questions for topic 7

(try answer the questions, then move the pointer below the question to see the answer)

1. What are tense and lax vowels?
   Tense is used as a supercategory for free and smooth vowels, lax is used as a supercategory for checked and broad vowels; free and smooth vowels on the one hand, checked and broad vowels on the other, exhibit common characteristics in the way they are spelled
2. How many sound equivalents does a single vowel letter typically have?
   four: free, smooth (collectively, tense) and checked, broad (collectively, lax)
3. When is a vowel in covered graphic position?
   when it is followed by a consonant letter, which is not followed by a vowel letter, but either is word final (mat) or by another consonant letter (matter)
4. What is a stop+liquid cluster?
   it is a letter representing a plosive (B, C, D, G, P, T; and also F, which is not a plosive) followed by a letter representing a liquid (L, R)
5. Why are stop+liquid clusters relevant?
   because although they consist of two consonant letters, the vowel before them is not in covered position
6. What are the two basic spelling rules?
   a single vowel letter in free position represents a tense (free or smooth) vowel, a single vowel letter in covered position represents a lax (checked or broad) vowel
7. What is the prime motivation for doubling consonant letters in English if English has no double consonants in pronunciation?
   this is one way to achieve covered graphic position: fit~fitted
8. What is the prime motivation for adding a silent E to the end of words in English?
   this is to achieve free position for a tense vowel followed by consonant letter at the end of a word: hate (cf hat)
9. What is the problem with the letter V?
   it must be followed by a vowel letter, so a checked vowel before /v/ will be in free graphic position: live, give, have, love
10. What is a shortening or laxing environment?
    a spelling configuration in which we regularly find a checked vowel in free graphic position
11. Why is the word licenses not an exception to trisyllabic laxness, although it does not have a lax vowel in the third syllable from the end?
    because it contains a free stem (a word, [lájsəns]) before a syllabic suffix ([iz]), so its stressed vowel is not in the third syllable from the end after all
12. What are laxing endings?
    one syllable endings, -ic, -id, -it/et, -el and nonadjectival -ish, before which we regularly find a checked vowel: panic, tepid, digit, comet, parish
13. Why is Danish [déjniʃ] not an exception to the above?
    because it is an adjective
14. Why is the stressed vowel of vision [víʒən] checked although it is in free position?
    because it is followed by CiV (-sio-)
15. Why is the stressed vowel of lesion [líjʒən] not checked although it is followed by CiV?
    because CiV laxing only applies to the single vowel letter I/Y, vowels spelled by other vowel letters are tense before CiV
16. Why does the laxing ending not count in mosaic [məwzéjik] not count?
    because only a free vowel may occur before another vowel (prevocalic tenseness)

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