 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The0 b8 R5 F) N: i) l
Initial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the, I+ E$ j) [4 X) f9 D8 D
syllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,. C0 Y+ J0 s7 d/ d/ n5 l
and uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial2 x* ^; v- w7 E9 u" @+ J; |8 B# ]
(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of: T1 a+ J% c- a6 U4 l
retroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).
' ?: L: s$ b; yA Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=+ X: O# Q) j$ G0 M7 F, L; F: K- e0 W
[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]
6 J4 ?8 u) ]- C9 o, N) m(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving- ? q0 s: d7 ?/ v8 g0 t
retroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on$ Y5 G/ J' c A* _: l$ t& y
possible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
7 E; |5 ~" x% {0 R' N- h5 @(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two
/ c1 _+ d) m' E% n. C8 e0 esegments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a
. T6 c6 @, k8 M0 U7 u2 U/ }. W' Y2 @" msemivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.
& Q0 `0 D/ H! R* K/ ]' }+ qend with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In0 m, y% R: [+ y
compound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,8 O8 ?5 n* u; F! C/ x$ l4 R
the latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..
5 n# \2 [2 R, P" `0 A9 i5 ?
- l' p( \# O( |7 K/ u(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)
% i) J8 t6 W( R( V2 @- Wand American speakers of English, |
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