 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The
* s0 L: N8 R- nInitial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the0 W$ L$ }) R1 k: P
syllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,
5 u# r/ f6 }* W$ L/ Zand uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial! \4 F0 G' l0 q g/ W
(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of5 Q$ K. @8 t6 k
retroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).# @1 b P7 J8 Y' u
A Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=
& v: l; V8 B! { k" J[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]* r+ X6 p+ u( q, A8 q; a% M0 `
(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving# R- z, A" x" U) J, F* k
retroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on" {' C9 k4 q9 ^! z" e; y
possible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
& I% l6 |% P3 ?(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two
/ m9 L \) a. Osegments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a
* m8 R: J" E# M( L9 u" Gsemivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.
6 B) M) X. ~ R* i& Z# ]$ a5 Oend with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In/ K' Q2 K+ G4 p
compound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element, v& g; S4 d* v! u" \& n$ l
the latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..
. m8 s" y# z0 Q# M* o
9 x- e! I- @8 |) d(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)$ U" q, G# i2 A s5 C3 |- d) O& A% u
and American speakers of English, |
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