Do tones really matter in Mandarin? (Specific Languages) Language Learning Forum

Do tones really matter in Mandarin?
Tags: Tonal languages \| Pronunciation \| Mandarin
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Language Learning Forum : Specific Languages

28 messages over 4 pages: 1 2 3 4

stelingo
Hexaglot
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United Kingdom
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Message 25 of 28

09 August 2010 at 12:39am | IP Logged

Huliganov wrote:

This is an interesting topic of conversation. On a similar note I was wondering whether having different vowels is really that important when learning English or whether everything wouldn't be perfectly understandable if we just used one vowel to stand for all the different vowels?

E thenk ye heve mede en enteresteng pent, Helegenev. Et weld meke Englesh se mech sempler te lern end mere effecent es e werld lengue-frence.
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lingoleng
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Germany
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Message 26 of 28

09 August 2010 at 1:13am | IP Logged

Thr s stll lt f rdndnc. (well, some Americans speak so, anyway ...)
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OneEye
Diglot
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Japan
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Message 27 of 28

11 August 2010 at 3:46pm | IP Logged

Radondonc?
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Derian
Triglot
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Message 28 of 28

11 August 2010 at 4:01pm | IP Logged

Huliganov wrote:

On a similar note I was wondering whether having different vowels is really that important when learning English or whether everything wouldn't be perfectly understandable if we just used one vowel to stand for all the different vowels?

Look at this picture:
http://boxesformovinghome.com/catalog/images/Book-box.jpg
And answer me this question:
Whoro oro tho books?
Oro thoy on tho box or on tho box?

You see, the homonymy would render the language unintelligible. But, if such changes were really introduced, one can assume that the language would most probably develop a tonal system to distinguish the words by tone. Just as it has happend with the asian languages.

Edited by Derian on 11 August 2010 at 4:03pm

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