Production and identification of English word-final nasal consonants by Brazilian EFL learners

Abstract

This preliminary study aims at investigating the production and perception of the English nasals /m/ and /n/ in word-final position by a group of 10 intermediate Brazilian EFL learners. Production data was collected by means of a Sentence Reading Test considering preceding vowel as phonological context. Perception was assessed by means of an identification test contrasting native-like vs. nonnative-like pronunciation of the target nasal consonants. The results from production suggest that the lack of fully realized word-final nasals in Brazilian Portuguese influenced the Brazilian learners’ production, as they frequently nasalized the preceding vowel and deleted the following nasal consonant. The results from the identification test revealed that it was easier for the participants to identify the native-like realization of English word-final nasals when it was presented in contrast to the nonnative-like realization.

Keywords

• Perception
• Production
• Nasal Consonants