phonotactics
- noun
- /fəˈnɒtæktɪks/
- Specialized
:
fonotáctica
- As a measure of implicit learning, a child's sensitivity to phonotactics provides an opportunity to examine bilingual word learning because children acquiring two languages are exposed to two different patterns of phonotactic probability that may or may not overlap.
- English phonotactics
Examples
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The syllabic affiliation of other medial clusters is less clear. For example, there is no consensus on the syllabification of words such as candy, which, according to the phonotactics of English, can be syllabified as either 'kn.di' or 'knd.i'.
Academic text (2015) -
Children learning a new language must become familiar with the phonotactics that dictate sound combinations in that language.
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We predicted that more exposure to English would lead to better fast mapping due to more exposure to the patterns of English phonotactics.
Academic text (2013) -
Our hypothesis was that greater familiarity with the phonotactics of the novel words would lead to better outcomes overall.
Academic text (2013) -
These are piqued to understand to the rind, and they are amazing for phonotactics who want to snatch a seductive ear in their kitchens.
Blog text (7) -
Our stated purpose was to determine whether bilingual children would show unique learning profiles in regard to English phonotactics and whether exposure to English would result in better performance on fast-mapping English-like nonwords.
Academic text (2013) -
Linguists study phonotactics to understand which sound arrangements are permissible in different languages.
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Understanding the phonotactics of English can help learners grasp why certain letter combinations are used.
Synonyms
How speakers arrange sounds inside one part of a word
The way small spoken parts are arranged to make words
Surface Forms
Morphology
phonotactics = phonotactic (semi-transparent) = phono + tactic + s
Formed from the combining form 'phono-' and the element 'tactic'; the technical combining form 'phono-' may be unfamiliar to many learners, so the relation is inferable but not fully transparent.
Etymology
Phonotactics comes from the parts phono- meaning 'sound' and tactics meaning 'ways of arranging'. A helpful image is to think of sound pieces you must place in the right order, like moves in a game, so phonotactics are the rules that tell which sound combinations a language allows and how sounds can be put together.
