Cluster In English Words | StudyTution

We know there are two types of sounds, consonant sounds and vowel sounds are part of the sequence. We also know that there must always be a vowel sound in a word. A lot of
times we see it is a combination of several consonants and several vowels. But as part of the requirement of your word, that is to form a word; there must be at least one vowel sound in every word. Okay, so with that, we see consonants and
vowels together in a word.

Production Of Consonents

consonants are produced in vocal tract by using exhaling flow of air.
And this flow of air is important because the exhaling flow of air slowly gets modified at different places of articulation in our oral cavity.
And therefore, we produce various different kinds of consonant sounds.
Without this modification or very little modification, we produce vowel sounds.

articulation

Combination of the two makes a word.
we have vowel sounds, consonant sounds like k and g.
So according to their articulation, that is the place where they get articulated it is a velar sound because it comes from velum, both of them.
Both of them are not aspirated sounds, and k is a voiceless sound whereas g is a voiced sound.
We see these sounds in words like king, class.
Remember, in English spelling; we use symbols to represent these sounds.

Symbols

Sometimes, there are different symbols for the same sound.
For example, we are using this symbol for k sound in king, and we are using this c letter as a symbol for k sound in a word like class.
K is the initial sound in both words.
In words like great and glass, we have initial sounds in these two words are g and g in another one as well.
So, p and b are bilabial sounds according to their places of articulations.
And they are both again, p is non-spirited, non-voiced and b is non- aspirited, but voiced as in words like pink, pure, bliss, bless these other words.
With these sounds, and what we also know about consonant sounds and particularly consonant sounds in a word that each consonant sound has an inbuilt vowel a in it and this vowel sound a gets reduced,
there is a reduction of this vowel sound for making of word

Words

Daddy has four sounds, consonant, vowel, consonant, vowel.
And mom has three sounds consonant, vowel, consonant.
Same thing as in dad and mom.
So this simply shows you that there are several possible combination combinatory sequences of consonant vowels possible.
And words reflect various kinds of sequences of these
consonant and vowel alternations.
The only thing we need to keep in mind that vowels and consonants come in various sequences, various alternation patterns to form a word.
And because there are no restrictions on how many times a sound can be used, one sound can be used more than once in a word.
Therefore, we have millions of words using a limited number of sounds that is 20 vowel sounds and 24 consonant sounds in English.

what happens in a cluster?

We see a sequence of two consonant sounds sometimes at the beginning of a word that is at the initial position
of a word.
And sometimes at the final position in a word that is at the end of a word.
In an example like glass, there are two sounds g and l at the initial position, which form a cluster.
In this word sink, there are two consonant sounds n and k at the final position of this word, they make a cluster.
Now a cluster of two consonant sounds is possible at the initial position and also at the final purchase.
Sometimes it is possible in the middle of a word as well.

what is a cluster?

While talking about words and sequences of sounds in a word two another important, two more points that are important.
One, usually you do not sound you do not find two sounds from the same
place of articulation coming next to one another in a word.
You will never find a word with a combination of p and b, b and p or t and d.
Such combinations are not allowed in a word.
And sometimes words are possible only with vowel sounds. This is an example of this one.

Cluster Of Three Consonants

Now when we look at clusters, we find there are two consonant sounds together.
But two consonant sounds next to one another does not make a cluster.
For a cluster, what is important is the reduction of the inbuilt vowel sound a, and it is completely removed, and then there is no space between the two, and they make a cluster.
So when we speak, we do not find any vowel quality in g when we are saying glass.
And when there is a cluster, only if it is a cluster of two consonant sounds, only the first one is losing the vowel quality.
That is how the cluster is made.

Consonants In Cluster

Actually, the word cluster itself is an example of clusters.
so this is how we spell words in English. /blis/, /blast/, /skuul/
ccvv, ccvccvc, ccvc this tells you the sequence of consonant and vowels in these sounds.
This part is called it is a phonetic way of writing a word, which helps us identify sounds.
So this is also called phonetic transcriptions.

Phonetic Words

IPA symbols that is in that is there are some specific symbols that are used to identify sounds in English.
there is a full, fully developed chart of symbols that are used to capture sounds in English.
They are called IPA charts.
IPA stands for International Phonetic Association, and this chart is also known as International Phonetic Alphabet.
understanding these symbols helps us use the dictionary faster and eventually, they also help us identify sounds.

Cluster

Word cluster.
So it is we have a cluster of two consonant sounds at the beginning of this word, and then a cluster of two sounds in the middle of this word.
And this is where you try to identify k, l.
They form a cluster.
So they become kl a, s and t again make a cluster.
So they become, st and then a and r.
So it is a consonant, consonant, vowel, consonant, consonant, vowel and consonant.
This is the sequence in which sounds appear in this word.
And this sound in, which is an inverted e is a symbol for a, a sound according to IPA.
So that is how we write cluster.

Word Bliss

next word, bliss.
It has a cluster of two consonant sounds at the beginning of the word.
And then you have a vowel and a consonant.
This is the way to spell.
That is s, s at the end of the word bliss is just a way to a spell.
It is not a cluster. It is just one sound, s, bliss.

Word School

In the word like school, s and k, these two words, these two sounds, make a cluster.
Then you have long uu and l at the end of this word.
So this is again, a cluster at the initial position in this word.
And according to the phonetic alphabet, sometimes this length of u is indicated like u: this or it is also indicated as this.
But for simplicity, I am just putting it doubling of these two letters uu in school to indicate length.

Word Scooter

In a word like scooter, look at this, again s and k are making cluster, but this is a short vowel skutar.

Cluster Of Words

in English, we find a cluster of two sounds.
A cluster of two consonant sounds is a very natural phenomena in our speech.
There are some languages where cluster is not allowed.
In fact, even words with clusters from some other language like English is simplified.
When you speak when you hear some variety of Hindi or particularly Punjabi variety of Hindi, you will hear people say a word instead of a word like school; some people do say sakool.
For a word like scooter, some people do say sacooter.
Now English words like school and scooter are used in Punjabi or Punjabi variety of Hindi and what the speakers do is they insert the consonant, the vowel sound a in between the two sounds that are making cluster to break the cluster.
And therefore school, sk in school becomes sakool.
So they do not leave the first sound s without its vowel quality.
They insert that sound there and it becomes sakool.
So some languages do not allow clusters, but it is a common feature of many languages in the world.
There could be small words or a big word in every type of word. Small words are like monosyllabic word, and big words are like multi-syllable words.
So you see cluster in various kinds of words in English.

Cluster Of Three Sounds

This is also very common in English.
But because cluster as a process is making the word heavier so without clusters, you have millions of words.
With clusters, the total number of words are far lesser than the words without clusters.
And when we talk about clusters of three consonants, though it is a productive pattern in a language like English, the total number of possible words is far fewer, very few in number.
But nonetheless, what is important is to look at its pattern.
It is a very interesting and very interesting pattern emerging out of it.
Words are like when you pay attention to words like spring, stress, screw.

Three words cluster

So the way we have been working that is the first thing we want to do is to write it in a way so that we identify sounds.
So when you write it this way you have s p r i ng .
This is a velar nasal sound, which in the phonetic chart is indicated like this ng.
Ng spring.
So there are three consonant sounds which are part of the cluster, and they are all at the initial level, initial position.
So another point to keep in mind is, clusters of three consonant sounds are possible only in the initial position of a word.

What are the sounds in the cluster?

In this example spring, we have s p r.
So three consonant sounds and after that comes a vowel sound i and then we have another consonant ng.
That is velar nasal, which I show you here.
In a word like stress, again identify it. S t r e and s.
The sounds that make cluster are s t r.
They are consonant, three consonant sounds, then a vowel and then a consonant.
In a word like screw. You have s k r i u. It is screw.
It is i and u screw. S k r i and u. So again three consonants and then two vowels at the end of it.
The three consonant sounds that are making clusters are s p l in splash. S t r in string. And s k r in scrub.
In example of a cluster with three consonant sounds, the first sound of that cluster must be s, and the second sound must be one of the three that is, p, t, and k
And the third one is either r or which is either r or l.
This is a very heavy constraint on making of a word.
And therefore, words with clusters of three consonant sounds are very few in number.
words follow such heavy constraint on its formation that we have, you try to make a word, first sound must be s second sound must be either one of the three p t or k.
So if you want to describe this on the basis of your understanding of sounds and vowels and consonants and places of articulations it becomes even more interesting.

Articulation

So first one is s.
It is a dental fricative sound.
S, in English it is a dental fricative sound.
Second one is one of the stop sounds, p, t, k.
One is bilabial stop.
The other is alveolar stop; t alveolar stop and k is a velar stop.
So there are three different places of articulations but they are all stops sounds plosive sounds and r and l in English are called not English in according to sounds are called liquid sounds.
So there is a common thing between the two sounds.
So the last sound that is last sound of the sequence of the cluster must be either r and l.
No other sounds can participate in a cluster of three consonants.
Scrap, strand, strict, strip, spring.
All these words have a cluster of three consonant sounds in the beginning.
But if you start noticing not paying attention to how they are spelt, but how they are spoken, you will see this pattern of s in the s as the first one.
So the way it works is there are three consonant sounds.
So s as the first one; p, t or k as the second one, and r or l as the third one.
That is how the pattern emerges.
The harder you look at consonants and vowels sequence, consonant and vowel when you identify consonants, the first thing is to identify consonants and vowels, sounds.

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