While Japanese speakers consider the relation between /r/ and /l/ to be fluid and thus_______, English speakers treat the two as distinct _______.
A) diphthongic; allophones
B) allophonic; phonemes
C) phonemic; allophones
D) allophonemic; diphthongs

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The fact that Japanese speakers consider the relation between /r/ and /l/ to be fluid suggests that these sounds are allophonic in Japanese, meaning that they are perceived as variations of the same phoneme. In contrast, English speakers treat /r/ and /l/ as distinct phonemes, which means that they are contrastive and can change the meaning of a word (e.g. rat vs. lat). Therefore, the best choice is B, which correctly contrasts allophones and phonemes as relevant concepts in explaining the distinction between Japanese and English sound systems.

While Japanese Speakers Consider the Relation Between /R/ and /L