1. What is elision?
2. Give examples of historical elision.
3. Of what speech in present-day English is the reduction of consonants typical?
4. What consonants and clusters may be elided in rapid colloquial speech?
5. Give your own examples of the reduction of consonants in the Russian language.
6. Transcribe the following words and reveal the cases of elision in them.
government gnome answer knot
comb wrong listen tomb
7. Read the following words and combinations. Pay attention to the pronunciation
of the same words in careful and careless colloquial speech:
phonetics [f∂u'netıks] [f∂'netıks]
mostly ['m∂ustlı] ['m∂uslı]
next day ['nekst 'deı] ['neks 'deı]
must be ['mΛst bi] ['mΛs bi]
wild life ['waıld 'laıf] ['waıl 'laıf]
rapidly ['ræpıdlı] ['ræpılı]
of course [∂v'k:s] [∂'k:s]
Northern Ireland [n:ð∂n 'aıl∂nd] ['n:n 'a:l∂nd]
ertainly ['s:t∂nlı] ['s:t∂nı]
for instaunce [f∂r 'ınst∂ns] ['fınst∂ns]
terrorist ['ter∂rıst] ['terıst]
extraordinary [ıkstr':dın∂rı] [ıstr':dnrı]
friends [frendz] [frenz]
kindness ['kaındnıs] ['kaınnıs]
8. Read the following sentences in the full form (formal speaking) and then pronounce them rapidly as in colloquial speech:
a) Did he lift her handbag by himself?
b) He looks too old for his age.
c) When I first saw him he was a handsome man.
d) Dont you think she might have gone home?
e) The landscape doesnt change much in winter.
f) I saw her grandmother last night.
UNIT 7
Section 1
Make a careful study of the text below and pick out the terms related to phonetics.
Word Stress (I)
The sequence of syllables in the word is not pronounced identically. The syllables, which are uttered with more prominence than the other syllables of the word, are said to be stressed or accented.
The effect of prominence in English words may be achieved by the following factors: 1) force (loudness); 2) pitch (tone); 3) sound quantity (length), 4) sound quality (vowel colour). So a vowel is perceived as a more prominent one if it is louder, longer and more distinct, than any other vowel in a word.
European languages such as English, German, French and Russian possess predominantly dynamic word stress. In Scandinavian languages the word stress is both dynamic and musical. In Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese the musical (tonic) stress is observed.
Quantitative and qualitative components are also significant. Vowels of unstressed syllables are not so long and are usually reduced (in the unstressed position).
Word stress fulfils two linguistic functions: constitutive (as it arranges syllables in words) and distinctive (as it may differentiate lexical units, parts of speech and grammatical forms).
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There are three degrees of stress in English: stressed syllables (primary stress), half-stressed syllables (secondary stress), weak/unstressed syllables.
*In Russian there are only two degrees of word stress stressed and unstressed syllables.
Languages are also differentiated according to the placement of word stress. It may be fixed and free. For instance, in French the stress falls on the last syllable of the word, in Finnish and Czech it is fixed on the first syllable, in Polish - on the one but last syllable. Both in English and in Russian word stress is free. But it always falls on a particular syllable (in a particular group of words).
The position of word stress in English has been influenced by the combination of different tendencies: 1) recessive (the root syllable is stressed);
2) rhythmic (the 3rd syllable from the end is stressed).
So the 3-syllabic words are generally stressed on the first syllable.
The accentual structure of a word can be shown graphically by stress marks placed above (primary stress) or below (secondary stress): ['ındıvızı'bılıtı].
It is very important for a learner to know the most common accentual patterns of disyllabic and polysyllabic English words. The misplacing of the nuclear accent may lead to misunderstanding (= an accentual phonological mistake).
e.g. . [aıv 'si:n ∂ `blækb∂:d ın ð∂ gα:dn].
(If you shift the stress and pronounce 'blæk b∂:d instead of `blækb∂:d, the listener will think that you have seen some black-coloured bird.)
As for misplacing the secondary stress, this will not lead to a phonological mistake, but distort the accentual pattern of the word and make it difficult for the listener to recognize. The most common mistake of this kind is omitting the secondary stress in polysyllabic words.
cf. ['ındıvıdju'ælıtı] individuality '
[dem∂ns'treı∫n] demonstration '
[pr∂nΛnsı'eı∫n] pronunciation '
The omission of the pre-nuclear secondary stress may also result in pronouncing the wrong vowels: [dım∂ns'treı∫n], [pr∂n∂nsı'eı∫n]
Section 2
[ t ]
(occlusive-constrictive,forelingual,apical,palato-alveolar,bicentral,strong,voiceless)
[ d ]
(occlusive-constrictive, forelingual, apical, palato-alveolar, bicentral, weak,voiced)
I. Observe the position of the tongue for the sounds[t∫] and [d ]. Read the words in
the columns. Observe the proper pronunciation of [t∫] and [d ] at word junction. cheese mixture catch watch chain which job
chart culture fetch Dutch cheese college chess
child nature lunch catch Charles large cherries
joy agent edge huge jam-jar teach German
jar major huge large gentleman orange juice
jest pages barge Judge Johnson village jail
II. Read the sentences. Follow the tonetic marks.
1. What a charming child! !
2. Dont catch a chill. .
3. Such carpenters, such chips. .
4. Not much of a catch. .
5. Charlie doesnt know chalk from cheese. .
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6. I adore Dutch cheese. .
7. Venture a small fish to catch a great one. .
8. Hatches, catches, matches and dispatches. ,
, .
9. Just imagine! !
10. Change the subject. .
11. June is a prodigy of energy. .
12. Jos is a gentleman at large.
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13. Ill do it just to oblige Joyce. .
14. John arranged your journey to Japan.
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15. James joined the geography society.
III. Match the following English idioms, proverbs and sayings with their Russian
equivalents. Make up situations to illustrate their usage.
1. He that mischief hatches mischief catches. a.
2. no chicken b. ,
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3. jaw breaker c.
4. set ones jaws d.
5. just the job e. ,
6. all the rage f. /
7. be in a jam g.
8. real jam h.
IV. Pronounce the tongue twister in the quickest possible way. Observe the
correct articulation of [ t∫ ] and [ d ].
Tragedy strategy.
Section 3
I. Test. Tick the words you recognize in the sentences you hear:
1. a) shop; b) chop
2. a) sherry; b) cherry
3. a) washing; b) watching
4. a) ships; b) chips
5. a) shin; b) chin
6. a) shoes; b) choose
II. Listen to the dialogue and learn it by heart.
At the Butchers Shop
Butcher: Good morning, Mrs Church.
Mrs Church: Good morning, Mr Cheshire. Id like some chops for the childrens
lunch.
Butcher: Chump chops or shoulder chops, madam?
Mrs Church: Ill have four shoulder chops, and I want a small chicken.
Butcher: Would you like to choose a chicken, Mrs Church?
Mrs Church: Which one is cheaper?
Butcher: This ones the cheapest. Its a delicious chicken.
Mrs Church: How much is all that? I havent got cash. Can I pay by cheque?
Butcher: Of course, Mrs Church.
