Realisation of intervocalic /t/ in Australian English: A snapshot

Abstract

In word-medial intervocalic contexts, a common realisation of contemporary Australian English /t/ is a tap, [], but research on past and present realisations of medial /t/ is limited. This study presents a preliminary exploration of the realisation of medial /t/ by 72 speakers in the Mitchell and Delbridge corpus, collected from 1959–1960. Results show a range of variants in use, including taps, fricated and affricate realisations. There are some differences in the distribution of variants according to sex, and in overall release phase durations. The study highlights the need for further phonetic research on variation and change in Australian English consonants. Show more