phonology

Definitions of Phonology

1. (noun) The study of speech sounds in language.
2. (noun) The formal rules for structuring speech sounds.

Phonology Pronunciation

Pronunciation Usage Guide

Syllabification: pho·nol·o·gy

Audio Pronunciation

International Phonetic Alphabet

• American English – /fəˈnɑlədʒi/
• British English – /fəˈnɒlədʒi/

Usage Notes

• Plural: phonologies
• Phonology focuses on the distribution and patterns of speech sounds or phonemes in addition to the rules of pronunciation that govern speech sounds.
• Also called phonemics.
• A linguist or specialized (noun) phonologist studies phonology to understand (adjective) phonologic or (adjective) phonological aspects of language.

Related Videos

Additional Information

• Sociolinguistics Resources – Books, Journals, and Helpful Links
• Word origin of “phonology” – Online Etymology Dictionary: etymonline.com
• Carr, Philip, and Jean-Pierre Montreuil. 2013. Phonology. 2nd ed. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
• Gussmann, Edmund. 2002. Phonology: Analysis and Theory. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Phonology –Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia: wikipedia.org
• UC Berkeley Phonology Lab – phonetics and phonology: linguistics.berkeley.edu
• What is Phonology?: hum.uchicago.edu

Related Terms

• grammar
• language
• morpheme
• phoneme
• semantics
• sociolinguistics
• speech
• symbol
• syntax

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Cite the Definition of Phonology

ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)

Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “phonology.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved October 15, 2024 (https://sociologydictionary.org/phonology/).

APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)

phonology. (2014). In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/phonology/

Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)

Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “phonology.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Accessed October 15, 2024. https://sociologydictionary.org/phonology/.

MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)

“phonology.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2014. Web. 15 Oct. 2024. <https://sociologydictionary.org/phonology/>.