This document discusses phonology and the relationship between phonemes and allophones. It defines phonemes as the smallest units of sound that distinguish meaning, while allophones are predictable variants of phonemes that are conditioned by their context. Phonemes group sets of similar-sounding allophones. For example, [p] and [ph] in English are allophones of the same /p/ phoneme because they occur in complementary distribution and can be substituted without changing a word's meaning. Allophones are phonetic realizations of phonemes that follow language-specific rules.

1. A Phonetic Variant of Phoneme

2. Phonology
 The study of the mental organization of a language’s
sound system.
 Units of organization :
– Biggest: syllables, metrical feet, words
– Middle: segments (phonemes and allophones)
– Smallest: features

3. PHONEME
 smallest phonological unit that distinguish
meaning
 Phonemes are abstract mental unit of sound
 Example :
sip zip
fine vine
chunk junk

4.  Phonemes are marked by testing minimal pair
 Minimal pairs are pairs of words which vary only by
the identity of the segment and there is a
difference in meaning
 Phonemes are the basic sounds - the significant ,
non-predictable ones
 Phonemes are groups of sound-variants; whenever
we actually pronounce a sound we use an
allophone, one of the variants in the group. The
choice of which variant we use in any context
depends on subconscious rules

5. Allophone
 allophones are the variations within each group of
phoneme
 The different ways the phonemes are realized in
various positions are called Allophones which are
predictable, and non-significant.
 Allophones are usually relatively similar sounds
which are in mutually exclusive or complementary
distribution
 Occasionally allophone selection is not conditioned
but may vary form person to person and occasion to
occasion (ie. free variation)

8.  In English, [ph] and [p] are allophones of
the same phoneme (/p/), meaning that a
word doesn’t change its meaning if we
substitute one sound for the other.

9. Complementary Distribution
 When two phones are mutually
exclusive, i.e.,they appear in different
environments
 – [spæt] [phæt] *[sphæt] *[pæt]
 – [spul] [phul] *[sphul] *[pul]
 [ph] and [p] are in complementary
distribution (which means they are
allophones of the same phoneme)

10.  When the substitution of two or more sounds in the same position
does not result in any change of meaning, they’re said to be in free
variation.
Example :
[i]ther and I say [ai]ther,
[ni:]ther and I say [nai]ther,
There is an old song from the 1930s :
You say [i]ther and I say [ai]ther,
You say [ni:]ther and I say [nai]ther,
[i:]ther [ai]ther [ni:]ther [nai]ther
let’s call the whole thing off.

13.  In any one language or dialect there are
usually rather more sounds than speakers
are aware of
 in general: allophones = conditioned
variants of a phoneme; generated by
phonological conditioning(= a matter of
language-specific rules of pronunciation')