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Voice (phonetics)
Voice (phonetics)
Voice (phonetics)
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Phonetics
Subdisciplines
Articulation
Places of articulation
Manners of articulation
Airstream mechanisms
Acoustics
Phonation (Voicing)
Phonation types
Perception
Theories of speech perception
Linguistics
Voiced
◌̬
Encoding
Entity (decimal)̬
Unicode (hex)U+032C
Voiceless
◌̥
Encoding
Entity (decimal)̥
Unicode (hex)U+0325

Voice or voicing is a term used in phonetics and phonology to characterize speech sounds (usually consonants). Speech sounds can be described as either voiceless (otherwise known as unvoiced) or voiced.

The term, however, is used to refer to two separate concepts:

  • Voicing can refer to the articulatory process in which the vocal folds vibrate, its primary use in phonetics to describe phones, which are particular speech sounds.
  • It can also refer to a classification of speech sounds that tend to be associated with vocal cord vibration but may not actually be voiced at the articulatory level. That is the term's primary use in phonology: to describe phonemes; while in phonetics its primary use is to describe phones.

For example, voicing accounts for the difference between the pair of sounds associated with the English letters ⟨s⟩ and ⟨z⟩. The two sounds are transcribed as [s] and [z] to distinguish them from the English letters, which have several possible pronunciations, depending on the context. If one places the fingers on the voice box (i.e., the location of the Adam's apple in the upper throat), one can feel a vibration while [z] is pronounced but not with [s]. (For a more detailed, technical explanation, see modal voice and phonation.) In most European languages, with a notable exception being Icelandic, vowels and other sonorants (consonants such as m, n, l, and r) are modally voiced.[citation needed]

Yidiny and Yanyuwa have no underlyingly voiceless consonants, only voiced ones.[1]

When used to classify speech sounds, voiced and unvoiced are merely labels used to group phones and phonemes together for the purposes of classification.

Notation

[edit]

The International Phonetic Alphabet has distinct letters for many voiceless and voiced pairs of consonants (the obstruents), such as [p b], [t d], [k ɡ], [q ɢ]. In addition, there is a diacritic for voicedness: ⟨◌̬⟩. Diacritics are typically used with letters for prototypically voiceless sounds.

In Unicode, the symbols are encoded U+032C ◌̬ COMBINING CARON BELOW and U+0325 ◌̥ COMBINING RING BELOW.

The extensions to the International Phonetic Alphabet have a notation for partial voicing and devoicing as well as for prevoicing:

Partial (de)voicing[2]
₍s̬₎ partial/central voicing of [s] ₍z̥₎ partial/central devoicing of [z]
₍s̬ initial voicing ₍z̥ initial devoicing
s̬₎ final voicing z̥₎ final devoicing

Partial voicing can mean light but continuous voicing, discontinuous voicing, or discontinuities in the degree of voicing. For example, ₍s̬₎ could be an [s] with (some) voicing in the middle and ₍z̥₎ could be [z] with (some) devoicing in the middle.

Partial voicing can also be indicated in the normal IPA with transcriptions like [ᵇb̥iˑ] and [ædᵈ̥].[3]

In English

[edit]

The distinction between the articulatory use of voice and the phonological use rests on the distinction between phone (represented between square brackets) and phoneme (represented between slashes). The difference is best illustrated by a rough example.

The English word nods is made up of a sequence of phonemes, represented symbolically as /nɒdz/, or the sequence of /n/, /ɒ/, /d/, and /z/. Each symbol is an abstract representation of a phoneme. That awareness is an inherent part of speakers' mental grammar that allows them to recognise words.

However, phonemes are not sounds in themselves. Rather, phonemes are, in a sense, converted to phones before being spoken. The /z/ phoneme, for instance, can actually be pronounced as either the [s] phone or the [z] phone since /z/ is frequently devoiced, even in fluent speech, especially at the end of an utterance. The sequence of phones for nods might be transcribed as [nɒts] or [nɒdz], depending on the presence or strength of this devoicing. While the [z] phone has articulatory voicing, the [s] phone does not have it.

What complicates the matter is that for English, consonant phonemes are classified as either voiced or voiceless even though it is not the primary distinctive feature between them. Still, the classification is used as a stand-in for phonological processes, such as vowel lengthening that occurs before voiced consonants but not before unvoiced consonants or vowel quality changes (the sound of the vowel) in some dialects of English that occur before unvoiced but not voiced consonants. Such processes allow English speakers to continue to perceive difference between voiced and voiceless consonants when the devoicing of the former would otherwise make them sound identical to the latter.

English has four pairs of fricative phonemes that can be divided into a table by place of articulation and voicing. The voiced fricatives can readily be felt to have voicing throughout the duration of the phone especially when they occur between vowels.

Voicing contrast in English fricatives via minimal pairs
Articulation Voiceless Voiced
Pronounced with the lower lip against the teeth: [f] (fan) [v] (van)
Pronounced with the tongue against the teeth: [θ] (thin, thigh) [ð] (then, thy)
Pronounced with the tongue near the gums: [s] (sip) [z] (zip)
Pronounced with the tongue bunched up: [ʃ] (Confucian) [ʒ] (confusion)

However, in the class of consonants called stops, such as /p, t, k, b, d, ɡ/, the contrast is more complicated for English. The "voiced" sounds do not typically feature articulatory voicing throughout the sound. The difference between the unvoiced stop phonemes and the voiced stop phonemes is not just a matter of whether articulatory voicing is present or not. Rather, it includes when voicing starts (if at all), the presence of aspiration (airflow burst following the release of the closure) and the duration of the closure and aspiration.

English voiceless stops are generally aspirated at the beginning of a stressed syllable, and in the same context, their voiced counterparts are voiced only partway through. In more narrow phonetic transcription, the voiced symbols are maybe used only to represent the presence of articulatory voicing, and aspiration is represented with a superscript h.

Voicing contrast in English stops
Articulation Unvoiced Voiced
Pronounced with the lips closed: [p] (pin) [b] (bin)
Pronounced with the tongue near the gums: [t] (ten) [d] (den)
Pronounced with the tongue bunched up: [tʃ] (chin) [dʒ] (gin)
Pronounced with the back of the tongue against the palate: [k] (coat) [ɡ] (goat)

When the consonants come at the end of a syllable, however, what distinguishes them is quite different. Voiceless phonemes are typically unaspirated, glottalized and the closure itself may not even be released, making it sometimes difficult to hear the difference between, for example, light and like. However, auditory cues remain to distinguish between voiced and voiceless sounds, such as what has been described above, like the length of the preceding vowel.

Other English sounds, the vowels and sonorants, are normally fully voiced. However, they may be devoiced in certain positions, especially after aspirated consonants, as in coffee, tree, and play in which the voicing is delayed to the extent of missing the sonorant or vowel altogether.

Degrees of voicing

[edit]

There are two variables to degrees of voicing: intensity (discussed under phonation), and duration (discussed under voice onset time). When a sound is described as "half voiced" or "partially voiced", it is not always clear whether that means that the voicing is weak (low intensity) or if the voicing occurs during only part of the sound (short duration). In the case of English, it is the latter.

Juǀʼhoansi and some of its neighboring languages are typologically unusual in having contrastive partially-voiced consonants. They have aspirate and ejective consonants, which are normally incompatible with voicing, in voiceless and voiced pairs.[4] The consonants start out voiced but become voiceless partway through and allow normal aspiration or ejection. They are [b͡pʰ, d͡tʰ, d͡tsʰ, d͡tʃʰ, ɡ͡kʰ] and [d͡tsʼ, d͡tʃʼ] and a similar series of clicks, Lun Bawang contrasts them with plain voiced and voicelesses like /p, b, b͡p/.[5]

Voice and tenseness

[edit]

There are languages with two sets of contrasting obstruents that are labelled /p t k f s x …/ vs. /b d ɡ v z ɣ …/ even though there is no involvement of voice (or voice onset time) in that contrast. That happens, for instance, in several Alemannic German dialects. Because voice is not involved, this is explained as a contrast in tenseness, called a fortis and lenis contrast.

There is a hypothesis that the contrast between fortis and lenis consonants is related to the contrast between voiceless and voiced consonants. That relation is based on sound perception as well as on sound production, where consonant voice, tenseness and length are only different manifestations of a common sound feature.

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

Voice (phonetics)

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In phonetics, voice refers to the periodic vibration of the vocal folds in the larynx during speech sound production, which generates a fundamental acoustic signal characterized by a "buzzy" quality and distinguishes voiced sounds from voiceless ones. This vibration occurs when subglottal air pressure from the lungs forces the vocal folds apart, followed by their elastic recoil and the Bernoulli effect that draws them together, typically at frequencies of about 110 Hz for adult males, 180–220 Hz for adult females, and up to 300 Hz for children. All vowels and many consonants, such as , , , , and in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), are voiced, while voiceless counterparts like , , , , and lack this vibration, allowing air to flow freely through the glottis. The phonetic quality of voice extends beyond binary voiced-voiceless distinctions to include variations in vibration patterns, such as breathy or creaky voicing, which influence sound timbre and can carry linguistic contrasts in certain languages. Voicing plays a central role in phonological systems worldwide, with approximately 80% of languages employing voicing contrasts among obstruent consonants to differentiate meaning, as documented in cross-linguistic databases. In articulatory terms, the vocal folds' approximation and tension are modulated by laryngeal muscles, interacting with supralaryngeal articulation to shape the resonant properties of speech sounds. Acoustically, voiced sounds exhibit periodic waveforms with a fundamental frequency (F0) that determines pitch, while deviations in voicing can signal prosodic features like stress, intonation, or even emotional tone in spoken language.

Fundamentals

Definition and Basics

In phonetics, voice refers to the periodic vibration of the vocal folds during , which generates voiced sounds such as the stops /b/, /d/, and /g/. This modulates the from the lungs, creating a periodic source that is filtered by the vocal tract to produce audible . Voiced sounds are distinguished from voiceless sounds by the presence or absence of this vocal fold ; for instance, the is voiced with , while is voiceless without it. In voiced sounds, the vocal folds approximate and vibrate due to subglottal pressure, producing a buzzing quality, whereas voiceless sounds rely solely on turbulent through vocal tract constrictions without such . Acoustically, the vibration of the vocal folds establishes the (F0), which determines the perceived pitch of the voice and is typically around 100-200 Hz for adult males and 200-300 Hz for adult females in speech. This F0 manifests as the lowest frequency component in the sound spectrum, with harmonics at integer multiples, providing the periodic structure essential to voiced . In speech perception, voicing serves as a critical cue for distinguishing consonants, such as the voiceless stop /p/ from its voiced counterpart /b/, primarily through differences in voice onset time—the interval between consonant release and the onset of vocal fold vibration. Listeners rely on these temporal and spectral properties to categorize sounds rapidly, facilitating efficient phonological processing.

Physiological Mechanisms

The , located in the anterior , serves as the primary organ for voice production through the vibration of the vocal folds, also termed true . These are paired mucosal folds consisting of the thyroarytenoid muscle, , and overlying , suspended between the and arytenoid cartilages. The refers to the potential space between the vocal folds, which can be opened or closed to regulate airflow. Adduction of the vocal folds—bringing them together to enable —is primarily achieved via the lateral cricoarytenoid and interarytenoid muscles, with the lateral cricoarytenoid rotating the arytenoid cartilages medially to approximate the membranous and cartilaginous portions of the folds. The physiological basis of voicing is described by the myoelastic-aerodynamic theory, which posits that vocal fold vibration arises from the interplay between elastic properties of the folds and aerodynamic forces from airflow. Formulated by van den Berg in 1958, this theory highlights how subglottal pressure from the lungs forces the adducted folds apart during the initial phase of vibration, while then generates negative pressure in the due to increased airflow velocity through the narrowed space, drawing the folds back together. of the vocal fold tissues, combined with myoelastic tension, completes the cycle, sustaining at frequencies typically ranging from 70 to 300 Hz in adults. The phonatory cycle unfolds in distinct stages: the closed phase, where the vocal folds are fully approximated, building subglottal pressure without airflow; the opening phase, in which rising pressure overcomes fold tension, separating the inferior edges first and allowing air to escape through the ; and the return phase, where Bernoulli effects and elasticity cause the folds to close from inferior to superior, restoring the closed configuration. This mucosal wave propagation ensures efficient vibration with minimal energy loss. Key factors modulating voicing include subglottal pressure, generated by pulmonary airflow and typically measuring 5-10 cm H₂O during conversational phonation, which drives the amplitude and intensity of vibration. Vocal fold tension, adjusted by the cricothyroid muscle that elongates and stiffens the folds, directly influences oscillation rate. Additionally, vocal fold length varies by sex, with adult females possessing shorter folds (approximately 12-18 mm) compared to males (17-25 mm), resulting in higher fundamental frequencies and pitch in females due to reduced mass and increased stiffness relative to length. This periodic vibration of the vocal folds produces a that determines the perceived pitch of the voice.

Phonetic Features

Notation Systems

In , the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) provides standardized symbols to distinguish voiced from voiceless sounds, primarily through paired consonants where the voiced counterpart appears to the right of the voiceless one in the consonant chart. For example, voiceless stops are represented as [p, t, k] and their voiced equivalents as [b, d, g], while voiceless fricatives like [f, θ, s] contrast with voiced [v, ð, z]. To indicate voicing on sounds that lack dedicated symbols, the IPA employs diacritics: the voiceless diacritic [◌̥] modifies a typically voiced sound to show lack of vibration (e.g., [n̥] for voiceless nasal), and the voiced diacritic [◌̬] adds vibration to a typically voiceless sound (e.g., [s̬] for voiced fricative). These diacritics extend the basic pulmonic consonant inventory to capture deviations from standard voicing patterns. For non-pulmonic sounds, such as clicks in Khoisan languages, the IPA applies voicing diacritics to base click symbols; for instance, the dental click [ǀ] becomes voiced as [ǀ̬] when produced with vocal fold vibration alongside the ingressive airstream. This notation accommodates the complex phonetics of languages like those in the Tuu family, where clicks vary in voicing. Prior to the IPA's establishment in 1886, earlier notation systems used varied marks for voicing. Henry Sweet's Romic alphabet (1877), a precursor to the IPA, distinguished voiced consonants by inserting a voice symbol, such as » (resembling a small j) or ¤ (resembling g), into the base symbol for voiceless sounds (e.g., inserting » into a stop symbol to indicate voicing). Otto Jespersen's analphabetic notation (1889) represented voicing indirectly through articulatory formulas involving the larynx (denoted by ε), integrating it into descriptions of constriction and airflow rather than using standalone diacritics. In practical transcription, these notations highlight voicing contrasts in minimal pairs, such as English "pat" transcribed as [pʰæt] (voiceless aspirated stop) versus "bat" as [bæt] (voiced stop), demonstrating how a single voicing difference alters meaning. Such applications aid in linguistic analysis and language teaching by precisely capturing phonetic distinctions.

Degrees of Voicing

In , voicing manifests in various degrees beyond the simple voiced-voiceless , encompassing a range of types that vary in vocal fold vibration patterns, airflow, and glottal tension. These gradations, often termed non-modal phonations when deviating from the standard, play crucial roles in distinguishing sounds across languages and contribute to prosodic and paralinguistic features. Modal voice is the default phonation type employed in the majority of languages, characterized by regular, periodic vibration of the vocal folds with moderate glottal closure and airflow, producing a clear, steady sound without significant turbulence or irregularity. This type allows for a wide pitch range and a relatively linear spectral tilt, making it the baseline for typical speech production. Breathy voice arises from a looser approximation of the vocal folds compared to modal voice, permitting greater airflow that introduces turbulent noise and a softer, airy quality while still involving vibration. In the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), it is indicated by the diacritic [◌̤], as in the murmured stops of Hindi, exemplified by [bʱ], where breathiness extends into the following vowel. Creaky voice features irregular vibrations at a low frequency due to tightened glottal constriction, often involving only the posterior part of the vocal folds and resulting in a gravelly or pulsed quality. It is denoted in IPA with [◌̰], and a notable linguistic instance is the Danish stød, a suprasegmental feature realized as creaky phonation in stressed syllables of certain words. Whispery voice involves voiceless or minimally voiced with prominent glottal frication, creating a hissing effect as air passes through a narrowed but non-vibrating ; it forms a continuum with murmured (, where degrees of can vary from absent to intermittent. This type contrasts with pure whisper by occasionally incorporating subtle voicing alongside the fricative noise. Partial voicing in obstruents refers to intermittent vocal fold within , rather than consistent voicing throughout, commonly observed in languages where full voicing is not strictly maintained. This phenomenon is typically measured by the voice timing ratio (VTR), calculated as the duration of the voiced portion divided by the total segment duration, with values between 0.1 and 0.9 indicating partial rather than complete voicing.

Linguistic Applications

Voicing in English

In , voicing serves as a primary for obstruents, which include stops, fricatives, and . The voiced obstruents consist of the stops /b, d, g/, the fricatives /v, ð, z, ʒ/, and the /dʒ/, contrasting with their voiceless counterparts /p, t, k, f, θ, s, ʃ, h, tʃ/. This in voicing is phonemic, meaning it distinguishes lexical items and is not merely allophonic variation. Phonological contrasts based on voicing are evident in numerous minimal pairs, where a single difference in voicing alters word meaning. For instance, /sæp/ "" (the fluid from a ) contrasts with /zæp/ "zap" (to destroy quickly), highlighting the opposition between the voiceless /s/ and its voiced counterpart /z/. Similarly, /bɪt/ "" (past of bite) differs from /pɪt/ "pit" (a hole), demonstrating the stop contrast /b/ versus /p/. These pairs underscore how voicing cues are integral to semantic differentiation across obstruent manners of articulation. English exhibits voicing assimilation rules in obstruent clusters, resulting in homogeneous voicing, often through regressive assimilation in . For example, the plural of "ad" is realized as [ædz], with the suffix pronounced as voiced after the voiced stop /d/. This pattern also applies in inflectional morphology, such as the plural , which is realized as after voiced s (e.g., "dogs" [dɒgz]) but as after voiceless ones (e.g., "cats" [kæts]); this is commonly analyzed as regressive voicing assimilation from an underlying /z/. Regressive voicing assimilation is rarer in native English clusters but can occur in or loanwords. Allophonic variations affect voiced obstruents, notably partial devoicing in word-final position, where full voicing is reduced or absent. For example, the voiced stop in "bad" [bæd] is often realized as partially devoiced [bæt̚] or [bæd̥], with glottal pulsing limited due to aerodynamic constraints at utterance boundaries. This devoicing is incomplete, preserving some voicing contrast perceptually, but it is more pronounced in isolated words than in connected speech. Fricatives like /z/ and /v/ show similar tendencies, though less extremely, maintaining partial voicing word-finally. Historically, the (c. 1400–1700) indirectly influenced consonant voicing perception by altering the long s that preceded voiced obstruents. In , s were phonetically longer before voiced consonants, providing a durational cue to voicing; the shift raised and diphthongized these lengthened s (e.g., /iː/ to /aɪ/, /uː/ to /aʊ/), transforming the primary perceptual cue from duration to quality differences. This evolution shifted reliance toward other cues like voice onset time for stops, while the historical length-voicing link persists subtly in modern dialects as the "voicing effect."

Voicing Across Languages

Voicing patterns exhibit significant typological variation across the world's languages, with some favoring voiceless s in prominent positions while others incorporate voiced or glottalized consonants more extensively. In languages like Japanese, obstruents are predominantly voiceless in isolation, including stops and fricatives such as /p, t, k, s, ʃ/, but a process known as introduces intervocalic voicing in compound words, where the initial voiceless obstruent of the second element becomes voiced, as in hana-gasa 'flower hat' from /hana/ + /kasa/. This sequential voicing applies primarily when the obstruent is followed by a or glide and is blocked by Lyman's Law if the second element already contains a voiced obstruent. Conversely, voiced-dominant systems are evident in languages such as Spanish, where the stops /b, d, g/ are realized as voiced fricatives or [β, ð, ɣ] in continuant contexts, particularly between vowels or after continuants like /l/ or /ɾ/, as in habla [ˈaβla] 'speak'. This spirantization process, a form of , applies across dialects and reflects a preference for voiced continuants in non-obstruent-initial positions. Further contrasts arise in glottalized consonants, where languages like Sindhi employ voiced implosives such as [ɓ, ɗ, ʄ, ɠ], produced with ingressive airflow and lowering of the , contrasting with plain voiced stops like [b, d, j, ɡ] in the phonemic inventory. In Quechua, by comparison, voiceless ejectives predominate, including [p', t', k', q'], articulated with glottalic egressive and no voicing, often in initial positions to distinguish meaning, as in dialects. Tonal interactions with voicing are prominent in languages like , where historical voicing of initials influenced tone registers: voiced initials in led to lower-pitched tones (now tones 2, 3, and 4), while voiceless initials corresponded to higher tones (tone 1), a pattern preserved in the modern tone system despite the merger of voiced initials to voiceless unaspirated stops. Typologically, voiceless stops occur more frequently than voiced stops in word-initial positions across languages, as documented in surveys of consonant inventories, reflecting a universal tendency for voiceless obstruents to predominate at utterance onsets. This pattern holds in diverse families, contrasting with the greater prevalence of voiced sonorants universally.

Voice and Tenseness

In phonetics, the relationship between voice and tenseness manifests distinctly in consonants, where articulatory tension influences the realization of voicing contrasts. Tense voiceless stops, such as the aspirated [pʰ] and [tʰ] in English, are produced with greater muscular effort in the glottis and supralaryngeal articulators, resulting in longer closure durations compared to their lax voiced counterparts and , which exhibit reduced tension and partial or full voicing during closure. This tension-voicing interaction is evident in the fortis-lax distinction, where fortis (tense) consonants like voiceless stops maintain voicelessness through heightened subglottal pressure and glottal adduction, while lax (lenis) consonants allow for voicing due to lower tension. For vowels, similarly modulates voicing patterns, particularly in languages like German, where tense vowels such as [iː] are typically longer and more readily voiced than their lax counterparts [ɪ], which are shorter and prone to devoicing in certain contexts. High tense vowels maintain voicing more robustly due to sustained airflow, whereas lax high vowels, like [ɪ] and [ʊ], often undergo partial devoicing because elevated position increases oral pressure, impeding the transglottal necessary for vocal fold . This devoicing tendency in lax high vowels is exacerbated in unstressed positions or adjacent to voiceless obstruents, highlighting how reduced facilitates voice loss. Phonologically, voice-tenseness interactions underpin rules like English , where intervocalic alveolar stops /t/ (tense, voiceless) and /d/ (lax, voiced) both reduce to a voiced flap [ɾ], but the process is conditioned by lax articulatory settings that shorten closure duration and promote voicing assimilation. In this rule, the underlying of /t/ is neutralized in lax phonetic environments between stressed and unstressed vowels, illustrating how tenseness can override strict voicing distinctions to yield a single lax voiced variant. Acoustically, tense sounds across consonants and vowels exhibit correlates such as increased duration, higher intensity, and more peripheral structures, while lax variants show shorter durations and centralized formants with reduced . For instance, tense displays stronger, more distinct formants (lower F1 around 270 Hz) and greater overall energy compared to lax [ɪ] (higher F1 around 390 Hz), reflecting the heightened subglottal pressure and articulatory precision in tense production. These differences underscore how enhances voicing stability through amplified acoustic prominence.

Voice Onset Time

Voice onset time (VOT) is the acoustic measure of the interval between the release of a stop —acoustically indicated by a burst of —and the beginning of voicing, defined as the onset of periodic vocal fold vibration, with values expressed in milliseconds. This temporal parameter captures the precise timing relationship between the articulatory release and laryngeal activity, serving as a robust cue for perceiving voicing contrasts in obstruents. VOT values fall into distinct categories that correlate with phonological voicing distinctions. Negative VOT occurs in prevoiced stops, where voicing precedes the release, as in Spanish /b/, with mean values around -125 ms leading to fully voiced closures. Near-zero or short-lag VOT (0 to +30 ms) characterizes voiced unaspirated stops, exemplified by English /b/ at approximately 5 ms, while voiceless unaspirated stops exhibit short positive lag values of about +30 ms; in contrast, voiceless aspirated stops, notated as [pʰ], show long-lag VOT exceeding +60 ms, such as 68 ms for English /p/. These categories reflect laryngeal adjustments, with negative and short-lag values indicating earlier glottal pulsing relative to oral release. Measurement of VOT typically involves spectrographic analysis to visualize the acoustic signal, using tools like software to identify the burst onset and the first evidence of voicing through periodicity or emergence. The value is computed via the VOT=tvoicing onset−trelease burst\text{VOT} = t_{\text{voicing onset}} - t_{\text{release burst}}, where times are extracted from the or landmarks. Cross-linguistic differences in VOT highlight its role in encoding voicing systems; for example, French voiceless stops rely on short-lag VOT (mean ~30 ms) for the unaspirated series, whereas Thai contrasts include long-lag VOT (>80 ms) for aspirated stops alongside shorter values for unaspirated counterparts. In , children's VOT production evolves from variable, overlapping distributions in infancy to refined, categorical patterns matching adult norms by preschool age, with initial short-lag dominance giving way to language-specific prevoicing or aspiration.

References

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