Examkin

Question

Difficulty: MediumConsonant Sounds

Complete the sentence below by identifying the standard International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) symbol for the underlined consonant sound in each word.

Answer:In the word 'measure', the underlined letter 's' represents the consonant sound 【/ʒ/】, whereas in 'mission', the underlined letters 'ss' represent the consonant sound 【/ʃ/】.

Answer

The letter 's' in 'measure' represents the voiced post-alveolar fricative sound /ʒ/, while the letters 'ss' in 'mission' represent the voiceless post-alveolar fricative sound /ʃ/.
In English oral phonology, the letter 's' in 'measure' is pronounced with voicing as /ʒ/. In contrast, the digraph 'ss' in 'mission' is voiceless, yielding the sound /ʃ/.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Determine the phonetic sound produced by the letter 's' in 'measure'.
The vocal cords vibrate during production, giving the voiced post-alveolar fricative sound represented by /ʒ/.
Words ending in '-sure' following a vowel (such as 'pleasure', 'leisure', 'measure') typically articulate the consonant sound /ʒ/.
2
Determine the phonetic sound produced by the letter combination 'ss' in 'mission'.
The vocal cords do not vibrate, giving the voiceless post-alveolar fricative sound represented by /ʃ/.
The spelling pattern '-ssion' produces the voiceless consonant sound /ʃ/ as seen in words like 'session' and 'admission'.

Key Concept

Phonetic contrast between voiced post-alveolar fricatives (/ʒ/) and voiceless post-alveolar fricatives (/ʃ/).
Rate this question

Topics

Consonant Sounds

More questions from this topic