LINB09H3 Chapter 9: LINB09 Chapter 9
Document Summary
Vowels are traditionally described along three dimensions: height, backness, rounding. Height and backness are used to describe the shape of the tongue, usually by indicating the highest point of the tongue. The tongue may be bunches forward so that its highest point is near the palate, for a vowel [i], or drawn back and down so that the highest point is low and back as for [ ] Those lying between high and low are called mid. Vowels lying between front and back are called central vowels. A vowel right in the centre of the vowel area is this mid central vowel. We can use higher high, lower high, higher mid, lower mid, higher low, lower low if we need distinguish more than 3 heights: some use close and open instead of high and low. Rounding is the 3rd dimension of vowel production; it refers to shape of the lips are rounded and all other vowels are unrounded.
