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Spanish Phonology: Sound Patterns, Syllables, Stress, and Variation

5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 5 match pairs · 5 fill-in sentences · English

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Summary

This lesson introduces the conventions used to describe Spanish sounds and surveys several important consonant patterns. It matters because the same phoneme can have different pronunciations depending on its position or dialect.

A phoneme is a sound category that can distinguish words in a language. A phone is a particular spoken realization of a sound. Phonemic representations appear between slashes, as in /b/, while phonetic representations appear in brackets, as in [β]. The source describes Castilian Spanish unless it identifies a dialectal difference.

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Phonemic and phonetic notation
Slashes represent phonemic categories, while square brackets represent phonetic pronunciations.
Allophones
Context-dependent pronunciations of one phoneme that ordinarily do not distinguish words.
Yeísmo
The merger of historical /ʎ/ with /ʝ/ in varieties without that contrast.
Distinción, seseo, and ceceo
Distinción preserves /s/ and /θ/; seseo merges them as /s/, while ceceo merges them into a pronunciation resembling [θ].
Hiatus
A sequence of adjacent vowels divided between separate syllables.

Quiz questions

  1. When are Spanish /b/, /d/, and /ɡ/ typically pronounced as voiced stops?Answer: After a pause or nasal, and /d/ also after a lateral.
  2. In many Spanish dialects, what can happen to syllable-final /s/?Answer: It may weaken to [h] or be deleted.
  3. For many Spanish nonverbs ending in a vowel, where does stress commonly fall?Answer: On the penultimate syllable.
  4. What sound is commonly inserted before word-initial /s/ plus another consonant in Spanish?Answer: An epenthetic /e/.
  5. What is the name for the devoicing of Rioplatense [ʒ] to [ʃ] in some speakers?Answer: Sheísmo.

Based on the Wikipedia article Spanish phonology, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Adapted into a summary, flashcards and quizzes.

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