 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The
J' S* R$ f8 s# TInitial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the
' D0 w) Q2 w! l5 N) asyllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,
9 s7 m/ R8 h8 j0 M# gand uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial l, S! |4 x( b& {6 V' S
(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of
; T0 ^( T7 v2 Rretroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).
4 ^$ b, w5 N [1 j* r4 ~. B" JA Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=' H3 |- X- p* M: q7 E
[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]
3 s( C% j/ o, h+ G: ~(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving, E' e; o0 H" }- s
retroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on
0 }$ o3 X* i' l* H4 k% Qpossible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
# f0 l" G2 u7 l/ a; V ~& D% P(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two
, L1 B8 ]5 L/ @. o/ k* v& Psegments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a
2 l5 y, J! o9 w3 Psemivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.2 m6 |8 Q7 w, s. t5 Y
end with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In* |( q# s3 z6 [5 z
compound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,/ ?5 L2 E/ Y. G {7 R, ^( |" |
the latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..: L4 O W( e3 L! Z9 O' K
, g5 H; G9 F% R6 A" }(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)! ]- v5 q/ t" l0 `: t
and American speakers of English, |
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