Patterned Exceptions in Phonology - UCLA Department of Linguistics

1. Introduction
This dissertation presents a model of how phonological patterns in the lexicon could be
learned and used by speakers and hearers, and perpetuated over time. This chapter
introduces the phenomenon of lexical patterns, discusses why they are problematic in
current phonological thinking, and gives a preview of the model.
1.1. Lexical regularities
I will use the terms lexical regularity and phonological pattern to refer to generalizations
about the phonological properties of the set of words in a language. Regularities can be
observed that apply within morphemes, within morphologically complex words, and
across sets of words.
1.1.1. Regularities within morphemes
In English roots of the form sCVC, the two Cs generally cannot be both labial, both velar,
both nasal, or both [l]. 1 The generalization is quite strong (see Berkley 1994 for statistical
findings on this and related phenomena in the English lexicon), and hypothetical
exceptions, though pronounceable, sound somewhat ill-formed (?[I1], ?[I3]). 2
Generalizations like this one are often attributed to morpheme structure constraints
1 Although such sequences are common across word or morpheme boundaries: It’s Lily! or Ask Angry Joe.
2 A search of the online Oxford English Dictionary for sCVC words only (i.e., not the full set of
sC(C)VC(C) words, which follow similar restrictions) found, collapsing variant spellings and
pronunciations, just 3 words with two labials (Spam, spume, spoom), 9 words with two velars (skoke, skeck,
skowke, skeg, skig, scak, scoke, scag, scug), 3 words with two nasals (smon, snam, snum), and no words
with two ls. Most of these words were unfamiliar to me.
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