 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The) A z( [3 m3 _( D" T' g1 N) e
Initial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the: E& e2 V. m' r4 k$ R) H# u$ U0 L
syllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,
- C( x! E- P3 O5 e8 {8 b0 V: q! Eand uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial' N! s' A% j2 X. S7 o1 e7 _
(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of) h9 y. G9 q4 D8 U* [/ `: B
retroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).9 U6 |! j! U( T' k) ?
A Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=
. q$ j) U' ]9 ^3 T4 O9 n[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]
, Q5 H# e6 \* Z3 X: R: W" K(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving
9 J/ H* n4 J* N; ^+ n! rretroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on# A& q8 s+ u% p' u. _3 M4 q
possible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
" o. T( m# B. j( g# D(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two. G: V3 ~9 I0 [4 ~
segments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a) B6 Z1 k4 ^+ [9 b# m- F+ w
semivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.* k6 h1 x( `" Q& Y
end with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In5 |$ t) |/ b$ T- p& C: y/ N1 ]6 `
compound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,( G& E: o# h" B+ ?) V
the latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..) \/ L2 r$ S7 K
+ i/ g8 C1 b1 b) T3 K; d$ |(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)
" W- ?/ X4 B* kand American speakers of English, |
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