Unit 7. Modifications of consonants and vowels in connected speech

Language in everyday use is not conducted in terms of isolated, separate units. It’s performed in connected sequences of larger units: in words, phrases and larger utterances. There are some differences between the pronunciation of a word in isolation and of the same word in a block of connected speech. These changes are quite regular and predictable. It is common knowledge that speech sounds influence each other in the flow of speech. As a result of the intercourse between consonants and vowels and within each class there appear such processes as assimilation, accommodation, vowel reduction, elision, which is sometimes called deletion.

1. Assimilation is the adaptive modification of a consonant by a neighboring consonant in the speech chain.

Example: the alveolar [t, d] followed by the interdental [ө, ð] become dental: at the, said that, at three, eighth.

2. The term accommodation is used to denote the interchange of "vowel + consonant» or "consonant + vowel" type.

Example: some slight degree of nasalization of vowels preceded or followed by nasal sonorants (never, men) or labialization of consonants preceding the vowels [o, y] in Russian words больно, думать, лучше, конь.

3. One of the wide-spread sound changes is certainly vowel reduction. Reduction is actually qualitative or quantitative weakening of vowels in unstressed positions: e.g. man – postman, board – blackboard.

4.  Elision or complete loss of sounds, both vowels and consonants, is often observed in English. Elision is likely to be minimal in slow careful speech and maximal in rapid, relaxed colloquial forms of speech.

The processes involved cannot be neglected in finding the status of sounds. These phenomena manifest the economy of pronouncing efforts on the part of the speaker. The speaker and the listener are the two participants of communication. The simplifications go quite unnoticed by the listener as they do not affect the meaning.

Now let us see which qualitative features of consonant sounds may be changed in the process of their integration in a speech chain.

Consonants are modified according to the place of articulation. Assimilation takes place when a sound changes its character in order to become more like a neighboring sound.

1. The dental [t, d] followed by the interdental [ө, ð] (partial regressive assimilation) takes place when the influence goes backwards from a "later" sound to an "earlier" one: e.g. at the, said that, at three, eighth.

2. The postalveolar [t, d] under the influence of the postalveolar [r]: (partially regressive assimilation): e.g. tree, dream, true, dry.

3. The postalveolar [s, z] before [ς ] (complete regressive assimilation):

horse shoe [′hoςςu:]; this shop [′ðiςςop].

4. The affricates [t+j, d+j] (incomplete regressive assimilation):

could you [′kudξu]

congratulate [kәn′grætςuleit]; graduate [′grædξueit].

Nasal consonants are not less susceptible to assimilation. The place of articulation of nasal consonants varies according to the consonant that follows. E.g. in "camp" [m] remains bilabial before another bilabial, as well as in "man" before a vowel: in "cent" [n] is alveolar before another alveolar as in "net". BUT in "symphony" [m] is actually labiodental followed by the labiodental [f] ; in "seventh" [n] becomes dental before the interdental [ө].

- In "thank" [n] assimilates to the velar consonant becoming [ŋ].

The manner of articulation is also changed as a result of assimilation, which may be illustrated as follows:

1. Loss of plosion: glad* to see you, great* trouble.

2. Nasal plosion: sudd*en, not* now, at* night.

A plosive is followed by a nasal sonorant and the result of this interchange is the nasal character of position release.

3. Lateral plosion: sett*le, tab*le, at* last - the lateral sonorant [l] follows a plosive; the noise production of the plosive stop is changed into that of the lateral stop.

4. The voicing value of a consonant may also change through assimilation. This type of assimilation affects the work of the vocal cords and the force of articulation, i.e. voiced lenis sounds become voiceless fortis when followed by another voiceless sound.

Example1: newspaper – news /z/ -- [p] influences [z]

gooseberry – goose /s/ -- [b] influences [s]

have to do - [t] influences [v]

Example 2: Your aunt’s (is) coming. Your aunt’s (has) come.

What's your name?

The weak forms of the verbs is and has assimilated to the final voiceless fortis consonants of the preceding word (progressive assimilation).

Example 3: English sonorants [m, n, r, j, l, w] preceded by the fortis voiceless consonants [p, t, k, s] are partially devoiced, e.g. smart snake quick twins

Lip position may be affected by the accommodation.

Labialization of consonants is traced under the influence of the neighboring back vowels: food, moon, rude, soon, cool, who, etc.

It's possible to speak about the spread lip position of consonants followed or preceded by front vowels [i:, i], e.g. tea, beat, mean, team, sit, miss.

The position of the soft palate is also involved in the accommodation. Slight nasalization as a result of prolonged lowering of the soft palate is sometimes traced in vowels under the influence of the neighboring sonorants [m, n]: end, morning, man, come, in.

Elision (complete loss of plosion) both vowels and consonants is observed in the structure of English words.

1. Loss of [h] in personal and possessive pronouns (he, him, his) and the forms of the auxiliary verbs (have, had, has) is widely spread. Example: What has he done? [wot әz i dΛn].

2. [l] tends to be lost when preceded by /o/ [′o:wiz, o:′redi] (always, already, alright).

3. Alveolar plosives are often used in case the cluster is followed by another consonant.

Example: next day [neks dei]

just one [dξΛs wΛn]

4. Examples of historical elision are also known in the language (knife, known, write, fasten, whistle, bright).

Elision is a very common process in connected speech. But we also find sounds being inserted:

Example1: a teacher of English (linking [r])

Example2: Africa and Asia, the idea of (intrusive [r]) It’s inserted between two vowels.

When the word final vowel is a diphthong, which glides to [i] such as [ei, ai] the palatal sonorant [j] tends to be inserted [saying [′seijiŋ].

In case of [u] gliding diphthongs [au, әu] the bilabial sonorant [w] is sometimes inserted - going [′gәuwiŋ].

Thus, modifications of sounds in a speech chain are of allophonic character, i.e. they are realizations of allophones of phonemes.