Principles of classification of English consonants.
What are Consonant Sounds?
All the letters of the alphabet can be divided into two basic categories: vowels
and consonants. A vowel is a speech sound produced by a relatively open configuration
of the vocal tract, with the vibration of the vocal cords but without audible friction.
Consonant sounds are the opposite of the vowel sounds. Consonants are made
with air stream that meets an obstruction in the mouth or nasal cavities. That is why in
the production of consonant sounds there is a certain degree of noise.
All the letters apart from the five vowels a,e, i, o and u are known as consonants.
A consonant letter in the alphabet usually represents a consonant sound; however, some
consonants like c,g,s can represent more than one consonant sound. For example, note
the difference in pronunciation between [c] in cat /kat/ and [c] in cease /siːs/.
There are 21 consonant letters in the English language and 24 consonant sounds in most
English accents. A consonant has to be linked to a vowel to make a syllable. (A syllable
is a unit of pronunciation, and all words are made of at least one syllable.
Consonants are the bones of a word and give it its basic shape. English accents
differ mainly in vowels, the consonants are more or less the same wherever English is
spoken. So if your vowels are not perfect you may still be understood by the listener,
but if the consonants are imperfect there may be some misunderstanding.
The sentence "W-l y- -nv-t- m-1- th- p-t-?" "Will you invite me to the party?" is easy
for understanding even if all the vowel letters would be left out. But if we leave all the
consonant letters out : "-i- -ou i—i-e -e -o —e -a-y" it is impossible to make any sense
out of it.
Phoneticians classify consonants according to the following principles:
I.
According to the type of obstruction. Within this principle, they are
subdivided into 3 groups:
a) Occlusives, which is divided into 2:
-
Plosives. The consonant is produced by stopping the flow of air at some
point and suddenly releasing it.
The plosives are: p,b,t,d,k,g
-
Sonorants: m,n,ng.
b) Constrictive consonants.
-
Fricative consonants. A consonant that is made when you squeeze air through a
small hole or gap in your mouth.
The fricatives are: f,v,θ,ð,s,z,ʃ,ʒ,h
-
Sonorants: r,j,l,w.
C) Occlusive-constrictive consonants\affricates\: /t͡ʃ/ and /d͡ʒ/.
II.
According to active organs of speech :
1) Labial consonants:
a) Bilabial : p,b,m,w
b) Labio-dental: f,v.
2) Lingual consonants:
a) Forelinguals: t,d,s,z, θ,ð, ʃ,ʒ,l, d͡ʒ, n, r.
b) Medio-lingual: y
c) Back-lingual: k.g,ng.
3) Pharyngeal(glottal) – h.
III.
According to the work of the local cords:
1) Voiced consonants. Voiced consonants make sound using the vibration
of the vocal folds in the larynx. The easiest way to identify a voiced
consonant is to place your finger on your throat. If you feel a vibration,
then the consonant is voiced.
They are: /b, d, g, z, v,ʒ, ð,m, n, ng, l, r, j, w, d3/.
2) Voiceless consonants. There is no vibration in unvoiced consonants.
They make sound using the movement of air through parts of your
mouth.
They are: /p, t, k, s, f, ͡tʃ , h, θ, ʃ /.
IV.
According to the position of the soft palate:
1) Oral.
2) Nasal. A consonant that is produced through the nose with the mouth
closed. [n] , [ng] and [m] are the main examples of nasal consonants in
English.
Consonant Sounds – Summary

A consonant sound is a basic speech sound that is produced by obstructing the
breath in the vocal tract.

There are 21 consonant letters in the English language and 24 consonant sounds.

A consonant has to be linked to a vowel to make a syllable.

Voice and unvoiced consonants are the major two types of consonants.

In addition, consonants can be further divided into plosives, fricatives, nasals, etc.
depending on their pronunciation.