Anatomy of Spoken Language

Have you ever wondered how to get your mouth to make the sound you are attempting to learn in a new language.  The figures below show how you mouth and vocal tract produce sounds.  The touch, lips, teeth, control the air pass through the mouth to produce certain sounds.  The images below show the main parts of the mouth and where each vowel sound is produced.  See this article for more information about how sounds are produced.  See an audio IPA chart.



This interactive diagram is from Phonetics: The Sounds of Spoken Language

International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)

The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) is standard method for expressing the range of sounds of that we use in the languages of the world.  This is a useful tool for linguists and language learners as it is the way to write every possible sound.  It often is helpful to see the “big picture” of all the sounds and how they relate to each other.  It can also help you understand how to get your mouth to make the desired sound in your new language.  If you learn the IPA, you will be able to write the proper pronunciation or every word in every language.

Learn more about the IPA: