Binukid consists of twenty segmental
phonemes and one
suprasegmental phoneme. The
syllable is the basic unit of word structure, and each syllable consists of one vowel and one or two consonants only, arranged in the following patterns: CV, CVC and, in some instances, CCV (which is found mostly in
Spanish loanwords). A word consists of one or more of these syllables.
Consonants There are 16
consonants in Binukid. In some instances, there is a
voiceless alveolo-palatal affricate which appears in Spanish loanwords. The phoneme is sometimes trilled which is used in intervocalic position or in Spanish loanwords by some speakers. All consonants except are found in initial and final position in the syllable; is found only syllable-initial.
Vowels There are generally four
vowels in Binukid.
Suprasegmentals There is a suprasegmental phoneme of
stress which usually falls on the penultimate syllable. Stress give contrast to words of the same segmental phonemes; for example means 'surprise' while means 'drunk'. Long words may have more than one stress: 'rooster'. Stress commonly shifts when suffixes are added to the word (as in 'mysterious') or when the speaker wishes to emphasize the word. == Grammar ==