Read the chart in two directions
Open Pulmonic consonants and use an empty editor. For this exercise, switch off Smart IPA suggestions so that the clicked symbols remain a straightforward comparison list. Locate the Plosive row first. Then follow the column headings across the table. On a narrow screen, scroll the chart horizontally as needed while keeping track of the row you are using.
Rows organize manners of articulation, while columns organize places. A plosive involves a complete oral closure followed by release; bilabial, alveolar and velar identify three different closure locations. You do not need to learn every cell before entering this exercise. Establish the two coordinates for the first pair, then repeat the same decision for the next two pairs.
Insert the bilabial pair
At the intersection of Plosive and Bilabial, click p. Add a space in the editor, then click b. In a paired pulmonic cell, the left symbol is voiceless and the right symbol is voiced. Check the editor after each click so that an accidental selection or caret movement does not change a different part of the draft.
The pair holds place and manner constant while changing voicing. That makes p b a useful first comparison even before you connect the symbols to a particular language. Keep the exercise at that level: a chart entry alone does not describe every detail of a speaker’s production, such as aspiration or the exact timing of voicing relative to release.
Move across the same row
Add a space and select t, then another space and d, from the alveolar plosive position. Continue with spaced k and ɡ from the velar position. Remain in the Plosive row throughout. You should now see three pairs with the same voiceless-then-voiced order, which makes a later comparison easier to read.
Describe the movement across the chart in words: bilabial to alveolar to velar. This is a change of place, not a progression in loudness, difficulty or duration. The chart’s layout is a classification system rather than a pronunciation score. If you need to examine how the articulators move, the linked university demonstrations provide a separate visual and audio reference.
Download and turn the line into a retrieval exercise
Choose Download text and open the saved file. Check the six-symbol order and the final ɡ against the editor. The export contains the characters you entered, not the chart’s row and column labels. Add those labels in your own notes so that the saved string remains useful after the chart is no longer visible.
For revision, cover the chart and write the place, manner and voicing for each entry. Then reverse the task: ask for the voiced velar plosive and locate its cell before looking at the symbol. Practising both directions helps distinguish recognizing a familiar character from being able to retrieve it from a phonetic description.
Choose the right notation
Do not read every blank as impossible
The official chart uses shaded regions for articulations judged impossible. An unshaded gap has a different status. Avoid inventing a symbol or making an impossibility claim merely because a particular position is empty.
Add detail only when the task needs it
A base consonant symbol is a starting point. If your evidence or assignment requires aspiration, dental articulation or another refinement, consult the diacritics chart and use the relevant convention consistently rather than guessing from ordinary spelling.
Retrieve a consonant from three coordinates
Which entry in p b t d k ɡ is the voiced velar plosive? Which two entries share its place and manner while differing in voicing?
Compare with the model answer
Locate the Velar column and Plosive row, then choose the voiced member on the right. The adjacent voiceless member is k; changing to d would change the place of articulation instead.
Common questions
Does a right-hand symbol always mean a rounded sound?
No. In paired pulmonic consonant cells, right versus left indicates voiced versus voiceless. The paired vowel symbols use a different convention involving lip rounding, so do not transfer the vowel-chart rule to this table.
Does clicking a symbol play its sound?
In this i2Speak chart, clicking inserts the symbol into the editor. For recordings or articulatory video, use the official IPA and university sources linked below. Entry and listening are separate activities here.
Can the chart determine which consonants belong to a language?
No. It provides a general inventory and classification of phonetic symbols. A language’s sound system requires language-specific evidence and analysis; the presence of a symbol in the chart does not establish its phonemic status.
Sources & further reading
- International Phonetic Association: interactive IPA chart
Official symbol values, chart positions and demonstration recordings.
- University of Glasgow: Seeing Speech
Articulatory demonstrations for comparing places and manners of articulation.
- Catherine Anderson: Classifying consonants
An authored introductory explanation of consonant place, manner and voicing.
Put it into practice
Open Pulmonic consonants to try the example, then continue with the topic’s practice exercises.
Explore the practice guide
