Connected Speech
Video: English Phonology Lecture 5 (1): Aspects of Connected Speech
Video: English Phonology Lecture 5 (2): Aspects of Connected Speech
Universidad UCINF: Aspects of Connected Speech: Linking
British Accent: Connected Speech: What is it and What is it important?
Rhythm
Stress-timing
Regular intervals: Heartbeat, flashing light, music,
E.g: Ticking a clock
The time from each stressed syllable to the next will tend to be the same
The foot
A unit of rhythm, begins with a stressed syllable
Tree diagrams
Strong (s) and Weak (w) produced in larger pieces of speech
To build up a metrical grid
Correct for slow, careful speech
Tend towards a rhythmic alternation of strong and weak syllables
Stress-shift
Stresses are altered according to the context
com'pact (adj) but 'compact' disk
Heath'row but 'Heathrow' Airport
thir'teen but 'thirteenth' place
Situation
Why is it important?
What is it?
You’ll sound much more nativelike
You’ll be able to speak more quickly
More fluent speech is, more efficient communication will be
Pronunciation
Assimilation: A speech sound becomes very similar to or the same as a neighbouring speech sound
Change the place of articulation of a consonant phoneme to get ready for the next consonant phoneme
Epenthesis
Add a speech sound that wouldn’t normally be present
A new speech sound might help us to articulate words more clearly
When to add speech sounds to facilitate rapid speech and where is the best to avoid
<fool>, <school>, and <stool> and add a little [ə] before the dark l [ɫ]
Intrusive R
Where there is no letter <r> in the spelling
Word endings such as <a> and <aw> often bring about this phenomenon
When connecting a word ending /ɔː/ or /ə/ with another word that begins with a vowel
“spar and massage” : spa and massage
“lawr and order”: law and order
Elision
The deletion of speech sounds in connected speech
The letter <t> in “weirdest” comes after the fricative <s> and before another consonant phoneme to "weirdes"
Often by native: Deleting /t/ after /f/ and /s/ when /t/ comes before consonant phonemes
A linking / r / between any word-final schwa and a rhythmically closely following vowel sound as in: the idear of it
The spelling -r or -re when followed in close rhythmical connection with a vowel sound usually has such an r pronounced
A word like surprise which often loses its first /r/
Liaison
Rhotic: The /r/ links the two words together
[r] forms a syllable with the following vowel in connected speech
Non-rhotic: /r/ is not pronounced after vowels
When words that are spelled ending with an <r> or an <re> come before a word beginning with a vowel, the /r/ is usually pronounced
Intrusive /r/
Link a final /ə/ or even /ɑː, ɔː/ to an initial vowel in the same sense group by inserting an r-sound even if there is no r in the spelling
Assimilation
"Sounds become more similar": Affects consonants at words
Types
Regressive
Progressive
Cf become more like Ci
Ci become more like Cf
Consonants can change in three ways:
Manner of articulation
Voicing
Place of articulation
Alveolar consonants are highly susceptible to REGRESSIVE assimilation, POA changes not voicing.
Have not disappeared: If ONE alveolar consonant, clipping happen
Usually REGRESSIVE, A final plosive is a fricative or nasal
Coalescence
An alveolar consonant followed by a palatal consonant
Elision
/t/ or /d/
Other consonants
Tend to disappear, usually take place where an alveolar consonant is C2 and same voicing
Highly to be modified in rapid speech
Linking/Liaison/ Sandhi /r/
Linking /r/
Intrusive /r/
/r/ at the end of the word and vowel next to it
There is a non-close vowel at the end of the word
Juncture
Between one sound and surrounding sounds
A close juncture: Across word boundaries: External Open Juncture
Examples: My turn, Might earn
/t/ not strongly aspirated, /aI/ is shorter due to pre-forts clipping
BY: FARAH NATHASHA. TESL2