Miguel:
>metal vs. medal.
Yes, of course, but I pronounce both as ['mErl] where "r" is
a voiced alveolar flap. In my speech, they are completely
homophonous as mentioned in your quote, both voiced, without
any vowel difference either.
Regardless, /d/ is not voiceless.
Another link clarifies the articulation of the English voiced
stop:
http://www.sfu.ca/~saunders/L130_2000/L130_Intro%20to%20stops.pdf
As I've already stated, it's a matter of a late onset (at least,
"late" in comparison to French). The voicing is nonetheless
present. The text states clearly:
"In initial position of a word or in syllable initial
position after a contoid, the voicing starts about
halfway through the hold phase."
In other words, "voicing" followed by "release". Ergo, the
English voiced stop in initial position is STILL voiced,
even if partially so. It even shows this fact with IPA
symbols just in case one decides to misinterpret further.
Can we now all agree that /d/ is normally voiced in English?
- gLeN
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