Mohammed Kheider University of Biskra Faculty of Letters and LanguagesDepartment of Foreign Languages

Branch of English

Module: Phonetics Student’s Full Name: ………..………..…

Level: First Year LMD ………..………..…………..………..…………..…

Date: January 13th, 2016 Group Number: ………..………..……….

First Semester Exam Paper in English Phonetics Note:Pleasedonotusethecorrectionpen.Useonlyblueorblackpens.

Task One: Define the following terms briefly. (4 points)

1. International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) ……………………………….……………….

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2. Received Pronunciation (RP) …………………………………………..………………..

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3. Minimal Pairs ……………………….……………………………………….…………..

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4. Vocal Cords …...…………………………………………………………………….…….

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Task Two: In the process of speech production what happens in (3 points)

1. Psychological stage ? ………………………………………….…………………………

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2. Physiological stage ? ………………………………………………….………………….

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3. Acoustic stage ? ……………………………………………………………….………...

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Task Three: Give four minimal pairs opposing /iː/ and /æ/ (4 points)

1. ………………….………… …………………………….

2. ………………….………… …………………………….

3. ………………….………… …………………………….

4. ………………….………… ……………………………..

Task Four: Decide whether the following statements are true or false. Justify! (6 pts)

1. The glottis is the part of the larynx between the vocal cords and the cartilages. …………….

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2. Acoustic phonetics describes how speech organs articulate the human speech sounds. …….…..

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3. Orthography is the process of writing down spoken language as a written text using the IPA

symbols. ………………..

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4. Suprasegmental phonology is based on the segmentation of language into individual speech

sounds provided by phonetics. ………..……..

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5. Phonetics and linguistics are two separate disciplines which study language. ….…………..

……………………………………………………………………………….…………………….. 6. Phonology is a branch of phonetics concerned with the description of speech. …………….

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7. Nasal sounds are articulated when the soft palate is lowered. ………………..

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Task Five: Using the features below identify the following English vowels: (3 points)

1. Vowel height 2. Tongue advancement 3. Vowel length 4. Lip-rounding

a. / iː/ …………….…. ……………………… ………………. …………….

b. / ɪ / ………………. ……………………… ………………. …………….

c. / e / ………………. ……………………… ………………. …………….

Good Luck /ˌɡʊd ˈlʌk/