Checked and free vowels
Encyclopedia
In phonetics
and phonology
, checked vowels are those that usually must be followed by a consonant
in a stressed syllable
, while free vowels are those that may stand in a stressed open syllable with no following consonant.
phonetics and phonology. They are seldom used for the description of other languages, even though a distinction between vowels that usually have to be followed by a consonant and those that do not have to is common in most Germanic languages
.
The terms checked vowel and free vowel correspond closely to the terms lax vowel and tense vowel
respectively, but many linguists prefer to use the terms checked and free as there is no clearcut phonetic definition of vowel tenseness, and since by most attempted definitions of tenseness /ɔː/ and /ɑː/ are considered lax, even though they behave in American English
as free vowels.
Checked vowels is also used to refer to a kind of very short glottalized vowels found in some Zapotecan languages
that contrast with laryngealized vowels. The term checked vowel is also used to refer to a short vowel followed by a glottal stop
in Mixe
, where there is a distinction between two kinds of glottalized syllable nuclei: checked ones, with the glottal stop after a short vowel, and nuclei with rearticulated vowels (a long vowel with a glottal stop in the middle).
, the five checked vowels are: as in bit as in bet as in bat as in put as in putt
There are a few exceptions, mostly in onomatopoeias: yeah /jæ/; eh /ɛ/; duh, huh, uh, uh-uh, and uh-huh with /ʌ/.
The free vowels are: as in bee as in bay as in boo as in toe, no as in paw (doesn't occur in varieties with the low back merger). as in bra as in burr as in buy as in cow, now as in boy
The schwa
/ə/ and rhotacized
schwa /ɚ/ are usually considered neither free nor checked, since they cannot stand in stressed syllables at all.
Phonetics
Phonetics is a branch of linguistics that comprises the study of the sounds of human speech, or—in the case of sign languages—the equivalent aspects of sign. It is concerned with the physical properties of speech sounds or signs : their physiological production, acoustic properties, auditory...
and phonology
Phonology
Phonology is, broadly speaking, the subdiscipline of linguistics concerned with the sounds of language. That is, it is the systematic use of sound to encode meaning in any spoken human language, or the field of linguistics studying this use...
, checked vowels are those that usually must be followed by a consonant
Consonant
In articulatory phonetics, a consonant is a speech sound that is articulated with complete or partial closure of the vocal tract. Examples are , pronounced with the lips; , pronounced with the front of the tongue; , pronounced with the back of the tongue; , pronounced in the throat; and ,...
in a stressed syllable
Syllable
A syllable is a unit of organization for a sequence of speech sounds. For example, the word water is composed of two syllables: wa and ter. A syllable is typically made up of a syllable nucleus with optional initial and final margins .Syllables are often considered the phonological "building...
, while free vowels are those that may stand in a stressed open syllable with no following consonant.
Usage
The terms checked vowel and free vowel originated in EnglishEnglish language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
phonetics and phonology. They are seldom used for the description of other languages, even though a distinction between vowels that usually have to be followed by a consonant and those that do not have to is common in most Germanic languages
Germanic languages
The Germanic languages constitute a sub-branch of the Indo-European language family. The common ancestor of all of the languages in this branch is called Proto-Germanic , which was spoken in approximately the mid-1st millennium BC in Iron Age northern Europe...
.
The terms checked vowel and free vowel correspond closely to the terms lax vowel and tense vowel
Tenseness
In phonology, tenseness is a particular vowel quality that is phonemically contrastive in many languages, including English. It has also occasionally been used to describe contrasts in consonants. Unlike most distinctive features, the feature [tense] can be interpreted only relatively, that is, in...
respectively, but many linguists prefer to use the terms checked and free as there is no clearcut phonetic definition of vowel tenseness, and since by most attempted definitions of tenseness /ɔː/ and /ɑː/ are considered lax, even though they behave in American English
American English
American English is a set of dialects of the English language used mostly in the United States. Approximately two-thirds of the world's native speakers of English live in the United States....
as free vowels.
Checked vowels is also used to refer to a kind of very short glottalized vowels found in some Zapotecan languages
Zapotecan languages
The Zapotecan languages are a group of related Oto-Manguean languages which descend from the common proto-Zapotecan language spoken by the Zapotec people during the era of the dominance of Monte Albán....
that contrast with laryngealized vowels. The term checked vowel is also used to refer to a short vowel followed by a glottal stop
Glottal stop
The glottal stop, or more fully, the voiceless glottal plosive, is a type of consonantal sound used in many spoken languages. In English, the feature is represented, for example, by the hyphen in uh-oh! and by the apostrophe or [[ʻokina]] in Hawaii among those using a preservative pronunciation of...
in Mixe
Mixe languages
The Mixe languages are languages of the Mixean branch of the Mixe–Zoquean language family indigenous to southern Mexico. According to a 1995 classification, there are seven of them...
, where there is a distinction between two kinds of glottalized syllable nuclei: checked ones, with the glottal stop after a short vowel, and nuclei with rearticulated vowels (a long vowel with a glottal stop in the middle).
English
In General AmericanGeneral American
General American , also known as Standard American English , is a major accent of American English. The accent is not restricted to the United States...
, the five checked vowels are: as in bit as in bet as in bat as in put as in putt
There are a few exceptions, mostly in onomatopoeias: yeah /jæ/; eh /ɛ/; duh, huh, uh, uh-uh, and uh-huh with /ʌ/.
The free vowels are: as in bee as in bay as in boo as in toe, no as in paw (doesn't occur in varieties with the low back merger). as in bra as in burr as in buy as in cow, now as in boy
The schwa
Schwa
In linguistics, specifically phonetics and phonology, schwa can mean the following:*An unstressed and toneless neutral vowel sound in some languages, often but not necessarily a mid-central vowel...
/ə/ and rhotacized
R-colored vowel
In phonetics, an R-colored or rhotic vowel is a vowel that is modified in a way that results in a lowering in frequency of the third formant...
schwa /ɚ/ are usually considered neither free nor checked, since they cannot stand in stressed syllables at all.