) ['mJdIqV 'liNgwql] - среднеязычный 22. forelingual ['fLlINgwql] - переднее- язычный 23. apical-alveolar ['xpIkl"xlvI'qVlq] – апикально-альвеолярный (кончик языка на альвеолах) 24. cacuminal(=post alveolar) [kx'kjHmInl] – какуминальный (кон-чик языка загнут за альвеолы)

25. palatal-alveolar ['pxlqtl "xlvI'qVlq] – палатально-альвеолярный (язык нахо-дится на мягком небе и альвеолах) 26. apical-interdental ['xpIkl "Intq 'dentl] – апикально-интердентальный (кончик языка расположен в позиции между зубами) 27. occlusive [q'klHsv] - смычный 28. constrictive [qn'strIktIv] - щелевой 29. affricate ['xfrIkqt] – аффриката 30. plosive ['plqVsIv] - взрывной 31. sonorant [sq'nPrqnt] – звонкий (непарный) согласный 32. fricative ['frIkqtIv] – фрикативный 33. nasal ['neIzl] - носовой 34. median ['mJdIqn] - срединный 35. lateral ['lxtrql] - латеральный 36. predictable [prI'dIktqbl] – предска- зуемый 37. modification ["mPdIfI'keISn] – моди- фикация, видоизменение 38. intercourse ['IntqkLs] – взаимодействие 39. assimilation [q"sImI'leISn] - ассими- ляция, уподобление 40. accommodation [q"kPmq'deISn] – ак- комодация, приспособление 41. reduction [rI'dAkSn] - сокращение 42. elision [I'lIZn] – элизия (исчезнове- ние) 43. deletion [dI'lJSn] – стирание, вычер- кивание 44. release [rI'lJs] - выпускать 45. lenis ['lJnIs] - слабый 46. fortis ['fLtIs] - сильный 47. nasalization ["nxzqlaI'zeISn] - наза- лизация 48. insertion [In'sWSn] – вставление, включение

I. Classifications of Consonants.

Consonants are known to have voice and noise combined, while vowels are sounds consisting of voice only. From the articulatory point of view the difference is due to the work of speech organs. In case of vowels no obstruction is made. In case of consonants various obstructions are made. So consonants are characterized by so-called close articulation that is by a complete, partial or intermittent blockage of the air-passage by an organ or organs. The closure is formed in such a way that the air-stream is blocked or hindered or otherwise gives rise to audible friction. As a result consonants are sounds which have noise as their indispensable and most defining characteristic.

Each sound is known to have three aspects: acoustic, articulatory and auditory and therefore can be studied on these levels. To classify consonants we shall take into account such aspects as work of active organs of speech, place of obstruction, manner of producing the noise, type of obstruction the quantity of voice used.

I. According to the active organs of speech and the place of obstruction:

bilabial backlingual(=velar)

[p], [b], [m], [w ] labio-dental [k], [g], [N]

[f], [v] pharyngeal mediolingual

[h] (=palatal)

[j]

Forelingual

apical-alveolar cacuminal palatal-alveolar apical-interdental

[t], [d], [s],[z],[ l], [n] (=post alveolar) [S], [Z], [C], [G] [T], [D]

[r]

Bilabial – lips are closed

Labio-dental - approach of the upper teeth and lower lip.

Pharyngal – incomplete obstruction appears near the pharynx because of the approach of the root of the tongue and back surface of the pharynx.

Mediolingual – edges of the tongue are pressed to the upper teeth.

Backlingual(=velar)- the root of the tongue makes the obstruction.

Apical-alveolar – inner surface of the upper teeth are on the alveolar range.

Cacuminal (=post alveolar) the top of the tongue is slightly bent, the back part of the top of the tongue acts.

II. According to the manner of producing the noise and the type of obstruction.

occlusive constrictive affricates

[C], [G]

plosive sonorants fricatives

[p], [b], [t], [f], [v], [s], [z], [S],

[d], [k], [g] [Z], [T], [D], [h]

nasal median lateral

[m], [n], [N]; [w], [r], [j]; [l]

Occlusive – complete obstruction for the stream of the air.

Constrictive - incomplete obstruction for the stream of the air when articulating organs are drawn together.

Affricates – when complete obstruction becomes incomplete.

Fricatives – the glottis is not too wide.

Sonorants – voice prevails over noise.

Nasal – the stream of the air goes through the nose (nasal cavity).

Median – the air goes along the tongue.

Lateral – the stream of the air goes along the edges of the tongue.

III. Vocal cords can be:

closed and vibrate taken apart

vowels and voiced the stream of the air goes

consonants are produced out freely and voiceless

consonants are produced

II. Modifications of consonants in connected speech.

Language in every day use is performed in connected sequence of words, phrases and longer utterances. There are some remarkable differences between the pronunciation of a word in isolation and of the same word in a block of connected speech. These changes are mostly quite regular and predictable. Numerous modifications of sounds are observed both within words and at word boundaries because speech sounds influence each other in the flow of speech. As a result of the intercourse between consonants and vowels and within each class there appear such processes of connected speech as assimilation, accommodation, vowel reduction and elision which is sometimes termed deletion.

Assimilation is the adaptive modification of a consonant by a neighbouring consonant in the speech:

1) the alveolar [t], [d],[s], [z], [l], [n], followed by the interdental [D] / [T] sounds (partial regressive assimilation when the influence goes backward from a “later” sound to an “earlier” one) become dental.

For example, at the desk.

2) [t], [d] become post-alveolar under the influence of the post-alveolar [r] (partially regressive assimilation).

For example, try, dry, that right rule, the third room. The sonorant [r] after the voiceless [t] is partially devoiced.

3) [s], [z] become post-alveolar before [S] (complete regressive assimilation)

For example, horse-shoe ['hLSSH], this shop [DIS'SPp], does she ['dASSJ].

4) the combinations [t+j], [d+j] tend to be affricative (incomplete regressive assimilation).

For example, graduate ['grxGVeIt], did you ['dIGH], could you ['kVGH], congratulate [kqn'grxCVleIt].

The place of articulation of nasals also varies according to the consonant that follows

For example, camp [m] remains bilabial before another bilabial as well as in man before a vowel.

cent [n] is alveolar before another alveolar as well as in net.

symphony [m] is actually labio-dental followed by the labio-dental [f].

seventh [n] becomes dental, before the interdental [T].

pinch [n] is palato-alveolar corresponding to the following affricate [C].

thank [n] assimilates to the velar consonant becoming velar [N].

The manner of articulation is also changed as a result of assimilation, which may be illustrated as follows:

1. Loss of plosion. In the sequence of two plosive consonants the former loses its plosion.

For example, glad to see you, great trouble, an old carpet. (partial regressive assimilation)

2. Nasal plosion. In the sequence of a plosive followed by a nasal sonorant the manner of articulation of the plosive sound and the work of the soft palate are involved, which results in the nasal character of plosion release.

For example, garden, mad Mary, not now, let me see. (partial regressive assimilation)

3. Lateral plosion. In the sequence of a plosive followed by the lateral sonorant [l] the noise production of the plosive stop is changed into that of the lateral stop.

For example, people, little, at last. (partial regressive assimilation)

The voicing value of a consonant may also change through assimilation. This type of assimilation affects the work of the vocal cords and the force of articulation. In particular voiced lenis sounds become voiceless fortis when followed by another voiceless sound:

a) Fortis voiceless / lenis voiced type of assimilation is best manifested by the regressive assimilation in such words:

For example, newspaper (news [z] + paper), gooseberry (goose [s] + berry); grammatical items: [z] of has, is, does changes into [s], and [v] of have, of becomes [f] -

She’s five, of course, you’ve spoiled it, she has fine eyes, Does Pete like it?

b) The weak forms of the verbs is and has are also assimilated to the final voiceless fortis consonants of the preceding word thus the assimilation is functioning in the progressive direction.

For example, your aunt’s coming, What’s your name? (partial progressive assimilation)

c) English sonorants [m, n, r, l, j, w] preceded by the fortis voiceless consonants [p, t, k, s] are partially devoiced.

For example, smile, snack, tray, quite, plan, price. (partial progressive assimilation)

In English assimilation usually results in changing voiced lenis consonants into voiceless fortis.

For example, of course [qf'kLs]

Accommodation denotes the interchange of “vowel + consonant type” or “consonant + vowel type”, for example, some slight degree of nasalization of vowels preceded or followed by nasal sonorants: never, men; or labialization of consonants preceding the vowels [o], [y] in Russian: кофе, больше, думать, лучше.

Lip position may be affected by the accommodation, the interchange of consonant + vowel type. Labialization of consonants is traced under the influence of the neighbouring back vowels (accommodation).

For example, pool, moon, rule, soon, whose, cool.

It is possible to speak about the spread lip position of consonants followed or preceded by front vowels [i:], [i].

For example, tea – beat, meat – team, feet – leaf, keep – leak.

The position of the soft palate is also involved in the accommodation. Slight nasalization as the result of prolonged lowering of the soft palate is sometimes traced in vowels under the influence of the neighbouring sonants [m] and [n].

For example, and, morning, come in, mental.

Elision or complete loss of sounds, both vowels and consonants is often observed in English. Elision is likely to be minimal in slow careful speech and maximal in rapid relaxed colloquial forms of speech and marks the following sounds:

1. Loss of [h] in personal and possessive pronouns he, his, her, him and the forms of the auxiliary verb have, has, had is wide spread.

For example, What has he done? ['wPt qz I· "dAn]

2. [l] tends to be lost when preceded by [L].

For example, always ['LwIz], already [L'redI], all right [L'raIt].

3. Alveolar plosives are often elided in case the cluster is followed by another consonant.

For example, next day ['neks 'deI], just one ['GAs'wAn ], mashed potatoes ['mxS pq'teItEVz]

Examples of historical elision are also known. They are initial consonants in write, know, the medial consonant [t] in fasten, listen, whistle, castle.

While the elision is a very common process in connected speech, we also occasionally find sounds being inserted.

- When a word ends in a vowel, the so-called intrusive “r” is sometimes pronounced between the vowels.

For example, the idea of it [DJaI'dIqr qv It]

- The so-called linking “r” is a common example of insertion.

For example, a teacher of English [q'tJCqr qv 'INglIS]

- When the word-final vowel is a diphthong which glides to [i] such as [ai], [ei] the palatal sonorant [j] tends to be inserted.

For example, playing ['pleIjiN], crying ['kraIjiN]

- In case of the [V]-gliding diphthongs [EV], [aV] the bilabial sonorant [w] is sometimes inserted.

For example, growing ['grEVwIN], allowing [q'laVwIN]

By way of conclusion we may say that we understand the sound quality as a set of characteristics which are in constant interrelation and compensation. In case one of the features of a phoneme is lost there remain a sufficient number of characteristics of a phoneme and its status and function are not lost. Thus modifications of sounds in a speech chain are of allophonic character, that is they are realizations of allophones of phonemes.

Topics for discussions:

1. What are the main common features of the English articulation basis? Give your examples.

2. On what criteria are classifications of consonants based? What is common and what is different between these consonants: occlusive, constrictive and affricate? What group do sonorants belong to according to the type of obstruction? How do the vocal cords work when we pronounce a) vowels, b) voiceless consonants, c) voiced consonants, d) sonorants?

3. What are the main modifications of sounds in connected speech? Explain all possible cases of assimilation. What does it affect?

4. What is the difference between assimilation and accommodation? What can be affected as a result of accommodation?

5. Which phonetic phenomenon takes place more often elision or insertion? Prove it by giving your examples.

The System of English phonemes (vowels).

Key words:

I. Classificatory description of English vowels.

II. Modifications of Vowels in Connected Speech.

I. Classificatory description of English vowels. Vowels unlike consonants are produced with no obstruction to the stream of air, so on the perception level their integral characteristic is naturally tone, not noise. A minimum vowel system of a language is likely to take the form of a triangle:

I V

a

The most important characteristic of the quality of these sounds is that they are acoustically stable. They are known to be entirely different from one another both articulatorily and acoustically. They display the highest degree of unlikeness and so maximum of abilities of people as regards to vowels. We could add that the commonest vowel system adds two other vowels to this minimum triangle to give a five vowels system of the type:

I V

e o

a

English has developed a vocalic system of a much larger number of phonemes. The quality of a vowel is known to be determined by the size, volume, and the shape of the mouth resonator, which are modified by the movement of active speech organs, that is the tongue and the lips. Besides, the particular quality of a vowel can depend on a lot of other articulatory characteristics, such as the relative stability of the tongue, the position of the lips, physical duration of the segment, the force of articulation, the degree of tenseness of speech organs. So vowel quality could be thought of as a bundle of definite articulatory characteristics which are sometimes intricately interconnected and interdependent. For example, the back position of the tongue causes the lip rounding, the front position of the tongue makes it rise higher in the mouth cavity, the lengthening of a vowel makes the organs of speech tenser at the moment of production and so on.

The analysis of the articulatory constituents of the quality of vowels allowed the phoneticians to suggest the criteria which are considered to be of great importance in classificatory description. They are:

a) stability of articulation;

b) tongue position;

c) lip position;

d) character of the vowel end;

e) length;

f) tenseness;

Stability of articulation. There are two possible varieties:

a) the tongue position is stable;

b) it changes, that is the tongue moves from one position to another.

In the first case the articulated vowel is relatively pure, in the second case a vowel consists of two clearly perceptible elements. There exists in addition a third variety, an intermediate case

c) when the change in the tongue position is fairly weak.

So, according to this principle the English vowels are subdivided into:

- monophthongs;

- diphthongs;

- diphthongoids ([i:], [u:]).

A. C. Gimson distinguishes 20 vocalic phonemes which are made of vowels and vowel glides:

1) short phonemes (7) - [I], [e], [x], [P], [V], [A], [q]

2) long phonemes (13) - [R], [L], [W], [J], [H], [eI], [EV],

[aI], [aV], [Pu], [Iq], [Fq], [Vq].

3) relatively pure (5) - [R], [L], [W], [J], [H]

4) the rest are referred to long phonemes with different glides:

- [eI], [aI], [PI] – with a glide to [I];

- [EV], [aV] - with a glide to [V];

- [Iq], [Fq], [Vq] - with a glide to [q].

In modern English the tendency for diphthongization is becoming gradually

stronger. Diphthongs are complex entities just like affricates. Soviet scholars (V. A. Vassilyev, L. R. Zinder) grant the English diphthongs monophonemic status on the basis of articulatory, morphological and syllabic indivisibility as well as the criteria of duration and commutability. As to articulatory indivisibility of the diphthongs it could be proved by the fact that neither morpheme nor syllable boundary that separate the nucleus and the glide can pass within it. For example, saying ['seI-IN], crying ['kraI-IN], enjoying [In-'GOI-IN], lower ['lEV-q], going ['gEV-IN], nearer ['nIq-rq], staring ['stFq-rIN], poorer ['pVq-rq]. The present study of the duration of diphthongs shows that the length of diphthongs is the same as that that characterizes the English long monophthongs in the same phonetic context. For example, [baIt] – [bi:t], [bEVt] – [bLt]. Any diphthong could be commutated with practically any vowel.

The English diphthongs consist of two elements, the first of which, the nucleus, being strong and distinct and the second, the glide, being very weak and indistinct.

The position of the tongue. It is characterized by from two aspects, that is the horizontal and vertical movement. According to the horizontal movement Soviet phoneticians* distinguish five classes of the English vowels. They are:

1) front: [i:], [e], [eI], [x], [F(q)];

2) *front retracted: [I], [I(q)];

3) central: [A], [E:], [q], [E(V)], [F(V)];

4) back: [P], [L], [u:], [R];

5) *back-advanced: [V], [V(q)].

According to the vertical movement

Thus the following six groups of vowels are distinguished:

1) close a) narrow variation: [i:], [u:];

b) broad: [I], [V], [I(q)], [V(q)].

2) mid a) narrow variation: [e], [E:], [q], [e(I)], [E(V)];

b) broad: [q], [A];

3) open a) narrow variation: [F(q)], [L], [OI];

b) broad: [x], [a(I, V)], [P], [R]

Lip rounding. Traditionally three lip positions are distinguished:

1) spread;

2) neutral;

3) rounded.

Lip rounding takes place rather due to physiological reasons than to any other. Any back vowel in English is produced with rounded lips, the degree of rounding is different and depends on the height of the raised part of the tongue; the higher it is raised the more rounded the lips are. So lip rounding is a phoneme constitutive indispensable feature, because no back vowel can exist without it.

Checkness. The typical English transition is from a vowel to a consonant (VC). As a result all short English vowels are checked when unstressed. The degree of checkness may vary and depends on the following consonant. Before a fortis voiceless consonant it is more perceptible than before a lenis voiced consonant. All long vowels are free.

For example, doggy, level, setter, fatter are divided into syllables in such a way that the short vowels remain checked; unlike Russian Боря, Сева, Рита, тряпка.

The English monophthongs are traditionally divided into two varieties according to their length:

a) short vowels: [I], [e], [x], [P], [V], [A], [q];

b) long vowels: [i:], [R], [L], [E:], [u:].

Vowel length or quantity. Any vowel has a physical duration – time which is required for its production (articulation). When in connected speech they influence one another. Duration is one of the characteristics of a vowel which is modified by and depends on the following factors:

- its own length;

- the accent (stress) in which it occurs;

- phonetic context;

- the sound position in a syllable;

- the position in a rhythmic structure;

- the position in a tone group;

- the position in a phrase;

- the position in an utterance;

- the tempo of the whole utterance;

- the type of pronunciation;

- the style of pronunciation.

The approach of D. Jones*, an outstanding British phonetician, extends the principle, underlining phonological relevance (meaningfulness) of vowel quantity. (Jones D. Phoneme: its nature and Use. – Cambridge, 1967) That means that words in such pairs as [kIn] – [ki:n], [bIt] – [bi:t], ['fLwE:d] (foreword) - ['fLwqd] (forward) are distinguished from one another by the opposition of different length, which D. Jones calls chronemes. This difference is considered to be decisive and the difference in quality (the position of the active organ of speech) is subordinate to the difference in quantity. The following oppositions can be:

[V] – [H] full – fool;

[E:] – [q] is fairly specific because the [q] phoneme never occurs in a stressed syllable and forms the core of unstressed vocalism in English. The phoneme [E:]

seldom occurs in an unstressed syllable.

[R] – [A] is arbitrary as in cart – cut.

[L] – [P] this quantitative correlation exists, i.e. forks – fox.

It is generally known that a voiced consonant following a vowel increases its length, so in the word beat [i:] is only half about as long as the [i:] of the word bee and may approximately have the same duration as the [I] vowel of bid. But still the words bid and bead are perceived as different words because the vowels are different in quality, [I] being front retracted, a pure monophthong, and [i:] being front close (narrow) and a diphthongized vowel.

[x] being classed as historically short tends to be lengthened in Modern English, especially before lenis consonants [b], [d], [g], [G], [m], [n], [z]. In this position [x] has the same quantity as long vowels [i:], [Q:], [O:], [u:], [E:]. This extra length serves an additional distinctive feature and the qualitative – quantitative relation of [x] – [e] tends to become of the same type as [i:] – [I].

Tenseness characterizes the state of our organs of speech at the moment of production of a vowel. Historically long vowels are tense while historically short vowels are lax. Tenseness may be considered as indispensable concomitant feature of English long vowels.

Thus there are two characteristics that are functionally relevant. They are:

1) stability of articulation;

2) tongue position.

The rest of the features mentioned above, that is lip position, character of vowel end, length, and tenseness, are indispensable constituents of vowel quality.

The unstressed syllables are usually associated with vowels of central or centralized quality [q], [I], sometimes [V] and the diphthongs [EV], [aI] (or a syllabic consonant). For example, about [q'baut], restore [rI'stO:], hopeful ['hqupfVl], connect [kq'nekt], aubergine ['qVbqGi:n], garden ['gQ:dn].

Also vowels of full quality sometimes occur in unstressed positions, often in borrowed words of Latin and Greek origin, e.g. architect ['Q:kItekt], paragraph ['pxrqgrQ:f], canteen [kxn'ti:n]. In English as well as in Russian there are numerous alternations of vowels in stressed and unstressed syllables between the derivatives of the same root or different grammatical forms of the same word:

[x] – [q] man – sportsman

[A] – [q] some – something

[P] – [q] combine n - combine v

[eI] –[q] operation - operative

[EV]–[q] post – postpone

We may represent English vowels in the following way:

If we want to speak a foreign language in an objectively correct way it is natural we should pay attention to the quality and (quantity) of our sounds which is constituted by articulatory features of both kinds.

II. Modifications of Vowels in Connected Speech.

The modifications of vowels in a speech chain can be quantitative, qualitative or both. These changes of vowels are determined by a number of factors such as the position of the vowel, in the word, accentual structure, tempo of speech, rhythm, etc.

The decrease of the vowel quantity (the shortening of the vowel length) is known as a quantitative modification of vowels, which may be illustrated as follows:

1) The shortening of the vowel length occurs in an unstressed position. In this case reduction affects both the length of the unstressed vowels and their quality.

For example, Is it → on or ١in the table? [Pn]

But: This →lamp is on the ١table in the room. [qn]

Is →he or ١she to blame? – [hi:].

But: In the ر morning he a'rrived and 'solved all his١problems. [hI]

2) The length of a vowel depends on its positioning a word. It varies in different phonetic environments. For example, knee – need – neat. The vowel [i:] is the longest in the final position, it is shorter before the lenis voiced consonant [d], and it is the shortest before the fortis voiceless consonant [t].

Quantitative modifications of most vowels occur in unstressed positions Vowels lose “their characteristics”, quality:

1) In unstressed syllables vowels of full value are usually apt to quantitative changes. For example, man [mxn] – postman ['pqVstmqn], conduct ['kPndqkt] – conduct [kqn'dAkt]. In such cases the quality of the vowel is reduced to the neutral sound [q].

The neutral sound [q] is the most frequent sound of English. In continuous text it represents about 11% (per cent) of all sounds. It is the result of the rhythmic pattern: if unstressed syllables are given only a short duration, the vowel in them which might be otherwise full is reduced. English rhythm prefers a pattern in which stressed syllables alternate with unstressed ones. In single words a shift of stress is often accompanied by a change of vowel quality; a full vowel becomes [q], and [q] becomes a full vowel. Compare: analyze ['xnqlaIz] – analysis [q'nxlIsIs]; in both words full vowels appear in the stressed positions, alternating with [q] in unstressed positions.

2) Slight degree of nasalization marks vowels preceded or followed by the nasal consonants[n], [m]. For example, never, no, then, men (accommodation).

The realization of reduction as well as assimilation and accommodation is connected with the style of speech. In rapid colloquial speech reduction may result in vowel elision, the complete omission of the unstressed vowel, which is also known as zero reduction. Zero reduction is likely to occur in a sequence of unstressed syllables, history, factory, laboratory, literary, territory, etc. It often occurs in initial unstressed syllables preceding the stressed one, for example, complete, believe, presuppose, perhaps.

The example below illustrates a step-by-step reduction (including zero reduction) of a phrase.

Has he done it? [hxz hI·׀ dAn It]

[hqz hI ׀ dAn It]

[qz I ׀ dAn It]

[z I ׀ dAn It]

Certain interrelation (between the full form of a word and its reduced forms) is conditioned by the tempo, rhythm and style of speech.

Topics for discussion:

1) What are the integral characteristics of vowels?

2) What is the quality of a vowel determined and modified by? What can the particular quality of a vowel depend on?

3) What criteria are conceived to be of great importance in classificatory description?

4) Which groups are English vowels subdivided into when the change in the tongue position is fairly weak? Name 20 vocalic phonemes which are made of vowels and vowel glides. Do you know any other long phonemes with different glides?

5) How many classes of English vowels do Soviet phoneticians distinguish according to the horizontal movement of the tongue? What are they?

6) What role do lips play in the production of a sound? When are vowels checked? What do we understand by long / short vowels?

7) What does the duration of a vowel depend on? What is it modified by? What vowel oppositions exist? What does D. Jones call chronemes?

8) Is tenseness a vowel characteristic? What features are considered to be indispensable constituents of vowel quality?

9) Are there any alternations of vowels in stressed and unstressed syllables between the derivatives or different grammatical forms of the same word in English and Ukrainian?

10) What are quantitative and qualitative modifications of vowels caused by? What is reduction (as well as assimilation and accommodation) connected with?

Summer- the time for outings and holidays

In the summer, it can be as hot as 32°C (90°F) but mostly the temperature only reaches 26°C. The average high in London from June through August is around 70°F/21°C and the average low is around 51°F/12°C.

Average conditions for London, UK

(Average Temperature in Centigrade)

Autumn

Autumn -
The leaves begin to change colour,
transforming England’s landscape into an array of autumn colours.

Average conditions for London, UK

(Average Temperature in Centigrade)

Winter

Winter - the time for snow and frost

In the winter, the temperature can drop below freezing point (32°F/0°C) but rarely drops much below. It is cold, wet and windy and it sometimes snows between December and March. In the mornings we have to scrape the ice from our cars.

The average winter temperature is 38.6°F/3.7°C. Normally, the UK gets 13 inches (332 mm) of rain sleet and snow each winter.

Frost on a car

Interesting Facts

The lowest temperature recorded is -27.2°C (-17°F ) - in Braemar in Grampian, Scotland, on 11 February 1895 and 10 January 1982.

Average conditions for London, UK

(Average Temperature in Centigrade)

Length of Daylight

The British Isles have a latitude between 50° N and 60° N. At this latitude, the length of daylight has a significant variation between summer and winter. For example in mid-December the period between sunrise and sunset in London is 7 hours and 50 minutes, while in Lerwick, Shetland (north of Scotland), it is 5 hours and 50 minutes; in mid June it is 16 hours and 40 minutes in London and 18 hours 50 minutes in Lerwick.