Pitch as a cue: Pronunciation of Korean plosives by Japanese learners

This study investigates the pronunciation of Korean plosive consonants by Japanese learners through a speech production experiment, comparing their articulation with that of native Korean speakers. Specifically, it examines three sets of Korean plosives—bilabial (/p, p’, ph/), alveolar (/t, t’, th/), and velar (/k, k’, kh/)—with an emphasis on distinguishing the lenis, tense, and aspirated categories. Among the various acoustic features, the analysis focuses on the pitch of the vowel following the plosive, utilizing the software Praat. The pitch serves as a key diagnostic cue, revealing subtle differences in learners’ production patterns. The findings show that Japanese learners often struggle to produce appropriate pitch contours that follow tense and aspirated consonants, leading to misperceptions. By identifying these error patterns, the study proposes targeted instructional strategies for improving learners’ pronunciation accuracy. Notably, the results suggest that explicit training on pitch adjustment can enhance learners’ ability to distinguish and self-correct Korean plosive contrasts. These insights contribute to more effective teaching approaches in Korean language education and support the development of learner autonomy in pronunciation improvement. This work is supported by the Japan-Korea Cultural Foundation.