Understanding the Difference Between Articulation and Phonology

As a parent or educator, hearing a child struggle with certain sounds can be concerning. Maybe you’ve noticed your child saying "wabbit" instead of "rabbit" or consistently swapping "k" sounds for "t" sounds. You might wonder: is this an articulation issue or something more?

In the world of speech therapy, we often differentiate between two major categories of speech sound errors: articulation and phonology. While these terms may sound similar, they represent two distinct types of speech sound challenges. Understanding the difference can help you better support the child in your life who may need help with their speech. We have everything you need to remediate speech sound disorders here at Bjorem Speech! 

What is Articulation?

Articulation refers to the physical production of speech sounds. It’s all about how we use our mouths, lips, tongues, and vocal cords to make sounds that are part of our language.

Children with articulation disorders have trouble forming specific sounds correctly. These errors usually involve the substitution, omission, distortion, or addition of sounds. For example, a child might say "thun" for "sun" if they have a frontal lisp. They may have sounds such as "s" "z" "ch" "j" and "sh" that sound "slushy" if the air is coming out of the sides of their mouth instead of the front, which is called a lateral lisp. For children with lisps, speech-language pathologists LOVE using our Lateralization Deck by Amy Graham.

Articulation issues are typically motor-based. In speech therapy, we work on helping children learn how to move their articulators (lips, tongue, teeth) to produce the target sound correctly. Articulation therapy often involves a lot of practice with specific sounds in isolation, syllables, and eventually in words and sentences. For working on single sound errors, check out our Speech Sound Cues and Box of Sounds collection. 

What is Phonology?

Phonology, on the other hand, is about the rules and patterns of sounds in a language. Children with phonological disorders have difficulty understanding and applying the sound system of their language, which leads to predictable patterns of errors.

For example, a child with a phonological disorder might:

• Consistently replace all back sounds like "k" and "g" with front sounds like "t" and "d" (e.g., saying "tat" for "cat" or "do" for "go"). This is called fronting. When the sound errors are reversed, as in "key" for "tea" this is called backing. Check out our fronting and backing minimal pairs deck and cycles deck. 
• Delete the final consonant in words (e.g., saying "ca" instead of "cat"). Check our our blog on final consonant deletion. 
• Simplify blends of sounds (e.g., saying "pane" instead of "plane").

Phonological errors are not about the physical inability to produce a sound, but rather a misunderstanding of the sound rules of a language. Phonological therapy focuses on teaching the child the underlying rules for when and where to use different sounds.

Two popular treatment approaches for treating phonological disorders are the cycles approach and the minimal pairs approach. What's the difference between these two? Check out this blog post to learn more. To learn more about common phonological processes, please check out this free resource! 

The Key Differences

• Articulation disorders involve difficulty physically producing a specific sound. The focus is on motor-based errors, and therapy involves helping the child learn to make that sound correctly.
• Phonological disorders involve a pattern of errors where the child is using sound substitutions or deletions in a consistent way. Therapy addresses the broader patterns and rules of sound usage.

Why Does It Matter?

The distinction between articulation and phonology is important because the approach to therapy differs depending on the type of error. For example, if a child has an articulation disorder, the focus will be on teaching them how to correctly produce a specific sound. But if a child has a phonological disorder, we need to teach them the sound rules of their language and help them generalize those rules across different words.

Accurately identifying the type of speech sound disorder ensures that a child receives the most effective intervention, tailored to their needs. Whether it's teaching them to move their tongue in the right way for an "r" sound or helping them understand that "cat" needs a "k" sound at the beginning, speech therapy is designed to support their communication skills.

What Can You Do?

If you’re noticing consistent speech sound errors in your child, a speech-language pathologist (SLP) can conduct an assessment to determine whether they are facing an articulation or phonological disorder—or a combination of both. Early intervention is key to helping children develop clear and confident speech.

Through the right strategies, whether focused on articulation or phonology, children can make significant progress in their speech development. If you have questions or concerns, don’t hesitate to reach out to an SLP who can guide you and your child on the path to better communication. Take a look at our speech sound disorders products and let us know if you need any help with deciding on what product best matches the child's needs! 

Final Thoughts

Understanding the difference between articulation and phonology can demystify speech sound disorders and empower parents, educators, and caregivers to seek the right help. Whether it’s a motor-based issue or a pattern of sound errors, speech therapy can make a huge difference in helping children find their voice.

Feel free to share this post with parents, teachers, or anyone else who might benefit from understanding these common speech sound disorders!