本研究旨在調查馬來西亞（檳城）華語舌冠音的構音特徵，特別著眼於噝擦音的「非典型」發音性質。主要研究結果臚列於下：（一）塞音 d的顎位遍及齒齦 (dentialveolar) 和齒槽 (alveolar) 兩區，舌位則包括舌尖和舌葉；（二）擦音 s、sh和塞擦音 z、zh 發音部位大致相同，皆為舌葉齒槽音；（三）擦音 x 有兩個語音變體，分別為典型的齒槽音 [ɕ] 和位置偏前的齒齦舌音[ɕ̘]；（四）塞擦音 j 的接觸面積較大，為一舌尖面音，碰觸齒齦及齒槽兩區。本研究另外發現 x 的語音變體基本上由環境制約：在馬來西亞（檳城）華語中，引發顎化現象的前高母音及介音 [i, j] 常與非典型、偏前變體 [ɕ̘] 相拼，而典型變體 [ɕ] 則多出現於其它環境。本文認為該現象很有可能是語言接觸後的音變結果。

This study is an articulatory investigation of the coronal consonants in Malaysian Mandarin, with special reference to the non-“canonical” realization of the sibilants. Our principal findings are: (i) d is apico-laminal dentialveolo-alveolar [t], (ii) s and sh are mostly laminal alveolar [s̻z, zh], and are the same as those of the corresponding fricatives, (iii) x has two phonetic variants: laminal alveolar [ɕ] (“canonical”) and laminal (denti-)alveolar [ɕ̘] (non-“canonical”, fronted), and (iv) j, as compared to z and zh, has a wider midsagittal contact, i.e., apical dentialveoloalveolar [tɕ]. Another important new finding is that the two variants of x are contextually conditioned. Specifically, the high front vowel [i] and the palatal glide [j] often co-occur with the non-“canonical”, fronted x (i.e., [ɕ̘]), while the “canonical” [ɕ] is found elsewhere. The phenomenon in question is attributable to language contact-induced sound change.