There are two main categories of phonemes:
1. Consonants:
* Place of articulation: Where in the mouth the sound is produced (e.g., lips, teeth, tongue)
* Bilabial: Produced with both lips (e.g., /p/, /b/, /m/)
* Labiodental: Produced with the lower lip and upper teeth (e.g., /f/, /v/)
* Dental: Produced with the tongue tip behind the upper teeth (e.g., /θ/, /ð/)
* Alveolar: Produced with the tongue tip on the alveolar ridge (e.g., /t/, /d/, /n/, /s/, /z/, /l/, /r/)
* Palatal: Produced with the tongue blade on the hard palate (e.g., /ʃ/, /ʒ/, /tʃ/, /dʒ/, /j/)
* Velar: Produced with the back of the tongue on the soft palate (e.g., /k/, /g/, /ŋ/)
* Glottal: Produced with the glottis (e.g., /h/)
* Manner of articulation: How the airstream is modified (e.g., stopped, fricative, etc.)
* Stop: Airflow is completely blocked (e.g., /p/, /b/, /t/, /d/, /k/, /g/)
* Fricative: Airflow is constricted, creating friction (e.g., /f/, /v/, /θ/, /ð/, /s/, /z/, /ʃ/, /ʒ/, /h/)
* Affricate: A stop followed by a fricative (e.g., /tʃ/, /dʒ/)
* Nasal: Airflow is released through the nose (e.g., /m/, /n/, /ŋ/)
* Liquid: Airflow is partially obstructed (e.g., /l/, /r/)
* Glide: A sound that transitions to another sound (e.g., /j/, /w/)
* Voicing: Whether or not the vocal cords vibrate during the production of the sound
* Voiced: Vocal cords vibrate (e.g., /b/, /d/, /g/, /v/, /z/)
* Voiceless: Vocal cords do not vibrate (e.g., /p/, /t/, /k/, /f/, /s/)
2. Vowels:
* Tongue position: The position of the tongue in the mouth, both front-to-back and high-to-low.
* Front: Tongue towards the front of the mouth (e.g., /i/, /e/, /ɛ/)
* Central: Tongue in the middle of the mouth (e.g., /ə/, /ʌ/)
* Back: Tongue towards the back of the mouth (e.g., /u/, /o/, /ɔ/)
* Tongue height: The vertical position of the tongue in the mouth
* High: Tongue close to the roof of the mouth (e.g., /i/, /u/)
* Mid: Tongue in the middle (e.g., /e/, /o/, /ə/, /ʌ/)
* Low: Tongue low in the mouth (e.g., /ɛ/, /æ/, /ɔ/)
* Lip rounding: Whether or not the lips are rounded
* Rounded: Lips are rounded (e.g., /u/, /o/, /ɔ/)
* Unrounded: Lips are not rounded (e.g., /i/, /e/, /ɛ/, /æ/, /ʌ/)
Important Note: The specific phonemes and their classifications can vary slightly depending on the language being analyzed.