Monogesture Defined
Some words are not only monosyllabic but also pronounceable through one smooth, uninterrupted articulatory movement, which the author defines as monogesture.
Words such as “A,” “Ben,” and “song” can be articulated monogesturally. Words such as “F,” “exist,” and “C-sharp” cannot.
Monogesture forms are single letters or monosyllables whose core pronunciation is a vowel nucleus, while both a consonant onset and a permissive coda are optional. In syllable terms, SingLets therefore take the structures V, VN, CV, or CVN.
Every SingLet syllable is designed so that its pronunciation can be realized through one smooth tongue movement, without interruption or secondary articulator re-targeting. All SingLets are monogesture words.
Nature Notes
Natural SingLets are A, B, C, D, E, Fi, and G. In pronunciation, these correspond to /eɪ/, /bi/, /si/, /di/, /i/, /fi/, and /dʒi/ (Table 1, the “Natural Note” rows in the middle).
Sharp and Flat Accidentals
Sharp SingLets are A♯→Ah, B♯→Bah, C♯→Cah, D♯→Dah, E♯→Eah, F♯→Fah, and G♯→Gah, all rhyming with /ɑ/ as in “grandma” (Table 1, the “Single Sharp” rows). The beginning C and E in accidental SingLets have consonant onset pronunciation of /s/ and /j/, respectively.
Flat SingLets are A♭→Aeh, B♭→Beh, C♭→Ceh, D♭→Deh, E♭→Eeh, F♭→Feh, and G♭→Geh, all rhyming with /ɛ/ assigned to syllable “eh.”
Double Sharp and Flat Accidentals
Double sharp SingLets are A♯♯→Aw, B♯♯→Baw, C♯♯→Caw, D♯♯→Daw, E♯♯→Eaw, F♯♯→Faw, and G♯♯→Gaw, all rhyming with /ɔ/ as in “law.”
Double flat SingLets are A♭♭→Oo, B♭♭→Boo, C♭♭→Coo, D♭♭→Doo, E♭♭→Eoo, F♭♭→Foo, and G♭♭→Goo, all rhyming with /u/ as “oo” in “zoo.”
Triple Sharp and Flat Accidentals
Triple sharp SingLets are A♯♯♯→On, B♯♯♯→Bon, C♯♯♯→Con (pronounced as /sɑn/ as a SingLet, instead of /kɑn/ as a normal English word), D♯♯♯→Don, E♯♯♯→Eon, F♯♯♯→Fon, and G♯♯♯→Gon, all rhyming with /ɑn/ as in “Don.”
Triple flat SingLets are A♭♭♭→En, B♭♭♭→Ben, C♭♭♭→Cen (pronounced as /sɛn/, instead of /kɛn/ for a normal English word), D♭♭♭→Den, E♭♭♭→Een, F♭♭♭→Fen, and G♭♭♭→Gen, all rhyming with /ɛn/ as in “pen” (Table 1).
Quadruple Sharp and Flat Accidentals
Quadruple sharp SingLets are A♯♯♯♯→Ong, B♯♯♯♯→Bong, C♯♯♯♯→Cong, D♯♯♯♯→Dong, E♯♯♯♯→Eong, F♯♯♯♯→Fong, and G♯♯♯♯→Gong, all rhyming with /ɔŋ/ as in the English word “song” (not the Chinese Pinyin “Song” as for “宋”) (Table 1).
Quadruple flat SingLets are A♭♭♭♭→Ung, B♭♭♭♭→Bung, C♭♭♭♭→Cung, D♭♭♭♭→Dung, E♭♭♭♭→Eung, F♭♭♭♭→Fung, and G♭♭♭♭→Gung, all rhyming with /uŋ/ as in “ung” from “Kung Fu,” while staying manageable for English speakers.