the features of the connected speech final

PRESENTATION ON THE FEATURES OF THE CONNECTED SPEECH

PRESENTED TOHONOURABLE SIR NAZIR AHMAD MALIK

THE FEATURES OF THE CONNECTED SPEECH

Group Members:Muhammad Imran BhattiShahbaz AliMuhammad ZahidZunaira Ashraf

THE MAIN AGENDA Introduction to the features of connected Speech The importance of the features The main features of Connected Speech named Assimilation Rhythm Juncture Informal contractions “Wanna” Construction Compression Elision Weak Forms Linking R Class Activities Conclusion

PRESENTER-1MUHAMMAD IMRAN BHATTI

FEATURES OF THE CONNECTED SPEECH

Introduction to the features of connected Speech

The importance of the features The main features of Connected Speech

namedAssimilationRhythm

CONNECTED SPEECH

Connected Speech is the key to gaining a natural, smooth-flowing style of speech. People do not speak in separate words, they speak in logical connected groups of words. Even native speakers sometimes "stumble over their words" because they are unaware of the "little tricks" for avoiding the pitfalls. Trained actors, of course, are able to deliver lengthy, complex, and even "tongue-twisting" passages flawlessly. This is not a gift. They have simply learned the "rules" for linking one word into another with intention.

THE IMPORTANCE OF THE FEATURES

• “A little learning is a dangerous thing; drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring: there shallow draughts intoxicate the brain, and drinking largely sobers us again.” Alexander Pope: An Essay on Criticism, 1709.

THE IMPORTANCE……………2

Rather than give huge a huge list of examples for the participants to wade through, I have taken the “little learning” approach in the hope that armed with some of the basic concepts of how spoken English works at a sonic level, you will feel inspired to start to play with these sounds for yourself and embark on the fascinating journey of understanding of how speaking is strung together. Phonetics is a practical topic and thus the more you play and experiment with the sounds and the effects the more understanding you will achieve. The connected speech features make you feel comfortable at making sounds play and dance together in a rhythmic mood.

The Main Features of Connected Speech Named

AssimilationRhythmCompression“Wanna” ConstructionJunctureElisionWeak FormsLinking R

CONNECTED SPEECH FEATURES

ASSIMILATION-1• Assimilation (ie alteration of an original

sound by the influence of an adjacent one: the term was recorded as applied to consonants in OED from 1871) is a topic that the ordinary EFL user needn't much worry about because practically all the assimilations that arise in continuous speech are "optional".

That is to say, among native speakers they are very frequent but sporadic rather than invariable. Perhaps the most regularly occurring types are from / s / or / z / to / ∫ / or / ʒ / as in apprenticeship /ə`prentɪʃʃɪp/, bus-shelter / `bʌʃ ʃeltə /, dress shop /`dreʃ ʃɒp/, ice-show /`aɪʃ ʃəʊ/, less sure /'leʃ `ʃɔ/, Miss Jones /mɪʃ `ʤəʊnz/, S-shaped /`eʃ ʃeɪpt/ and has she / `hæʒ ʃi /etc.

ASSIMILATION-2

ASSIMILATION-3

Assimilation is concerned with one sound becoming phonetically similar to an adjacent sound.

• Sounds that belong to one word can cause changes in sounds belonging to other words.

• When a word’s pronunciation is affected by sounds in a neighbouring word, we call this process assimilation.

DIRECTIONS OF ASSIMILATION

Direction of change• If a phoneme is affected by one than comes

later in the sentence, the assimilation is termed regressive.

• If a phoneme is affected by one that came earlier in the utterance, the assimilation is termed as progressive.

ASSIMILATION ACTIVITIES-1

• Regressive assimilation: the sounds assimilated are influenced by the succeeding sounds

• /nju:z/ (news) → /nju:speipə/ (newspaper)• /gu:s/ (goose) → /gu:zbəri/ (gooseberry)• /faiv/ (five) → /faifpəns/ (five pence)• /hav/ (have) → /haf tu/ (have to)• /ju:zd/ (used) → /ju:st tu/ (used to)


• Progressive assimilation: the sounds assimilated are affected by the pronunciation of the preceding sounds. This is often seen in the inflectional endings -s and –ed. If preceded by a voiced sound, they become voiced; if preceded by a voiceless one, they become voiceless. For example:


• Plural: students /-s/; books /-s/ girls /-z/; pictures /-z/

• Possessive: students’ books /-s/ girls’ pictures /-z/

• 3rd person singular: He writes /-s/; He speaks /-s/ She reads /-z/; She plays /-z/

• Past tense and past participle: worked /-t/; laughed /-t/ learned /-d/; played /-d/

RHYTHM

• Definition: (1) In phonetics, the sense of movement in speech, marked by the stress, timing, and quantity of syllables.

• (2) In poetics, the recurring alternation of strong and weak elements in the flow of sound and silence in sentences or lines of verse.

RHYTHM-2

Rhythm is timing patterns among syllables. Rhythm is the systematic organization ofprominent and less prominent speechunits in time.There are basically two types of sentence

rhythm in languages: "stress-timed rhythm" and "syllables-timed

rhythm.“

Two Rhythm Classes

1-stress timed rhythmLanguages showing patterns of equal duration between stressed(prominent) syllables.(morse code rhythm: either of 2 codes consisting of various spaces dots or

long and short sounds used for transmitting messages by audible or visual sounds)

e.g. English, Dutch, German2-syllable timed rhythmSyllables are of equal duration.(mashine gun rhythm: rapid-fire or rapidity and sharpness)• e.g. French, Spanish, Italian

(A) Stress-timed Rhythm

LANGUAGE RHYTHM……..chest pulses: puffs of air to produce a syllable stress pulses: reinforced chest pulse foot: unit of a stress pulse and the following chest

pulses1-stress-timed languages:stress pulses are equally spaced – chest pulses are notno isochrony between feet measurable2-syllable-timed languages:chest pulses are equally spaced – stress pulses are notno isochrony between syllable durations measurable

Do you know which words in English sentences are stressed and which are not?

Basically words can be divided into two categories: content words and structure words. Content words are those which carry the basic meaning of a sentence, such as nouns and verbs. Structure words, also called function words, show grammatical relationship, such as pronouns and prepositions. In general, content words need to emphasized, while structure words are usually de-emphasized and reduced.

EXAMPLES

1. John wants to be an actor, so he wants to live in Hollywood.

2. Mary made an appointment with the dentist on Monday.

3. After the movie, they went to a bar to have beer.

ACTIVITY….RHYTHMSentence Rhythm Practice by Saying Rhymes

• Hickory Dickory Dock The mouse ran up the clock

Sentence Focus1. John is leaving Paris next week. (Emphasize the time) 2. John is leaving Paris next week. (Emphasize the place) 3. John is leaving Paris next week. (Emphasize the action) 4. John is leaving to Paris next week. (Emphasize the truth) 5. John is leaving to Paris next week. (Emphasize the person)

NEXT PRESENTER-2 SHAHBAZ Ali

AN OVER-VIEW OF THE PART-IIntroduction to the features of

connect SpeechThe importance of the features The main features of Connected

Speech namedAssimilationRhythm

WHAT NEXT

MORE FEATURES OF THE CONNECTED SPEECH

JunctureInformal Contraction (Wanna Construction)Compression

“Wanna” Construction

JUNCTURE

Origin:

• late Middle English (in the sense 'act of joining'): from Latin junctura, 'joint', from jungere 'to join

Definition of Juncture • The manner of transition are mood of

relation ship between two consecutive sound in speech

• Refers to the relationship between one sound and the sound/s that immediately precede it or follow it

• E.g. “Peace Talks ” vs. “Pea stalks”

Juncture Conti…• Phonetics the set of features in speech

that enable a hearer to detect a word or phrase boundary (e.g. distinguishing my turn ).

• My turn vs might earn

Types of juncture • Close Juncture: • My turn and might earn• Example of close juncture: m + ai• External open juncture (usually just called juncture) is characterized by a pause• between the two sounds:• Fetch me the paper, boy! vs. Fetch me the

paper boy.• My turn and might earn• External open juncture: m, n are in such posit.

Types of Juncture

• Internal open juncture:• My turn and might earn• Internal open juncture: how are the two

above mentioned examples differentiated?• Answer: due to aspiration or non-aspir. of /t/

thanks to its position at word boundary

Juncture (R form)• “Intrusive r” and other forms of linking• are related to the linguistic• phenomenon of juncture.

Activity 1

• Why choose White shoes• A Name An aim• Nitrate Night-rate

• Illegal Ill eagle• Might rain My train

Activity 2

• All that I’m after today• All the time after today• He lies• Heal eyes• Keep sticking• Keeps ticking

Informal contractions• Informal contractions are short forms of other

words that people use when speaking casually. They are not exactly slang, but they are a little like slang.

• For example, "gonna" is a short form of "going to". If you say "going to" very fast, without carefully

• pronouncing each word, it can sound like "gonna".

informal contractions conti..

• These informal contractions are not "correct"• English. Do not use them in a written exams,

except in appropriate situations.• We normally use them only when speaking

fast and casually, for example with friends. Some people never use them, even in informal speech. It is probably true to say that informal contractions are more common in American English.

Activity

• Yo, or Ya > you, Y’all > you all, Ayo > hey you• Aint > am / is / are not• ‘em > them / him, ‘er > her• -in’ > -ing

Activity • ‘cause > because• ‘bout > about• Kinda > kind of, Sorta > sort of, coupla >

couple of• Lemme > let me• Gotta > have got to

“WANNA CONSTRUCTION”

• Definition: A linguistic phenomenon involving the contracted form of "want to."

• As explained next, in certain wh-questions, the use of wanna is constrained. This principle also applies to the contracted forms of have to (halfta), used to (usta), and supposed to (sposta).

“Examples of wanna”• (1) a. Who do you think the Red Sox will wanna play first?

(1) b. Who do you think the Red Sox will want to play first?•

"You wanna just make sure there's a good amount of protein per serving.“

"You wanna just make sure can be paraphrased as make sure

WANNA B CONSTRUCTIION ACTIVITY

1-Apparently she couldn't face telling wannabes how rubbish they were!

2-During a screen test she destroyed young wannabe 's with her harsh criticism.

3-Wanabe actress- she wants to be famous, and to be famous you have to suffer the audition process.

WANNA-B CONSTRUCTIION ACTIVITY-2

10-Why is he being left in the shadows when all around him bland, talentless wannabes are ending up on top of the pops?

12-Camp is the delightful tale of a summer camp ( " ovation " ) for teenage wannabe musical stars.

13-Wannabe pop stars or the next pop idol.

Activity

• What are you going to do? • What’re you going to do?• What’re you gonna do? • Whatcha gonna do?• Whatcha goin’ do?• Whatcha gon’ do?

Activity

• Do you want a beer?• Do you wanna beer?• D'you wanna beer?• D'ya wanna beer?• Ya wanna beer?• Wanna beer?• Beer?

COMPRESSION

• Compression A variation in pronunciation which reduces the number of syllables. An example from English is the two-syllable pronunciation /ʃɔtnɪŋ/ of shortening, compared with /ʃɔtənɪŋ/, which consists of three syllables.

• i.e. with “schwa” added or included

COMPRESSION ACTIVITY

• Lateral Written • Hidden Kitten • Desperate Battle • Category Riddle• Bottle Contrary• Library •

NEXT PRESENTER-3MUHAMMAD ZAHID

AN OVER-VIEW OF THE PART-I&II

Introduction to the features of connect SpeechThe importance of the features The main features of Connected Speech namedAssimilationRhythmCompression “Wanna” Construction Juncture

WHAT NEXT

THE FEATURES……CONTINUEElisionWeak Forms

Elision is used to refer to the omission of sounds in connected speech. In other words, assimilation means the variation of a sound whereas, elision means the loss of a sound. Both consonants and vowels may be affected, and sometimes even whole syllables may be elided. The term elision describes the disappearance of a sound. For example, in the utterance Heleaves next week speakers would generally elide (leave out) the /t/ in next saying /nekswi:k/. Again here, the reason is an economy of effort, and in some instances the difficultyof putting certain consonant sounds together while maintaining a regular rhythm and speed.

ELISION

SOME RULES FOR ELISION

• The most common elisions in English are /t/ and /d/, when they appear within a consonant cluster.

• We arrived the next day. (/t/ elided between /ks/ and /d/).

• When we reached Paris, we stopped for lunch. (/t/ elided between /tʃ/ and /p/, and between /p/ and /f/

• We bought a lovely carved statuette. (/d/ elided between /v/ and /st/)

SOME RULES FOR ELISION-2

Complex consonant clusters are simplified.• She acts like she owns the place! (/ækts/ can

be simplified to /æks/)• Teachers use authentic texts to teach from.

(/teksts/ can be simplified to /teks/)• George the Sixth’s throne (/skθs θr/ simplified

to /sɪks θr/

SOME RULES FOR ELISION-3/ ə / can disappear in unstressed syllables.1-I think we should call the police. (/ ə / can disappear in the first

syllable of police)

2-I’ll love you forever, promise. Well, perhaps. (/ ə / can disappear)

3-It’s a question of collective responsibility. (/ ə / can disappear)

4-Are you coming out tonight? (/ ə / can disappear)

5-That’s an interesting idea. (/ ə / is not pronounced by many speakers, reducing the number of syllables in the word)

6-Have we got any vegetables? (/ ə / is not pronounced by most speakers, reducing the number of syllables in the word)

SOME RULES FOR ELISION-4

/v/ can disappear in of, before consonants.

1-My birthday’s on the 11th of November.2-It’s a complete waste of time!3-That’s the least of my worries!

ELISION ……..Examples-5Good students in other countries learn correct English, such as "What do you want to do?" Then they get off the airplane here and hear:"Wad da ya wanna dew?" or "Wadahyawannado?"

Not correct English, but it IS what you will hear. No one ever says, "What . do . you . want . to . do...." it is always run together, wadaya wanna do?

ALL OF THESE ARE FOR SPEAKING, FOR SOUND ONLY. NEVER write words like this when you are trying to use correct English, they are never correct..

ELISION ……..Examples-6

1-Kinda = Kind of = almost = I kinda did my homework... maybe one half.

2-Sorta = Sort of = almost again

3-Hafta = Have to = Quick! I hafta run, I am late.4-Musta = Must have = He musta been stupid when he decided to learn English

ELISION ……..Examples-75-Wanna = Want to = You wanna eat now?

6-gotta = got to = have to = I gotta go, class is starting

7-dunno = don't know = I dunno, maybe I can stay.

8-wudja = would you = Wudja eat with me if I paid for it?


9-cudja = could you = Cudja eat with me if you have time?

10-Ya = you = Ya wanna go eat?

11-Cya = see you = "I'll see you later." "Okay, cya."

12-Kay = Okay = I gotta go, kay?


Subject + auxiliary verb• We often use the short form when we have a

Subject Pronoun followed by 'be' or 'have'.

• She is playing tennis….She's playing tennis.• They are at the cinema. They're at the

cinema.• We have been waiting. We've been waiting.


You can also use the short form when you have a noun followed by 'is'.

• The train is late.• The train's late.• John is going to the party.• John's going to the party.

ELISION ……..Examples-11We use the short form when we have an

auxiliary verb or a modal followed by 'not'.• I do not know the time. I don't know the

time.• I have not seen the film. I haven't seen the

film.• He could not find the keys. He couldn't find

the keys.• They will not be at the party. They won't be

at the party.


The modal 'will' is special. We can use it in the short form with a subject pronoun and with questions words.

• She will be late.• She'll be late.• Who will be there?• Who'll be there?

TYPES OF ELISION

1-Apheresis (/əfɪərɨsɪs/)• In phonetics, apheresis ( /əfɛrɨsɪs/ or

/əfɪərɨsɪs/; British English: aphaeresis; from Greek apo “away”, hairein “to take”) is the loss of one or more sounds from the beginning of a word, especially the loss of an unstressed vowel.

EXAMPLES

• English[k]nife pronounced /naɪf/• English [a]cute > cute • English [E]gyptian > Gyptian > Gypsy• English [a]mend > mend • English[e]scape + goat > scapegoat• English esquire > squire

2-Syncope (/sɪŋkəpi:/)

• In phonology, syncope ( /sɪŋkəpi:/; Greek: syn- + koptein “to strike, cut off”) is the loss of one or more sounds from the interior of a word; especially, the loss of an unstressed vowel. It is found both in Synchronic Analysis of languages and Diachronic Analysis.

EXAMPLES

As a poetic device

• English hast[e]ning > poetic hast'ning • English heav[e]n > poetic heav'n • English over > poetic o'er • English never > poetic ne'er

EXAMPLES…….

Syncope in informal speech

• English [Au]stra[lia]n > colloquial Strine• English did n[o]t > didn't• English I [woul]d [ha]ve > I'd've

3-Apocope(/əpɒkəpi:/)

In phonology, apocope ( /əpɒkəpi:/; Greek apokoptein meaning cutting off, from apo- meaning away from and koptein meaning to cut) is the loss of one or more sounds from the end of a word, and especially the loss of an unstressed vowel.

EXAMPLES

• English photograph > photo • sympathique(s) > sympa meaning nice

réactionnaire > réac meaning reactionary English animation > Japanese anime-shon > anime

• English synchronization > sync, synch, syncro, or synchro

• English Alexander > Alex

ELISION CLASS ACTIVITY-1

• Common sound deletionsA syllable containing the unstressed "schwa" is often lost. For example pronounce the following words:-– int(e)rest,– sim(i)lar, – lib(a)ry, – diff(e)rent, – t(o)night.

ELISION CLASS ACTIVITY-2• / t / and / d /

With consonants, it is / t / and / d / which are most commonly elided, especially when they appear in a consonant cluster. For example pronounce the following words:- -chris(t)mas– san(d)wich

The same process can occur across word boundaries, for example pronounce the following words:-

– mus(t) be– the firs(t) three– you an(d) me– we stopp(ed) for lunch

ELISION CLASS ACTIVITY-3

• / h /The / h / sound is also often deleted. For example pronounce the following:-

you shouldn´t (h)ave

tell (h)im.

What is the weak form?• English is a stress-timed language, which

means that stressed syllables are equal in timing. In order to fit our words into this pattern, we tend to "squash" or compress other syllables or words occurring between stresses, in order to keep up with the more or less regular rhythm (Mayers 1981:422). Therefore, compressing or "weakening" some sounds is necessary to keep the rhythm of English.

WEAK FORM CONTINUES…..A weak form is the pronunciation of a word or syllable in an unstressed manner. Of course, the difference between the strong form (stressed) and the weak form (unstressed) of a word is not apparent in writing, but in speech these two variations in pronunciation can be drastically different. If spoken in isolation, the weak form of a word would probably be unintelligible. The difference between the two forms can affect meaning. Here is an example to show how strong and weak forms of a single word (that) can change the entire meaning of a sentence:

WEAK FORM CONTINUES…..

1-John thinks that man is evil. /ðət/This version of the sentence, with the weak (unstressed) form of that, means "John thinks all humans are evil."

2-John thinks that man is evil. /ðæt/This version of the sentence, with the strong (stressed) form of that, means "John thinks a specific (male) individual is evil."

WEAK FORMS

Weak Forms• When we talk about weak forms in the phonetics

of English this regards a series of words which have one pronunciation (strong) when isolated, and another (weak) when not stressed within a phrase, e.g.

• a car /eɪ kɑ:/ • I bought a car/aɪ bɔ:t ə kɑ:/

WEAK FORMS…..2

There is a logical explanation behind the occurrence of weak forms: they are present in words which are necessary to construct a phrase yet, at the same time, do not communicate a large quantity of information, in other words, they are not content words. For example in the following phrase:

WEAK FORMS…..2

• I went to the hotel and booked a room for two nights for my father and his best friend.

• The most important words, those that are central to the message, can be emphasised:

• I went to the hotel and booked a room for two nights for my father and his best friend.

• If we eliminate the words that are not emphasised, can we still understand the message?

WEAK FORMS…..3• went hotel booked room two

nights father best friend. • Perhaps it is difficult to be certain but it is possible to

predict what the missing words might be. The words which we emphasised would bear the stress, while many of those which we eliminated would become weak forms, simply because they are less important in the conveyance of the message. Look at the sentence in transcription:

• /aɪ went tə ðə həʊ tel ən bʊkt ə ru:m fə tu: naɪts fə maɪ fɑ:ðər ən hɪz best frend/

WEAK FORMS…..4

• Auxiliary Verbs #1• Strong Form/Weak Form • Example • Do• /du:/,/də/

Where do you live? • Are,/ɑ:/,/ə/(r)*

John and Mary are here.

WEAK FORMS…..5

• was • /Wɒz/,/wəz/

I was quite interested. • were• /wɜ:/,/wə(r) /

They were bored.

WEAK FORMS…..6

• would• /Wʊd/,/wəd/

She said she would be here. • Could• /kʊd/ ,/kəd /

What could I do?

WEAK FORMS…..7

• Can• /kæn/, /kən/

What can you do with it? • must• Mʌst/,/məs(t) /

You must be a bit more patient.

WEAK FORMS…..8

• Prepositions #1 • to ,• /tu:/, /tə/

I went to the market. • For,fɔ:(r),fə(r)

Wait for me! • From,/frɒm/,/frəm/

She's from York.

WEAK FORMS…..9• Into,/ɪntu:/,/ɪntə/• Put it into the box. • to ,/tu:/ ,/tə/

I went to the market. • For,/fɔ:(r)/,/fə(r)/

Wait for me! • From,/frɒm/,/frəm/

She's from York.

WEAK FORMS…..10

• And,/ænd/, /ənd/, /ən/, n̩ Rock 'n' roll. • But, /bʌt/ ,/bət/ ,...but one of the main

points... • The dog that bit me ... • you (as object pronoun) • /ju:/, /jə/ • Where do you live?

WEAK FORMS…..11• A,/æ/, /eɪ/,/ə/* • Take a good book. • an ,/æn/,/ən/

He's an idiot! • The,/ði:/, /ði/ (before a vowel)

What's the time? That /ðæt/, /ðət/

That is your book. The book that you have is blue.

WEAK FORMS CLASS ACTIVITYTranscribe and pronounce the following

sentences using phonetic symbols:1. Give it to me!2. It takes three hours to get from here to London.3. Could you give me a light?4. What’s that knife for?5. The book that she bought was more expensive than

mine.

NEXT PRESENTERZUNAIRA ASHRAF

THE WHOLE VIEW TILL NOW Introduction to the features of connect SpeechThe importance of the features The main features of Connected Speech namedAssimilationRhythmCompression “Wanna” Construction JunctureElisionWeak Forms

WHAT NEXT

CONCLUDING PORTIONLinking RThe Class ActivitiesCONSLUSION

FEATURES OF CONNECTED SPEECHLINKING’R

• In some accents of English, a written r is not pronounced before another consonant or at the end of a word, so that cord is pronounced /k ɔ: d/, and bar /ba:/. In other accents, such as Scottish English, such r's are pronounced. Accents of English can thus be divided between those that are r-pronouncing(American) and those that are non-r-pronouncing(British).

LINKING ‘r” CONTINUES…….

However, even in non-r-pronouncing accents, an r at the end of a word is pronounced when the word that follows begins with a vowel, so that far away is pronounced / fɑ:r ə ‘wei /. This is known as a linking r..

LINKING ‘r” CONTINUES…….

In some accents, however, speakers go further than this and pronounce an r in such cases even where there is no r in the written word, as in the infamous phrase law and order, which then becomes / lɔ: r ənd ɔ:də /. This is known as an intrusive r and, although often condemned, is simply another characteristic of the speech habits of sections of the English-speaking community.

EXAMPLES..LINKING R

EXAMPLES-LINKING R

Higher in the skyCar on the roadFour of the boysLayer of the cloth

EXAMPLES-INTRUSIVE R

ACTIVITY-DISTRIBUTION

• THE ACTIVITIES ARE BASED ON THE FOLLOWING FEATURES OF CONNECTED SPEECH:-

AssimilationRhythmCompression “Wanna” Construction JunctureElisionWeak Forms Linking R

CONCLUSION

Dear participants your patience has truly been tested in the present session and we do hope that you all have learnt a considerable important ideas and terminology that are very important to make you able to speak freely and nicely with a bullet like flow but for the same practice please do rest first. Good luck.

the features of the connected speech final

Technology