Which statement describes vowel height and backness?

• A. Height refers to horizontal tongue position; Backness refers to vertical tongue position.
• B. Height refers to vertical tongue position; Backness refers to horizontal tongue position.
• C. Height refers to lip rounding; Backness refers to vowel length.
• D. Height refers to vowel length; Backness refers to rounding.

Answer: (B)

Vowel height describes how high the tongue sits in the mouth, while backness describes how far forward or back the tongue is placed. So the height feature corresponds to vertical tongue position, and backness corresponds to horizontal tongue position. High vowels like in “beat” have the tongue raised; front vowels use the tongue toward the front of the mouth, while back vowels like in “goose” use the tongue toward the back. This combination of vertical and horizontal tongue positions defines the vowel’s height and backness independently from other features like lip rounding or vowel length. The other statements mix up these dimensions or bring in features that are not what height or backness describe, such as lip rounding or length, which are separate properties.