 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The
2 B7 G2 O( V+ u1 E, bInitial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the
5 \4 g0 I5 R4 F/ U: R4 N, Y( S1 ^syllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,
$ }3 |' ]' b1 N3 J% @( fand uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial
0 C5 D, a" O1 L. o! e(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of
0 J. G m; X. S L: s" |6 ]1 U# Bretroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).% ?5 @3 {; M2 Q1 _$ H4 k' f" G$ E3 e
A Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=" K5 a6 n- E( S+ M7 q
[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]
, F1 O. T( r2 e; S(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving2 \$ f* U4 T3 t( z7 Z [& M& S
retroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on' u8 x" _0 [! z# T, t& l! x
possible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
. x/ [7 N4 S! o" m/ h$ B(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two
/ K1 F- s/ D, r+ U; H/ ysegments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a
' e& N5 p' O: i5 Hsemivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.
' \/ \; R& l4 b; q* v9 \end with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In
/ ]; |& I) H4 A+ y; Ycompound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,
9 J3 A" c, W) C# s8 I8 Q8 M/ ~# bthe latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..
6 y9 \, P( W% X3 a, O, k' v: }
; p/ r# n8 W5 V(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)
; Z1 f4 B `! r {' fand American speakers of English, |
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