I. Brainstorming

Have you learned English for so many years? Do you know some phonological rules?

II. Phonological rules

Phonemes are abstract sound units stored in the mind, while allophones are the actual pronunciations in speech. •

What phoneme is realized by what allophones in what specific context is another major question in phonology. •

The regularities that what sounds vary in what ways in what context are generalized and stated in phonology as rules.

There are many phonological rules in English. Take the following ones as examples.

• Devoice a voiced consonant after a voiceless consonant.

[+voiced +consonant] →[-voiced]/[-voiced +consonant]_

• Voiceless stops are aspirated when they occur initially in a stressed syllable.

• Nasalize vowels before nasals.

• An alveolar stop becomes a flap when preceded by a stressed vowel and followed by an unstressed vowel.

III. Distinctive and non-distinctive features

Features that distinguish meaning are called distinctive features, and features do not, non-distinctive features.

Distinctive features in one language may be non-distinctive in another.