ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Relative articulation

Relative articulation is a term used to describe how your tongue and other parts of your mouth move when you make different speech sounds.

Imagine your mouth like a playground, and your tongue and lips are the players. When you say "muh" (like the beginning of the word "mom"), your lips come together to make the "m" sound. But when you say "duh" (like the beginning of "dad"), your tongue touches the back of your teeth to make the "d" sound.

Now, imagine your tongue like a tool that can move up and down, forward and backward, and side to side. When you say "see," your tongue moves up towards the roof of your mouth to make the "s" sound. But when you say "gee," your tongue moves back towards your throat to make the "g" sound.

So, relative articulation is like a game of Simon Says where your tongue and lips follow the instructions of the speech sound you want to make. Each sound has its own unique set of movements and positions, like a secret code that only your mouth knows how to decode!