Definition:
An affricate is a consonant produced by combining a stop (complete obstruction of airflow) with a fricative (narrow constriction producing turbulent airflow) at the same or adjacent place of articulation, produced as a single unit. English has two affricate phonemes: /tʃ/ (“ch”) and /dʒ/ (“j”). Japanese has /ts/, /tɕ/, and /dʑ/.
In-Depth Explanation
Affricates are classified as obstruents and behave phonologically as single segments, not sequences. The key diagnostic: in English, “cats” /kæts/ contains a stop + fricative sequence (/t/ + /s/), not an affricate, because /t/ and /s/ belong to different morphemes. But “church” /tʃɝːtʃ/ contains true affricates — single units that happen to have complex articulation.
Affricates in Japanese:
| Phoneme | Occurs in | Example | IPA |
|---|---|---|---|
| /ts/ | つ (tsu) | 月 (つき, moon) | [tsɯ] |
| /tɕ/ | ち (chi) | 力 (ちから, power) | [tɕi] |
| /dʑ/ | じ (ji), ぢ (di) | 時間 (じかん, time) | [dʑi] |
Japanese affricates arise from allophonic processes:
- /t/ becomes the affricate [tɕ] before /i/ (ち) and [ts] before /ɯ/ (つ)
- /d/ becomes [dʑ] before /i/ (ぢ) and [dz] before /ɯ/ (づ)
These alternations mean that Japanese speakers don’t perceive /t/ and /tɕ/ as different phonemes — they’re variants of the same underlying consonant conditioned by the following vowel. English speakers, who have /tʃ/ as a separate phoneme, may need to consciously avoid their English “ch” articulation (which is more retracted) when producing Japanese ち.
For learners, the main affricate challenge is つ [tsɯ]. English doesn’t have /ts/ at the beginning of syllables (only at the end, as in “cats”), so English speakers often substitute “too” or “sue” for つ. Practice starting with words where /ts/ is comfortable (“tsunami” — a Japanese loanword that English adopted) and extending from there.
Related Terms
See Also
Research
- Ladefoged, P., & Johnson, K. (2014). A Course in Phonetics (7th ed.). Cengage Learning. — Clear explanation of affricate articulation and how they differ from stop+fricative sequences.
- Vance, T. J. (2008). The Sounds of Japanese. Cambridge University Press. — Detailed coverage of Japanese affricates, their allophonic conditioning, and acoustic properties.