The sounds of English and the

International Phonetic Alphabet

This chart contains all the sounds (phonemes) used in the English language. For
each sound, it gives:
The symbol from the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), as used in
phonetic transcriptions in modern dictionaries for English learners that
is, in A. !. "imson#s phonemic s$stem %ith a fe% additional s$mbols.
The chart represents &ritish and American phonemes %ith one s$mbol.
'ne s$mbol can mean t%o different phonemes in American and &ritish
English. (ee the footnotes for &ritish)onl$ and American)onl$ s$mbols.
T%o English words %hich use the sound. The underline sho%s %here the
sound is heard.
The lin*s labeled Amer and Brit pla$ sound recordings ($ou need Flash
+ or higher) %here the %ords are pronounced in American and &ritish
English. The &ritish version is given onl$ %here it is ver$ different from
the American version.
To print the chart, use the printable P,F version.
vo%els
IPA words listen
cup, luc*
Amer

arm, father
Amer - &rit

cat, blac*
Amer

met, bed
Amer
.
a%a$,
cinema
Amer
/
turn, learn
Amer - &rit
/
hit, sitting
Amer

see, heat
Amer
consonants
IPA words listen
bad, lab
Amer

did, lad$
Amer

find, if
Amer

give, flag
Amer

ho%, hello
Amer

$es, $ello%
Amer

cat, bac*
Amer

leg, little
Amer

vo%els
IPA words listen
hot, roc*
Amer - &rit
0
call, four
Amer - &rit
1
2
put, could
Amer

blue, food
Amer

five, e$e
Amer

no%, out
Amer

sa$, eight
Amer

go, home
Amer
3
bo$, 4oin
Amer

%here, air
Amer - &rit
.
5
near, here
Amer - &rit
5
pure, tourist
Amer - &rit
5
consonants
IPA words listen
man, lemon
Amer

no, ten
Amer

sing, finger
Amer

pet, map
Amer

red, tr$
Amer

sun, miss
Amer

she, crash
Amer

tea, getting
Amer
6
chec*, church
Amer

thin*, both
Amer

this, mother
Amer

voice, five
Amer

%et, %indo%
Amer

7oo, la7$
Amer

pleasure, vision
Amer

4ust, large
Amer

. In some (not man$) dictionaries, the phoneme is %ritten as (do
not confuse %ith ), %hich is actuall$ more appropriate, because
in the IPA does not correspond to the sound in met and bed. The
same goes for , but not .
/ In and , the is not pronounced in &rE, unless the sound
comes before a vo%el (as in answering, answer it). In AmE, the
is al%a$s pronounced, and the sounds are sometimes %ritten as
and .
0 In AmE, and are one vo%el, so calm and cot have the same
vo%el. In American transcriptions, hot is %ritten as .
1 About 189 of Americans pronounce the same %a$ as , so that
caught and cot have the same vo%el. (ee cot-caught merger.
2 In American transcriptions, is often %ritten as (e.g. law : ),
unless it is follo%ed b$ , in %hich case it remains an .
3 ;ost &ritish dictionaries represent as . For some &rE
spea*ers, is more appropriate (the$ use a rounded vo%el)
for others, the proper s$mbol is . For American spea*ers, is
usuall$ more accurate.
5 In , the is not pronounced in &rE, unless the sound
comes before a vo%el (as in dearest, dear Ann). In AmE, the is
al%a$s pronounced, and the sounds are often %ritten as .
6 In American English, is often pronounced as a <flap t<, %hich
sounds li*e or (more accuratel$) li*e the =uic*, hard r heard e.g.
in the (panish %ord pero. For e>ample: letter.
special s$mbols
IPA what it means
The apostrophe s$mbol ( ) is used to sho% %ord stress. ?suall$, it
is placed before the stressed s$llable in a %ord. For e>ample, /
/ is pronounced li*e this, and / / li*e that. @ord
stress is e>plained in our article about phonetic transcription.
is not a sound it is a short %a$ of sa$ing that an is
pronounced onl$ in American English. For e>ample, if $ou %rite
that the pronunciation of bar is / /, $ou mean that it is / /
in American English, and / / in &ritish English.
Ao%ever, in &rE, %ill be heard if is follo%ed b$ a vo%el. For
e>ample, far gone is pronounced / / in &rE, but far out is
pronounced / /.
is usuall$ pronounced li*e a shorter version of , but sometimes
(especiall$ in an old)fashioned &ritish accent) it can sound li*e .
E>amples: very / /, create / /, previous / /,
ability / /.
means that the consonant is pronounced as a separate s$llable
special s$mbols
IPA what it means
(the syllabic l, %hich sounds li*e a vo%el), or that there is a short
sound before it. E>amples: little / /, uncle / /.
Instead of the s$mbol, some dictionaries use the syllabic l
s$mbol , as in / /, or simpl$ , as in / /.
means that the consonant is pronounced as a separate s$llable
(the syllabic n, %hich sounds li*e a vo%el), or that there is a
short sound before it. E>amples: written / /, listen / /.
Instead of the s$mbol, some dictionaries use the syllabic n
s$mbol , as in / /, or simpl$ .
Does this chart list all the sounds that you can hear in
British and American English?
Bo. This page contains symbols used in phonetic transcriptions in
modern dictionaries for English learners. It does not list all the possible
sounds in American or &ritish English.
For e>ample, this page does not list the <regular t< (heard in this pronunciation
of letter) and the <flap t< (heard in this one) %ith separate s$mbols. It groups
them under a single s$mbol: . (In other %ords, it groups a number of similar
sounds under a single phoneme, for simplicit$. To understand ho% sounds are
grouped into phonemes, read the article on phonemic transcription.)
(o this page actuall$ lists phonemes (groups of sounds), not individual sounds.
Each symbol in the chart can correspond to many different (but similar)
sounds depending on the word and the spea!er"s accent.
Ta*e the phoneme in the above chart. It occurs in the phonemic transcriptions
of pin / / and spin / /. In pin, this phoneme is pronounced %ith
aspiration (breathing). This <aspirated p< sound has its o%n special s$mbol in
the IPA: . In spin, the phoneme is pronounced <normall$<C the <normal p<
sound is represented b$ in the IPA. (o the phoneme represents t%o sounds:
and . (This can be confusing, because can mean both the phoneme and
the sound.)
Typing the phonetic symbols
Dou %on#t find phonetic s$mbols on $our computer#s *e$board. Ao% do $ou
t$pe them in a @ord document, e)mail message, or (uper;emo collectionE
There are t%o solutions:
Dou can go to the IPA phonetic *e$board at ipa.t$peit.org, t$pe $our
transcriptions, and cop$ F paste them to $our document.
Dou can use the A(!II Phonetic Alphabet, %hich replaces IPA s$mbols
%ith characters that $ou can t$pe on $our *e$board.
Learning to pronounce the sounds
@e offer English pronunciation soft%are called PerfectPronunciation %hich
teaches learners to pronounce the most fre=uentl$ used English %ords. It lets
$ou listen to e>amples of English sounds, practice $our pronunciation, and
revie% $our *no%ledge. PerfectPronunciation uses the A(!II Phonetic Alphabet.
International Phonetic Alphabet
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
"IPA" redirects here. For other uses, see IPA (disambiguation).
Not to be confused with NATO phonetic aphabet.
International Phonetic Alphabet
Type Partially featural alphabet
Spoken
languages
Used for phonetic and phonemic
transcription of any language
Time period since 1888
Parent
systems
Romic alphabet
Phonotypic alphabet
o International Phonetic
Alphabet
Note: his page may contain IPA phonetic symbols in
Unicode!
International
Phonetic Alphabet
History
Nonstandard symbols
Extensions to the IPA
Naming conventions
IPA for English
The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)
[note 1
is a system of !honetic notation
based !rimarily on the "atin al!habet# devised by the International Phonetic Association
as a standardi$ed re!resentation of the so%nds of s!o&en lang%age'
[1
The IPA is %sed by
foreign lang%age st%dents and teachers# ling%ists# s!eech !athologists and thera!ists#
singers# actors# lexicogra!hers# conlangers and translators'
[([)
The IPA is designed to re!resent only those *%alities of s!eech that are distinctive in
s!o&en lang%age+ !honemes# intonation# and the se!aration of ,ords and syllables'
[1
To
re!resent additional *%alities of s!eech s%ch as tooth gnashing# lis!ing# and so%nds
made ,ith a cleft !alate# an extended set of symbols called the Extensions to the IPA is
%sed'
[(
-ccasionally symbols are added# removed# or modified by the International Phonetic
Association' As of (../# there are 1.0 distinct letters# 1( diacritics# and fo%r !rosody
mar&s in the IPA !ro!er'
Contents
"hide#
1 $istory
% &escription
o %!1 'etterforms
o %!% (ymbols and sounds
o %!) *rac+ets and phonemes
) Usage
o )!1 'inguists
o )!% 'anguage study
o )!) &ictionaries
)!)!1 ,nglish
)!)!% -ther languages
o )!. (tandard orthographies and capital variants
o )!/ 0lassical singing
. 'etters
o .!1 Pulmonic consonants
.!1!1 0oarticulation
.!1!% Affricates and double articulation
o .!% 1on2pulmonic consonants
o .!) 3o4els
/ &iacritics
5 (uprasegmentals
6 -bsolete symbols and nonstandard symbols
o 6!1 IPA e7tensions
8 (egments that have no symbols
o 8!1 0onsonants 4ithout letters
o 8!% 3o4els 4ithout letters
8 (ymbol names
19 A(0II transliterations, IPA influence on other phonetic alphabets
11 (ee also
1% 1otes
1) References
1. :urther reading
1/ ,7ternal lin+s
o 1/!1 ,ducation
o 1/!% IPA font do4nloads
o 1/!) ;eyboard input
o 1/!. (ound files
o 1/!/ Unicode charts
15 echnical note
[edit !istory
!ain artice" #istor$ of the IPA
In 1//2# a gro%! of 3rench and 4ritish lang%age teachers# led by the 3rench ling%ist
Pa%l Passy# formed ,hat ,o%ld come to be &no,n (from 1/50 on,ards) as the
International Phonetic Association (in 3rench# lAssociation phontique internationale)'
[6
The original al!habet ,as based on a s!elling reform for English &no,n as the 7omic
al!habet# b%t in order to ma&e it %sable for other lang%ages# the val%es of the symbols
,ere allo,ed to vary from lang%age to lang%age'
[1
3or exam!le# the so%nd [ ] (the sh in
shoe) ,as originally re!resented ,ith the letter 8c9 in English# b%t ,ith the letter 8x9 in
3rench'
[6
Ho,ever# in 1///# the al!habet ,as revised so as to be %niform across
lang%ages# th%s !roviding the base for all f%t%re revisions'
[6[2
:ince its creation# the IPA has %ndergone a n%mber of revisions' After ma;or revisions
and ex!ansions in 15.. and 15)(# the IPA remained %nchanged %ntil the IPA <iel
=onvention in 15/5' A minor revision too& !lace in 155)# ,ith the addition of fo%r mid>
central vo,els
[(
and the removal of symbols for voiceless im!losives'
[0
The al!habet
,as last revised in ?ay (..1# ,ith the addition of a symbol for the labiodental fla!'
[/

A!art from the addition and removal of symbols# changes to the IPA have consisted
largely in renaming symbols and categories and modifying ty!efaces'
[(
Extensions of the al!habet are relatively recent@ AExtensions to the IPAA ,as created in
155. and officially ado!ted by the International =linical Phonetics and "ing%istics
Association in 1556'
[5
[edit Description
A chart of the full International Phonetic Alphabet!
For a guide to pronouncing IPA transcriptions of %ngish words, see IPA chart for
%ngish diaects.
The general !rinci!le of the IPA is to !rovide one symbol for each distinctive so%nd (or
s!eech segment)'
[1.
This means that it does not %se letter combinations to re!resent
single so%nds#
[note (
or single letters to re!resent m%lti!le so%nds (the ,ay x re!resents
[ks] or [ z] in English)' There are no letters that have context>de!endent so%nd val%es
(as c does in English and other E%ro!ean lang%ages)# and finally# the IPA does not
%s%ally have se!arate letters for t,o so%nds if no &no,n lang%age ma&es a distinction
bet,een them (a !ro!erty &no,n as AselectivenessA
[(
)'
[note )
Among the symbols of the IPA# 1.0 re!resent consonants and vo,els# )1 are diacritics
that are %sed to f%rther s!ecify these so%nds# and 15 are %sed to indicate s%ch *%alities
as length# tone# stress# and intonation'
[note 6
[edit Letterforms
The symbols chosen for the IPA are meant to harmoni$e ,ith the "atin al!habet'
[note 1

3or this reason# most symbols are either "atin or Bree& letters# or modifications thereof'
Ho,ever# there are symbols that are neither+ for exam!le# the symbol denoting the
glottal sto!# # has the form of a AgeldedA *%estion mar&# and ,as originally an
a!ostro!he'
[note 2
In fact# there are a fe, symbols# s%ch as that of the voiced !haryngeal
fricative# # ,hich# tho%gh modified to blend ,ith the "atin al!habet# ,ere ins!ired by
gly!hs in other ,riting systems (in this case# the Arabic letter C# `ain)'
[0
Des!ite its !reference for letters that harmoni$e ,ith the "atin al!habet# the
International Phonetic Association has occasionally admitted symbols that do not have
this !ro!erty' 3or exam!le# before 15/5# the IPA symbols for clic& consonants ,ere #
# # and # all of ,hich ,ere derived either from existing symbols# or from "atin
and Bree& letters' Ho,ever# exce!t for # none of these symbols ,as ,idely %sed
among <hoisanists or 4ant%ists# and as a res%lt they ,ere re!laced by the more
,ides!read symbols # # # # and at the IPA <iel =onvention in 15/5'
[11
[edit "ymbols and sounds
The International Phonetic Al!habet is based on the "atin al!habet# %sing as fe, non>
"atin forms as !ossible'
[6
The Association created the IPA so that the so%nd val%es of
most consonants ta&en from the "atin al!habet ,o%ld corres!ond to Einternational
%sageF'
[6
Hence# the letters b# d# f# (hard) # (non>silent) h# (%nas!irated) k# l#
m# n# (%nas!irated) p# (voiceless) s# (%nas!irated) t# v# w# and z have the
val%es %sed in English@ and the vo,els from the "atin al!habet (a# e# i# o# u)
corres!ond to the so%nd val%es of "atin+ [i] is li&e the vo,el in machine# [u] is as in
rule# etc' -ther letters may differ from English# b%t are %sed ,ith these val%es in other
E%ro!ean lang%ages# s%ch as j# r# and y'
This inventory ,as extended by %sing ca!ital or c%rsive forms# diacritics# and rotation'
There are also several derived or ta&en from the Bree& al!habet# tho%gh the so%nd
val%es may differ' 3or exam!le# is a vo,el in Bree&# b%t an only indirectly related
consonant in the IPA' T,o of these ( and ) are %sed %nmodified in form@ for
others (incl%ding # # # # and ) s%btly different gly!h sha!es have been
devised# ,hich may be encoded in Gnicode se!arately from their A!arentA letters'
The so%nd val%es of modified "atin letters can often be derived from those of the
original letters'
[1(
3or exam!le# letters ,ith a right,ard>facing hoo& at the bottom
re!resent retroflex consonants@ and small ca!ital letters %s%ally re!resent %v%lar
consonants' A!art from the fact that certain &inds of modification to the sha!e of a letter
generally corres!ond to certain &inds of modification to the so%nd re!resented# there is
no ,ay to ded%ce the so%nd re!resented by a symbol from the sha!e of the symbol
(%nli&e# for exam!le# in Hisible :!eech)'
4eyond the letters themselves# there are a variety of secondary symbols ,hich aid in
transcri!tion' Diacritic mar&s can be combined ,ith IPA letters to transcribe modified
!honetic val%es or secondary artic%lations' There are also s!ecial symbols for
s%!rasegmental feat%res s%ch as stress and tone that are often em!loyed'
[edit Brac#ets and phonemes
There are t,o !rinci!al ty!es of brac&ets %sed to set off IPA transcri!tions+
"s<uare brac+ets# are used for phonetic details of the pronunciation, possibly
including details that may not be used for distinguishing 4ords in the language
being transcribed, but 4hich the author nonetheless 4ishes to document!
=slashes= are used to mar+ off phonemes, all of 4hich are distinctive in the
language, 4ithout any e7traneous detail!
3or exam!le# ,hile the I!I so%nds of pin and spin are !rono%nced slightly differently in
English (and this difference ,o%ld be meaningf%l in some lang%ages)# it is not
meaningf%l in English' Th%s phonemically the ,ords are p n and sp n # ,ith the
same I!I !honeme' Ho,ever# to ca!t%re the difference bet,een them (the allo!hones
of I!I)# they can be transcribed !honetically as [p n] and [sp n] '
T,o other conventions are less commonly seen+
&ouble slashes >==?, pipes >@?, double pipes >@@?, or braces >A B? around a 4ord
may be used to denote its underlying structure, more abstract even than that of
phonemes! (ee morphophonology for e7amples!
Angle brac+ets >C D? are used to clarify that the letters represent the original
orthography of the language, or sometimes an e7act transliteration of a non2
'atin script, not the IPAE or, 4ithin the IPA, that the letters themselves are
indicated, not the sound values that they carry! :or e7ample, pin and spin
4ould be seen for those 4ords, 4hich do not contain the ee sound [i] of the IPA
letter i! Italics are perhaps more commonly used for this purpose 4hen full
4ords are being 4ritten >as pin, spin above?, but may not be considered
sufficiently clear for individual letters and digraphs! >UF%6,8, UF%8,8? are
probably ideal for angle brac+ets, but they are not yet supported by many fonts
as of %998! Angle <uotation mar+s C D >UF%9)8, UF%9)A? therefore may be used
instead, as in the above e7amples! 'ess2than and greater2than signs G H
>UF99)0, UF99),? are also used in substitution for angle brac+ets!
[edit $sage
Further information" Phonetic transcription
Ibauche is a :rench term meaning JoutlineJ or Jblan+J!
Altho%gh the IPA offers over a h%ndred symbols for transcribing s!eech# it is not
necessary to %se all relevant symbols at the same time@ it is !ossible to transcribe s!eech
,ith vario%s levels of !recision' A !recise !honetic transcri!tion# in ,hich so%nds are
described in a great deal of detail# is &no,n as a narrow transcription' A coarser
transcri!tion ,hich ignores some of this detail is called a broad transcription. 4oth are
relative terms# and both are generally enclosed in s*%are brac&ets'
[1
4road !honetic
transcri!tions may restrict themselves to easily heard details# or only to details that are
relevant to the disc%ssion at hand# and may differ little if at all from !honemic
transcri!tions# b%t they ma&e no theoretical claim that all the distinctions transcribed are
necessarily meaningf%l in the lang%age'
Phonetic transcriptions of the 4ord internationa in t4o ,nglish dialects! he s<uare
brac+ets indicate that the differences bet4een these dialects are not necessarily
sufficient to distinguish different 4ords in ,nglish!
3or exam!le# the English ,ord little may be transcribed broadly %sing the IPA as
[ l t!l] # and this broad (im!recise) transcri!tion is an acc%rate (a!!roximately correct)
descri!tion of many !ron%nciations' A more narro, transcri!tion may foc%s on
individ%al or dialectical details+ [ l ] in Beneral American# [ l o] in =oc&ney# or
[ l ] in :o%thern G: English'
It is c%stomary to %se sim!ler letters# ,itho%t a lot of diacritics# in !honemic
transcri!tions' The choice of IPA letters may reflect the theoretical claims of the a%thor#
or merely be a convenience for ty!esetting' 3or instance# in English# either the vo,el of
pick or the vo,el of peak may be transcribed as i (for the !airs pik" pi k or p k"
pik)# and neither is identical to the vo,el of the 3rench ,ord pique ,hich is also
generally transcribed i' That is# letters bet,een slashes do not have absol%te val%es#
something tr%e of broader !honetic a!!roximations as ,ell' A narro, transcri!tion may#
ho,ever# be %sed to disting%ish them+ [p k]" [p i k]" [pik] '
[edit Linguists
Altho%gh IPA is !o!%lar for transcri!tion by ling%ists# it is also common to %se
Americanist !honetic notation or IPA together ,ith some nonstandard symbols# for
reasons incl%ding red%cing the error rate on reading hand,ritten transcri!tions or
avoiding !erceived a,&,ardness of IPA in some sit%ations' The exact !ractice may
vary some,hat bet,een lang%ages and even individ%al researchers# so a%thors are
generally enco%raged to incl%de a chart or other ex!lanation of their choices'
[1)
[edit Language study
his section re<uires e7pansion!
:ome lang%age st%dy !rograms %se the IPA to teach !ron%nciation' 3or exam!le# in
7%ssia (and earlier in the :oviet Gnion) textboo&s for children
[16
and ad%lts
[11
for
st%dying English and 3rench consistently %sed the IPA'
[edit Dictionaries
[edit] English
?any 4ritish dictionaries# among ,hich are learnerJs dictionaries s%ch as the -xford
Advanced "earnerJs Dictionary and the =ambridge Advanced "earnerJs Dictionary# no,
%se the International Phonetic Al!habet to re!resent the !ron%nciation of ,ords'
[12

Ho,ever# most American (and some 4ritish) vol%mes %se one of a variety of
!ron%nciation res!elling systems# intended to be more comfortable for readers of
English' 3or exam!le# the res!elling systems in many American dictionaries (s%ch as
?erriamKLebster) %se 8y9 for IPA [j] and 8sh9 for IPA [ ] # reflecting common
re!resentations of those so%nds in ,ritten English#
[10
%sing only letters of the English
7oman al!habet and variations of them' (In IPA# [y] re!resents the so%nd of the 3rench
8%9 (as in tu)# and [sh] re!resents the !air of so%nds in grasshopper')
-ne of the benefits of %sing an alternative to the IPA is the ability to %se a single
symbol for a so%nd !rono%nced differently in different dialects' 3or exam!le# The
American Heritage Dictionary of the English "ang%age %ses 8M9 for the vo,el in cot
(&Mt) b%t 8N9 for the one in caught (&Nt)'
[1/
:ome American s!ea&ers !rono%nce these
the same ,ay (for exam!le# li&e IPA [ ] in the 4oston dialect)@ for those s!ea&ers ,ho
maintain the distinction# de!ending on the accent# the vo,el in cot may vary from [ ] to
[a]# ,hile the vo,el in caught may vary from [ ] to [ ] # or may even be a di!hthong'
Gsing one symbol for the vo,el in cot (instead of having different symbols for different
!ron%nciations of the o) enables the dictionary to !rovide meaningf%l !ron%nciations for
s!ea&ers of most dialects of English'
[edit] Other languages
The IPA is also not %niversal among dictionaries in lang%ages other than English'
?onoling%al dictionaries of lang%ages ,ith generally !honemic orthogra!hies generally
donJt bother ,ith indicating the !ron%nciation of most ,ords# and tend to %se res!elling
systems for ,ords ,ith %nex!ected !ron%nciations' Dictionaries !rod%ced in Israel %se
the IPA rarely and sometimes %se the Hebre, al!habet for transcri!tion of foreign
,ords' ?onoling%al Hebre, dictionaries %se !ron%nciation res!elling for ,ords ,ith
%n%s%al s!elling@ for exam!le# Even>:hoshan Dictionary res!ells OPQRSTOUV as OPQRSTWXOV beca%se
this ,ord %ses &amat$ &atan' 4iling%al dictionaries that translate from foreign lang%ages
into 7%ssian %s%ally em!loy the IPA# b%t monoling%al 7%ssian dictionaries occasionally
%se !ron%nciation res!elling for foreign ,ords@ for exam!le# -$hegovJs dictionary adds
YZ[ in brac&ets for the 3rench ,ord \]Y^Y] (Pince>ne$) to indicate that the ] doesnJt
iotate the Y'
The IPA is more common in biling%al dictionaries# b%t there are exce!tions here too'
?ass>mar&et biling%al =$ech dictionaries# for instance# tend to %se the IPA only for
so%nds not fo%nd in the =$ech lang%age'
[15
[edit "tandard orthographies and capital %ariants
&ee aso" 'atin characters in (nicode
IPA symbols have been incor!orated into the standard orthogra!hies of vario%s
lang%ages# notably in :%b>:aharan Africa b%t in other regions as ,ell# for exam!le+
Ha%sa# 3%la# A&an# Bbe lang%ages# ?anding lang%ages# and "ingala'
An exam!le of ca!ital letter forms for IPA symbols is <abiy_ of northern Togo# ,hich
has ` (or ) (ca!ital $ %or & )+ MB AJYA !"B#$
%"BY &$!'A (( )M (&. -ther IPA>!aired ca!itals incl%de
aI b '
The above>mentioned and other ca!ital forms are s%!!orted by Gnicode# b%t a!!ear in
"atin ranges other than the IPA extensions'
[edit Classical singing
IPA has ,ides!read %se among classical singers for !re!aration# es!ecially among
English>s!ea&ing singers ,ho rarely sing in their native lang%age' -!era librettos are
a%thoritatively transcribed in IPA# s%ch as Nico =astelJs vol%mes
[(.
and Timothy
=hee&Js boo& (inging in *+ech'
[(1
-!era singersJ ability to read IPA ,as recently %sed
by the His%al Thesa%r%s# ,hich em!loyed several o!era singers Ato ma&e recordings for
the 11.#... ,ords and !hrases in HTJs lexical database' '''for their vocal stamina#
attention to the details of en%nciation# and most of all# &no,ledge of IPA'A
[((
[edit Letters
The International Phonetic Al!habet divides its letter symbols into three categories+
!%lmonic consonants# non>!%lmonic consonants# and vo,els'
[()[(6
Each character is
assigned a n%mber# to !revent conf%sion bet,een similar letters (s%ch as and )# for
exam!le in !rinting man%scri!ts' Different categories of so%nds are assigned different
ranges of n%mbers'
[edit Pulmonic consonants
!ain artice" )onsonant
A !%lmonic consonant is a consonant made by obstr%cting the glottis (the s!ace
bet,een the vocal cords) or oral cavity (the mo%th) and either sim%ltaneo%sly or
s%bse*%ently letting o%t air from the l%ngs' P%lmonic consonants ma&e %! the ma;ority
of consonants in the IPA# as ,ell as in h%man lang%age' All consonants in the English
lang%age fall into this category'
[(1
The !%lmonic consonant table# ,hich incl%des most consonants# is arranged in ro,s that
designate manner of artic%lation# meaning ho, the consonant is !rod%ced# and col%mns
that designate !lace of artic%lation# meaning ,here in the vocal tract the consonant is
!rod%ced' The main chart incl%des only consonants ,ith a single !lace of artic%lation'
View this table as an image.
'lace of
articulation (
Labial Coronal Dorsal Radical
Glottal
Bi la - La bio - Den -
Al -
veo -
Post -
al -
Re tro -
Pa la tal Ve lar
Uvu -
Pha -
rn -
!"i -
glot -
bial dental tal lar
veo -
lar
#le$ lar geal tal
)anner of
articulation *
%asal
m n $ N
Plosive
p b p b t d c k + c
&ricative
f v , s z - x

n
h
A""ro$iman
t
! " j #
'rill
a r r /0
'a" or &la"
v $
1
v
1
% c &
Lateral
&ricative
' ( 20 20 20
Lateral
A""ro$iman
t
l ) * L
Lateral &la"
+ 20 *& L
1otes
Asteris+s >K? ne7t to symbols mar+ reported sounds that do not >yet? have
official IPA symbols! (ee the respective articles for ad hoc symbols found in the
literature!
&aggers >L? mar+ IPA symbols that have recently been added to Unicode! As of
Unicode /!1!9, this is the case of the labiodental flap, symboliMed by a * 4ith a
right2hoo+: ! hese display properly 4ith a recent version of 0haris (I',
&oulos (I' or &eNa3u fonts installed!
In ro4s 4here some symbols appear in pairs >the obstruents?, the symbol to the
right represents a voiced consonant >e7cept breathy2voiced [ ] ?! $o4ever, [ ]
cannot be voiced, and the voicing of [ ] is ambiguous!
"%5#
In the other ro4s >the
sonorants?, the single symbol represents a voiced consonant!
Although there is a single symbol for the coronal places of articulation for all
consonants but fricatives, 4hen dealing 4ith a particular language, the symbols
may be treated as specifically dental, alveolar, or post2alveolar, as appropriate
for that language, 4ithout diacritics!
(haded areas indicate articulations Nudged to be impossible!
he symbols [ " " ] represent either voiced fricatives or appro7imants!
In many languages, such as ,nglish, [h] and [ ] are not actually glottal,
fricatives, or appro7imants! Rather, they are bare phonation!
"%6#
It is primarily the shape of the tongue rather than its position that distinguishes
the fricatives [ ] , [ ] , - , and [ ] !
[edit] Coarticulation
=oartic%lated consonants are so%nds that involve t,o sim%ltaneo%s !laces of
artic%lation (are !rono%nced %sing t,o !arts of the vocal tract)' In English# the [, in
A,entA is a coartic%lated consonant# beca%se it is !rono%nced by ro%nding the li!s and
raising the bac& of the tong%e' -ther lang%ages# s%ch as 3rench and :,edish# have
different coartic%lated consonants'
View this table as an image
.
3oiceless labialized velar approximant
w 3oiced labialized velar approximant
/
3oiced labialized palatal approximant
3elarized alveolar lateral approximant %4dark 54&
,
3oiceless palatalized postalveolar %alveolo6palatal& fricative
- 3oiced palatalized postalveolar %alveolo6palatal& fricative
0
3oiceless 4palatal6velar4 fricative
1ote
[ ] 0 is described as a Jsimultaneous [ ] and [x]J!
"%8#
$o4ever, this analysis is
disputed! >(ee voiceless palatal2velar fricative for discussion!?
[edit] Affricates and double articulation
Affricates and do%bly artic%lated sto!s are re!resented by t,o symbols ;oined by a tie
bar# either above or belo, the symbols' The six most common affricates are o!tionally
re!resented by ligat%res# tho%gh this is no longer official IPA %sage#
[1
beca%se a great
n%mber of ligat%res ,o%ld be re*%ired to re!resent all affricates this ,ay' Alternatively#
a s%!erscri!t notation for a consonant release is sometimes %sed to transcribe affricates#
for exam!le t for ts1# !aralleling k c kx1' The symbols for the !alatal !losives c and #
are often %sed as a convenience for t and d 1 1 or similar affricates# even in official IPA
!%blications# so they m%st be inter!reted ,ith care'
View this table as an image.
'ie bar
Ligatur
e
Descri"tion
ts1 t voiceless alveolar affricate
dz 1 d
voiced alveolar affricate
t1 voiceless postalveolar affricate
d1 g
voiced postalveolar affricate
t1, t voiceless alveolo6palatal affricate
d1- d
voiced alveolo6palatal affricate
t1' 7 voiceless alveolar lateral affricate
kp1 7
voiceless labial6velar plosive
b 1 7 voiced labial6velar plosive
$m1 7
labial6velar nasal stop
1ote
-n bro4sers that use Aria (nicode !& to display IPA characters, the follo4ing
incorrectly formed se<uences may loo+ better due to a bug in that font: ts" t " t " 1 1 ,1
dz" d " d " t " kp" b" $m 1 1 -1 '1 1 1 1!
[edit &on'pulmonic consonants
Non>!%lmonic consonants are so%nds ,hose airflo, is not de!endent on the l%ngs'
These incl%de clic&s (fo%nd in the <hoisan lang%ages of Africa)# im!losives (fo%nd in
lang%ages s%ch as :,ahili) and e;ectives (fo%nd in many Amerindian and =a%casian
lang%ages)'
View this table as an image
Clic(s )m"losives !*ectives

8ilabial
2
8ilabial

For example:

5aminal alveolar %4dental4&

3
9lveolar
p
8ilabial

9pical %post6& alveolar %4retroflex4&

4
'alatal
t
9lveolar

5aminal postalveolar %4palatal4&

5
3elar
k
3elar

5ateral coronal %4lateral4&

d
:vular
s
9lveolar fricative
1otes
0lic+s are double articulated and have traditionally been described as having a
for4ard OreleaseO and a rear OaccompanimentO, 4ith the clic+ letters representing
the release! herefore all clic+s 4ould re<uire t4o letters for proper notation:
k " " $ " + " " 1 1 1 1 1 1 c N etc., or k" " $" +" " 1 1 1 1 1 1 c N ! Phen the dorsal
articulation is omitted, a [k] may usually be assumed! $o4ever, recent research
disputes the concept of OaccompanimentO!
"%8#
In these approaches, the clic+ letter
represents both articulations, there is no velar2uvular distinction, and the
accompanying letter represents the manner of the clic+: "

"
$
etc.
(ymbols for the voiceless implosives " " " " t c k q are no longer supported by
the IPA, though they remain in Unicode! Instead, the IPA typically uses the
voiced e<uivalent 4ith a voiceless diacritic: " 26 6 d , etc!
Although not confirmed as contrastive in any language, and therefore not
e7plicitly recogniMed by the IPA, a letter for the retrofle7 implosive, 8d9, is
supported in the Unicode Phonetic ,7tensions (upplement, added in version
.!1 of the Unicode (tandard, or can be created as a composite 3 !
he eNective symbol often stands in for a superscript glottal stop in glottaliMed
but pulmonic sonorants, such as [m ]" [l ]" [w ]" [a ] ` ` ` ` ! hese may also be
transcribed as crea+y [m]" [l]" [w]" [a] 7 7 7 7!
[edit (o)els
!ain artice" +owe
An Q2ray film sho4s the sounds [i" u" a" ]
ongue positions of cardinal front vo4els 4ith highest point indicated! he position of
the highest point is used to determine vo4el height and bac+ness
The IPA defines a vo,el as a so%nd ,hich occ%rs at a syllable center'
[).
4elo, is a
chart de!icting the vo,els of the IPA' The IPA ma!s the vo,els according to the
!osition of the tong%e'
The vertical axis of the chart is ma!!ed by vo,el height' Ho,els !rono%nced ,ith the
tong%e lo,ered are at the bottom# and vo,els !rono%nced ,ith the tong%e raised are at
the to!' 3or exam!le# [ ] (said as the AaA in A!almA) is at the bottom beca%se the tong%e
is lo,ered in this !osition' Ho,ever# [i] (said as the vo,el in AmeetA) is at the to!
beca%se the so%nd is said ,ith the tong%e raised to the roof of the mo%th'
In a similar fashion# the hori$ontal axis of the chart is determined by vo,el bac&ness'
Ho,els ,ith the tong%e moved to,ards the front of the mo%th (s%ch as [ ] # the vo,el in
AmetA) are to the left in the chart# ,hile those in ,hich it is moved to the bac& (s%ch as
[ ] 8 # the vo,el in Ab%tA) are !laced to the right in the chart'
In !laces ,here vo,els are !aired# the right re!resents a ro%nded vo,el (in ,hich the
li!s are ro%nded) ,hile the left is its %nro%nded co%nter!art'
3ie4 the vo4el chart as an image
[ edit ; discuss ] &ront
%ear-
#ront
Central
%ear-
bac(
Bac(
Close
%ear-close
Close-mid
+id
,"en-mid
%ear-o"en
,"en
i - y
9 - :
; - u
- Y

e - <
< -
= - o
!
1otes
a officially represents a front vo4el, but there is little distinction bet4een front
and central open vo4els, and a is fre<uently used for an open central vo4el!
"1)#
$o4ever, if disambiguation is re<uired, the retraction diacritic or the centraliMed
diacritic may be added to indicate an open central vo4el, as in a> or =!
[edit Diacritics
Diacritics are small mar&ings ,hich are !laced aro%nd the IPA letter in order to sho, a
certain alteration or more s!ecific descri!tion in the letterJs !ron%nciation'
[)1
:%b>
diacritics (mar&ings normally !laced belo, a letter or symbol) may be !laced above a
symbol having a descender (informally called a tail)# e'g' $" j'
[)1
The dotless i, 8e9# is %sed ,hen the dot ,o%ld interfere ,ith the diacritic' -ther IPA
symbols may a!!ear as diacritics to re!resent !honetic detail+ t (fricative release)# b'
(breathy voice)# a ` (glottal onset)# (e!enthetic sch,a)# o

(di!hthongi$ation)'
Additional diacritics ,ere introd%ced in the Extensions to the IPA# ,hich ,ere designed
!rinci!ally for s!eech !athology'
View the diacritic table as an image
.llabicit diacritics
?
n !? ? >yllabic
&
e &&?on6syllabic
Consonant-release diacritics

t
9spirated
[a]

@
d@ ?o audible release
'
d'
@
d@
?asal release
'
d'
5ateral release
Phonation diacritics
6
n d 6 6 3oiceless
A
s t AA3oiced
B
b a B B 8reathy voiced
[b]

7
b a 7 7Areaky voiced
Articulation diacritics

t d
Bental
C
t d C C
5inCuolabial
D
t d D D
9pical
E
t d E E
5aminal
$
u t $$ 9dvanced
>
i t >>Detracted
E
F = Aentralized
F
e F;F)id6centralized
G
e G!G
Daised %!GG voiced alveolar nonsibilant fricative&
-
-

e
5owered %G bilabial approximant&

Co-articulation diacritics
H
x H H )ore rounded
I
I
5ess rounded
I
^
xI^
^
t d ^ ^
5abialized or labio6velarized
'
t d ' '
'alatalized
-
t d - -
3elarized
`
t a ` `
'harynCealized
/
t
/
d
/
5abio6palatalized
J
zJ
3elarized or pharynCealized
K
e o K K
9dvanced tonCue root
L
e o L L
Detracted tonCue root
H
I zH
?asalized
M s
Dhotacized
1otes
a^ Pith aspirated voiced consonants, the aspiration is also voiced! Rany
linguists prefer one of the diacritics dedicated to breathy voice!
b^ (ome linguists restrict this breathy2voice diacritic to sonorants, and
transcribe obstruents as b'!
The state of the glottis can be finely transcribed ,ith diacritics' A series of alveolar
!losives ranging from an o!en to a closed glottis !honation are+

[t]
voiceless
B
[d]B
breathy voice" also called murmured
6
[d] 6
slack voice
[d]
modal voice
A
[d] A
stiff voice
7
[d]7
creaky voice
1 [ t] 1
Clottal closure
[edit "uprasegmentals
These symbols describe the feat%res of a lang%age above the level of individ%al
consonants and vo,els# s%ch as !rosody# tone# length# and stress# ,hich often o!erate on
syllables# ,ords# or !hrases+ that is# elements s%ch as the intensity# !itch# and
gemination of the so%nds of a lang%age# as ,ell as the rhythm and intonation of s!eech'
[)(
Altho%gh most of these symbols indicate distinctions that are !honemic at the ,ord
level# symbols also exist for intonation on a level greater than that of the ,ord'
[)(
View this table as an image
Length/ stress/ and rhthm
a
'rimary stress %symbol Coes
a N
>econdary stress %symbol Coes
before stressed syllable& before stressed syllable&
a k
5onC %lonC vowel or
Ceminate consonant&
aO
Jalf6lonC
! Kxtra6short aLa >yllable break
s a P
5inkinC %absence of a break&
)ntonation
M
)inor %foot& break
Q
)ajor %intonation& break
Nlobal rise Nlobal fall
'one diacritics and tone letters
$ e R R eS Kxtra hiCh top ke :pstep
$O P eT
JiCh
$ Q
Dise
$ R eU )id
$S T eV
5ow
$ U
Vall
$ W eX Kxtra low bottom ke Bownstep
3iner distinctions of tone may be indicated by combining the tone diacritics and letters
sho,n here# tho%gh not many fonts s%!!ort this' The !rimary exam!les are high (mid)
rising " US @ lo, rising " XU @ high falling " SU @ lo, (mid) falling " UX @ !ea&ing "
USU@ and di!!ing " UXU ' A ,or&>aro%nd for diacritics sometimes seen ,hen a
lang%age has more than one rising or falling tone# and the a%thor does not ,ish to
com!letely abandon the IPA# is to restrict generic rising and falling for the higher>
!itched of the rising and falling tones# SU and US# and to %se the non>standard
s%bscri!t diacritics and for the lo,er>!itched rising and falling tones# XU and UX'
Lhen a lang%age has fo%r level tones# the t,o mid tones are sometimes transcribed as
high>mid (non>standard) and lo,>mid '
[edit *bsolete symbols and nonstandard
symbols
!ain artice" Obsoete and nonstandard s$mbos in the Internationa Phonetic Aphabet
The IPA inherited alternate symbols from vario%s traditions# b%t event%ally settled on
one for each so%nd' The other symbols are no, considered obsolete' An exam!le is c
,hich has been standardised to ' :everal symbols indicating secondary artic%lation
have been dro!!ed altogether# ,ith the idea that s%ch things sho%ld be indicated ,ith
diacritics+ g for z ^ is one' In addition# the rare voiceless im!losive series t c k q
has been dro!!ed@ they are no, ,ritten 26364 5 6 d or p * t * c * k * + * res!ectively'
A re;ected com!eting !ro!osal for transcribing clic&s# " " # is still sometimes seen#
as the official letters " " may ca%se !roblems ,ith legibility# es!ecially ,hen %sed
,ith brac&ets# the letter l# or the !rosodic mar&s M" Q '
[))
There are also %ns%!!orted or ad hoc symbols from local traditions that find their ,ay
into !%blications that other,ise %se the standard IPA' This is es!ecially common ,ith
affricates s%ch as the Abarred lambdaA for [t ] '_ '
[edit IPA e+tensions
!ain artice" %,tensions to the IPA
Extensions to the IPA# also often abbreviated as extIPA# is a gro%! of symbols ,hose
original !%r!ose ,as to acc%rately transcribe disordered s!eech' At the IPA <iel
=onvention in 15/5# a gro%! of ling%ists dre, %! the initial set of symbols for the
Extended IPA'
[)6
Extensions to the IPA ,ere first !%blished in 155.# and modified over
the next fe, years before its official !%blication in the Journal o- the !nternational
.honetic Association in 1556 allo,ed it to be officially ado!ted by the I=P"A'
[)1
Lhile
its original !%r!ose ,as to transcribe disordered s!eech# ling%ists have %sed it to
designate a n%mber of %ni*%e so%nds ,ithin standard comm%nication# s%ch as h%shing#
gnashing teeth# and smac&ing li!s' The Extensions to the IPA have also been %sed to
record certain !ec%liarities in an individ%alJs voice# s%ch as nasali$ed voicing'
[(
Aside from the extIPA# another set of symbols is %sed for voice *%ality (Hof:)# s%ch as
,his!ering'
[edit "egments that ha%e no symbols
The remaining blan& cells on the IPA chart can be filled ,itho%t too m%ch diffic%lty if
the need arises' :ome ad hoc symbols have a!!eared in the literat%re# for exam!le for
the retroflex lateral fla! and the voiceless lateral fricative series# the e!iglottal trill# and
the labiodental !losives' (:ee the grey symbols in the PD3 chart') Diacritics can s%!!ly
m%ch of the remainder# ,hich ,o%ld indeed be a!!ro!riate if the so%nds ,ere
allo!hones'
[)2
[edit Consonants )ithout letters
7e!resentations of consonant so%nds o%tside of the core set are created by adding
diacritics to symbols for similar so%nd val%es' The :!anish bilabial and dental
a!!roximants are commonly ,ritten as lo,ered fricatives# []and [,]res!ectively'
:imilarly# voiced lateral fricatives ,o%ld be ,ritten as raised lateral a!!roximants# [ ) *G -
]G L ' A fe, lang%ages s%ch as 4anda have a bilabial fla! as the !referred allo!hone of
,hat is else,here a labiodental fla!' It has been s%ggested that this be ,ritten ,ith the
labiodental fla! symbol and the advanced diacritic# [ ]$ v '
[)0
:imilarly# a labiodental trill ,o%ld be ,ritten [ ] a (bilabial trill and the dental sign)# and
labiodental sto!s [p b] rather than ,ith the ad hoc symbols sometimes fo%nd in the
literat%re' -ther ta!s can be ,ritten as extra>short !losives or laterals# e'g' [ ] c r L #
tho%gh in some cases the diacritic ,o%ld need to be ,ritten belo, the letter' A retroflex
trill can be ,ritten as a retracted [r]># ;%st as retroflex fricatives sometimes are' The
remaining consonants# the %v%lar laterals ( > L etc.) and the !alatal trill# ,hile not strictly
im!ossible# are very diffic%lt to !rono%nce and are %nli&ely to occ%r even as allo!hones
in the ,orldJs lang%ages'
[edit (o)els )ithout letters
The vo,els are similarly manageable by %sing diacritics for raising# lo,ering# fronting#
bac&ing# centering# and mid>centering'
[)/
3or exam!le# the %nro%nded e*%ivalent of [ ]
can be transcribed as mid>centered [ ] ;F# and the ro%nded e*%ivalent of [W] as raised [ ]G o '
Tr%e mid vo,els are lo,ered [e < o] <= # ,hile centered [ ] and [=] are near>close
and o!en central vo,els# res!ectively' The only &no,n vo,els that cannot be
re!resented in this scheme are vo,els ,ith %nex!ected ro%ndedness# ,hich ,o%ld
re*%ire a dedicated diacritic# s%ch as [ ] Y or [u]'
[edit "ymbol names
!ain artice" Naming con*entions of the Internationa Phonetic Aphabet
An IPA symbol is often disting%ished from the so%nd it is intended to re!resent since
there is not a one>to>one corres!ondence bet,een symbol and so%nd in broad
transcri!tion' Lhile the /andbook o- the !nternational .honetic Association states that
no official names exist for symbols# it admits the !resence of one or t,o common
names for each character that are commonly %sed'
[)5
The symbols also have nonce
names in the Gnicode standard' In some cases# the Gnicode names and the IPA names
do not agree' 3or exam!le# IPA calls Ae!silonA# b%t Gnicode calls it Asmall letter o!en
EA'
The traditional names of the "atin and Bree& letters are %s%ally %sed for %nmodified
symbols'
[note 0
"etters ,hich are not directly derived from these al!habets# s%ch as [ ] #
may have a variety of names# sometimes based on the a!!earance of the symbol# and
sometimes based on the so%nd that it re!resents' In Gnicode# some of the symbols of
Bree& origin have "atin forms for %se in IPA@ the others %se the symbols from the
Bree& section'
3or diacritics# there are t,o methods of naming' 3or traditional diacritics# the IPA %ses
the name of the symbol from a certain lang%age# for exam!le# 0 is acute# based on the
name of the symbol in English and 3rench' In non>traditional diacritics# the IPA often
names a symbol according to an ob;ect it resembles# as dis called bridge'
[edit A"CII transliterations, IPA influence on
other phonetic alphabets
&ee aso" (nicode and #T!'
:ince the IPA %ses symbols that are o%tside the A:=II character set# several systems
have been develo!ed that ma! the IPA symbols to A:=II characters' Notable systems
incl%de <irshenba%m# :A?PA# and g>:A?PA' The %sage of ma!!ing systems in on>
line text has to some extent been ado!ted in the context in!%t methods# allo,ing
convenient &eying of IPA characters that ,o%ld be other,ise %navailable on standard
&eyboard layo%ts'
[edit "ee also
Articulatory phonetics
Inde7 of phonetics articles
International Alphabet of (ans+rit ransliteration
IPA chart for ,nglish dialects
'ist of international common standards
Phonetic transcription
(ARPA , Q2(ARPA and ;irshenbaum are other methods of mapping IPA
designations into A(0II!
(emyon 1ovgorodov 2 the inventor of IPA2based Sa+ut alphabet!
IPA provides IPA support for 'aeQ!
Unicode Phonetic (ymbols
[edit &otes
1! ^ Jhe acronym OIPAO strictly refers "!!!# to the OInternational Phonetic
AssociationO! *ut it is no4 such a common practice to use the acronym also to
refer to the alphabet itself >from the phrase OInternational Phonetic AlphabetO?
that resistance seems pedantic! 0onte7t usually serves to disambiguate the t4o
usages!J >'aver 188.:/51?
%! ^ In contrast, ,nglish sometimes uses combinations of t4o letters to represent
single sounds, such as the digraphs sh and th for the sounds [ ] and []T[,],
respectively!
)! ^ :or instance, flaps and taps are t4o different +inds of articulation, but since
no language has >yet? been found to ma+e a distinction bet4een, say, an
alveolar flap and an alveolar tap, the IPA does not provide such sounds 4ith
dedicated symbols! Instead, it provides a single symbol >in this case, [ ] ? for
both sounds! (trictly spea+ing, this ma+es the IPA a phonemic alphabet, not a
phonetic one!
.! ^ here are five basic tone mar+s, 4hich are combined for contour tonesE si7 of
these combinations are in common use!
/! ^ Jhe non2roman letters of the International Phonetic Alphabet have been
designed as far as possible to harmoniMe 4ell 4ith the roman letters! he
Association does not recognise ma+eshift lettersE It recognises only letters
4hich have been carefully cut so as to be in harmony 4ith the other letters!J
>IPA 18.8?
5! ^ echnically, the symbol [ ] could be considered 'atin2derived, since the
<uestion mar+ may have originated as JUoJ, an abbreviation of the 'atin 4ord
-u.stio, J<uestionJ!
6! ^ :or e7ample, "p# is called J'o4er2case PJ and "V# is J0hi!J >International
Phonetic Association, #andboo/, p! 161?
!istory of the IPA
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International
Phonetic Alphabet
History
Nonstandard symbols
Extensions to the IPA
Naming conventions
IPA for English
The history of the International Phonetic Alphabet and the International Phonetic
Association began in the late 15th cent%ry# ,ith the formation of the association and its
declaration of creating a !honetic system %sed for transcribing the so%nds of s!o&en
lang%age' The association ,as formed by 3rench and 4ritish lang%age teachers led by
Pa%l Passy# and established in Paris in 1//2' The first !%blished al!habet a!!ears in
Passy (1///)' The association based their al!habet %!on the 7omic al!habet of Henry
:,eet (1//. or 1//1K1501)# ,hich in t%rn ,as based on the Phonoty!ic Al!habet of
Isaac Pitman and Alexander hohn Ellis (<elly 15/1)'
The al!habet has %ndergone a n%mber of revisions d%ring its history# ,ith the 15)(
version %sed for over half a cent%ry# %ntil the IPA <iel =onvention of 15/5' ?inor
ad;%stments have been made since then# in 155)# 1552# and (..1'
The extIPA for s!eech disorders ,as created in 1551 and revised in 1550'
International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)
#rigin
The IPA %as first published in .666 b$ the Association PhonGti=ue
Internationale (International Phonetic Association), a group of French
language teachers founded b$ Paul Pass$. The aim of the
organisation %as to devise a s$stem for transcribing the sounds of
speech %hich %as independent of an$ particular language and
applicable to all languages.
A phonetic script for English created in .615 b$ Isaac Pitman and
Aenr$ Ellis %as used as a model for the IPA.
$ses
The IPA is used in dictionaries to indicate the pronunciation of
%ords.
The IPA has often been used as a basis for creating ne% %riting
s$stems for previousl$ un%ritten languages.
The IPA is used in some foreign language te>t boo*s and
phrase boo*s to transcribe the sounds of languages %hich are
%ritten %ith non)latin alphabets. It is also used b$ non)native
spea*ers of English %hen learning to spea* English.
@here s$mbols appear in pairs, the one on the right represents a
voiced consonant, %hile the one on the left is unvoiced. (haded areas
denote articulations 4udged to be impossible.