Here's a breakdown:
* Phonological features: These are the characteristics that distinguish one sound from another. For example, the sound /p/ is distinguished from the sound /b/ by its voicing feature (voiced vs. voiceless).
* Distinctive features: Some phonological features are distinctive, meaning they can differentiate between different words in a language.
* Neutralization: When a distinctive feature is lost in a specific context, it becomes neutralized. This means the feature no longer distinguishes between sounds in that environment.
Examples:
* Final devoicing in German: In German, the voiced stops /b, d, g/ become voiceless /p, t, k/ at the end of words. For example, "Rad" (wheel) is pronounced with a /t/ at the end, even though the written form has a /d/. This is neutralization because the voicing feature is lost in the final position, causing /d/ and /t/ to merge.
* Neutralization of vowel length in English: In English, the distinction between long and short vowels is neutralized in unstressed syllables. For example, the words "atom" and "attic" have the same vowel sound in their unstressed syllables, even though the written forms suggest different vowel lengths.
Key points:
* Neutralization is context-dependent, meaning it happens in specific environments.
* It involves the loss of a distinctive feature.
* It leads to the merging of two or more phonemes.
Understanding neutralization is crucial for analyzing phonological systems and explaining the sounds of a language.