Open and close vowels

[Fame]

I've got a few questions here:

1. what's an open and a close vowel?
2. What's a bilabial plosive?
3. What's a palatial semi-vowel?
4. What would be the ending sound of "enveloped"? would that be a /t/ or a /d/ sound?

Thanks for any advice.

Fame

[beascarpetta]

1. what's an open and a close vowel?

The tongue is highest in the vowels in heed and who'd, which are therefore called high, or close, vowels,
and lowest in the vowels in had and hod, which are called low, or open, vowels.

2. What's a bilabial plosive?

A plosive is a consonant sound characterized by the momentary blocking (occlusion) of some part of the oral cavity.
b and p are bilabial plosives
bilabial sounds are sounds produced by rounded lips (bi Latin= both;labia Latin = lips)

3. What's a palatal semi-vowel?

w is a rounded labio-velar semivowel that turns into a rounded palatal semivowel before front high, high-mid and mid vowels.

4. What would be the ending sound of "enveloped"?
I would definitely go for the /t/ sound.

hope this helps.

[Fame]

Thanks a lot beascarpetta. I understand 2, 4 but could you please explain 1, 3 further.......I still don't get it.

Frustrated

[Soup]

1. Open and closed refer to the position of your tongue when pronouncing vowels. If your tongue us high (near the roof of your mouth), then the vowel is said to be closed because your tongue fills the cavity of your mouth. If your tongue is low (near your bottom teeth), then the vowel is said to be open because the cavity of your moth is open. See the chart here for open and closed vowels: Vowel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

3. Bi- means 2 and labial means lips. So bilabial means 2 lips. Sounds that are produced using both lips are [m], [p], and [b]. Only two of those are plositives, sounds that require you to build up air at the glottis (located in your throat), and then release it quickly. LIKE AN EXPLOSION! The sound [m] doesn't do this, so it's not a plositive.

[Soup]

Correction

1. Open and closed refer to the position of your tongue when pronouncing vowels. If your tongue is high (near the roof of your mouth), then the vowel is said to be closed because your tongue fills the cavity of your mouth. If your tongue is low (near your bottom teeth), then the vowel is said to be open because the cavity of your mouth is open.

[beascarpetta]

Maybe you should have a look there for more information on vowels
give me a holler,if you can't access the site


and go there
for palatal
for consonants/semi-vowels /glides have a look there
you have to download the pdf file but it will really help you

[Buddhaheart]

Additionally, <y> (IPA phonetic symbol /j/) is also a palatal semivowel.