ABSTRACT

This chapter describes the process by which humans make sounds, the way that linguists categorize these sounds, and the way that these sounds combine in language. It also looks at how English pronunciation has changed over time and how English pronunciation varies across geographic regions. Also, this chapter covers the processes by which sounds can change. It is a brief overview of phonetics, the study of the inventory of sounds that humans produce by moving air through the vocal tract, and phonology, the study of how these sounds are combined to form words or portions of words.