English Sonorants

[m, n, ŋ, l, w, j, r]

Sonorants are sounds pronounced with tone prevailing over noise; the air passage is rather wide when they are produced. When producing sonorants there is only a partial closure or an unimpeded oral or nasal escape of air; such articulations, typically voiced, and frequently frictionless, without noise component, thus they share many phonetic characteristics with vowels.

Place of articulation Manner of articulation		Bilabial	Fore-lingual apical alveolar	Fore-lingual apical post-alveolar	Medio-lingual palatal	Back-lingual, velar
Occlusive nasal		m	n	-	-	ŋ
Constrictive oral	medial	w	-	r	j	-
	lateral	-	L	-	-	-

Occlusive nasal sonorants

[m, n, ŋ]

These sounds are articulated with a complete obstruction, thus they are occlusive, with the soft palate lowered when the air escapes through the nasal cavity, and thus they are nasal.

[m]

Spelling

m – mean, man mm – summer, hammer mn – autumn, column

Mb – comb, thumb lm – calm gm - diaphragm

Description

[m] is occlusive nasal, bilabial sonorant (articulated with the lips slightly pressed together, forming a complete obstruction to the air stream through the mouth cavity; the soft palate is lowered and the air passes out through the nasal cavity).

Notice!

• [m] sounds longer at the end of an isolated word or a sense-group after a short vowel or before a voiced consonsnt or a vowel, e.g.: dim [dim:], lambs [læm:z], mole [m:əul]

• [m] sounds shorter before a voiced consonant, e.g.: lamp.

Production

1. Close your lips, but keep your teeth very slightly apart.

2. Lower your soft palate, and rest your tongue on the floor of the mouth.

3. Produce voice, allowing the air to come out through your nose.

Challenge Materials

Mommy made me eat my M&Ms.

There was a minimum of cinnamon in the aluminum pan.

Meter maid Mary married manly Matthew Marcus Mayo, a moody male mailman moving mostly metered mail.

Mary Mac's mother's making Mary Mac marry me. My mother's making me marry Mary Mac. Will I always be so Merry when Mary's taking care of me? Will I always be so merry when I marry Mary Mac?

[n]

Spelling

n – not, no nn – sunny, penny kn – know, knife

gn – gnaw, sign, gnat pn – pneumonia mn - mnemonic

Description

[n] is occlusive nasal, forelingual apical alveolar sonorant (articulated with the tongue tip touching the alveolar ridge (apical articulation), forming a complete obstruction to the air stream through the mouth cavity; the soft palate is lowered and the air passes out through the nasal cavity).

Notice!

Like in case with [m] the sonorant [n] may have variants of different length, depending on its position in the word (see [m]).

Production

1. Open your mouth slightly. Place the tip of your tongue on the upper gum ridge. At the same time, place the sides of your tongue along the upper inside surface of the molars.

2. Lower the soft palate so that air can leave via your nostrils.

3. Produce noise.

Challenge Materials

Ann and Andy's anniversary is in April.

You know New York . You need New York . You know you need unique New York .

Ninety-nine new-born babies need ninety-nine new napkins

Near an ear, a nearer ear, a nearly eerie ear.

[ŋ]

Spelling

N + velar consonant

ng – long, tongue, finger, sing, tongue

nk – sink

nc – uncle, anchor

nx – anxious (with [k])

Description

[ŋ] is occlusive nasal, backlingual, velar sonorant (articulated with the back of the tongue (the dorsum) raised and touching the soft palate (the velum), thus forming a complete obstruction to the air stream through the mouth cavity; the soft palate is lowered and the air passes out through the nasal cavity).

Notice!

Like in case with [m, n] the sonorant [ŋ] may have variants of different length, depending on its position in the word (see [m, n]).

Production

1. Open your mouth fairly wide.

2. Place the back of your tongue against your soft palate, as though you were going to say the first sound of the word go.

3. Lower your soft palate, produce voice, and let the air and sound leave through your nose.

Challenge Materials

Don't spring on the inner-spring this spring or there will be an offspring next spring.

Mrs King is bringing something pink for Mr King to drink.

The king would sing, about a ring that would go ding.

Thomas thinks of terrible things And to the troubled teacher brings Things that sing and things that sting, Things which swing and things which cling, Things that ping, and ring, and fling, And of all these things thinks nothing.