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2.1.2 Consonants 
Consonant sounds – from a phonological point of view consonants they are sounds 
typically occurring at the edges of a syllable. From a phonetic point of view they are 
usually articulated in one of two ways: either the closing movement is complete giving 
a total closure, or there is a closing movement of one of the vocal organs involving 
some degree of constriction of the mouth passage. (Crystal 2002, 242) Although the 
consonant sounds distinction concerning vocal cords vibration is a frequently discussed 
topic, it is agreed that consonant sounds are either ´fortis´ or ´lenis´, sometimes also 
called ´voiced´ and ´voiceless´. On the one hand David Crystal points, “Some 
consonants involve the vibration of the vocal cords 
[
voiced
]
, and others have no vocal 
cord vibration 
[
voiceless
].” 
(2003, 242) On the other hand Roach points out the problem 
of air pressure measuring sometimes called ´force of articulation´ and recommends 

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21 
using these “two terms 
[
fortis and lenis
] 
as ´cover terms´ standing for a large and 
complex set of phonetic characteristics.” (Roach 2000, 37) There are twenty-four 
consonants in most English variations. (Crystal 2003, 242
;
Roach 2000, 32-64) They 
are b, d, g, v, ð
, , , , 
z,
ʒ
, h, p, t, k, f, 
θ
, 
s, 
ȓȓȓȓ
, t
ȓȓȓȓ
, d
ʒ
, m, n, 
ŋ
, 
l., r, j, w. For the purpose of 
the research, knowledge of the 24 English consonants will be considered basic. 
 
Though all the 24 above-mentioned consonant sounds are usually further 
subdivided into various groups, the topic goes beyond the needs of the research and will 
not be described more in detail. For more information about the subcategories see 
appendix No.1 and No.26.