4. Consonants

Consonants

The diagramme shows the 24 consonant phonemes of Standard British English, divided into four groups. The groups are arranged according to degree of closure of the vocal organs. The Nasals and Stops are produced with complete oral closure, the Fricatives with sufficient closure to cause audible friction, whereas Approximants, though produced with narrowing of the vocal organs, are still open enough for friction not to occur. The groups will be treated individually in the teaching units section.

It is important to note that some consonants come in pairs, others do not. If there is no pair, the consonant in question is always voiced. If there is a pair, there is one voiced and one unvoiced variant. Unvoiced consonants are pronounced with far greater force than voiced consonants, and therefore termed Fortis. The voiced form is termed Lenis. This distinction, called the Fortis/Lenis contrast, plays a far greater role than voicing. Of still greater importance is the fact that a fortis consonant tends to cut the length of the preceding sound(s), whereas a lenis consonant tends to lengthen. Language learners should take great care to observe and practice this phenomenon.

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