Transcribing speech requires the use of a standardized system. The International Phonetic Alphabet is a notational system for transcribing the speech sounds of any world language. It is needed because there is no clear cut, one-to-one relationship between an alphabet letter and a speech sound. Download a copy of the full IPA chart here.

The phonological problem relates to the problem of how a listener knows which particular words have been uttered. The task of identifying the speech sounds that make up the words is made difficult by two factors: variation and co-articulation. These factors potentially make it difficult to segment one word from another in real-time speech.

Phonological processes The phonological processes that occur in speech may be thought of as consisting of…

Introduction We have seen elsewhere (Phonological Organization) that phonemes may be combined to form words…

Introduction We have seen elsewhere (see Syllables and Clusters) that English syllables generally: have a potential three-part…

A Stimulability Test is a straightforward way to determine if someone may have an articulation disorder. It is a simple repetition task. The tester merely says each speech sound and asks the person being tested to repeat the sound. An inability to repeat the sound accurately may indicate a phonetic difficulty.

In order to process spoken language, the brain must first capture the speech signal and then analyze it. Speech is perceived and processed by the auditory system of the brain. This article describes the functioning of the human ear and then highlights the distinctive way in which a part of the brain’s temporal lobe responds to speech.

A speech disorder (speech difficulty) may be due to an inability to articulate particular speech sounds. This is a phonetic disorder. There may also be difficulties in understanding and applying the rules which govern how particular speech sounds can be used in particular words. This is a phonological difficulty. A Stimulability Test can be conducted to rule out any phonetic difficulties.