Contemporary english language phonetics, spelling and vocabulary

Phonetics is the study and description of speech sounds and of the elements of pronunciation at large, since pronunciation is a complex of sounds (vowels and consonants), syllables, word accent and intonation.

Phonology studies the way in which phonetic elements function in a language, the way in which phonemes are organized in a given language, i. e. their combinatorial possibilities. The phoneme is the minimal unit in the sound system of a language.

Orthography is very closely connected with phonetics, which in its turn is connected with lexicology, grammar and stylistics. Because of the notoriously confusing nature of English spelling, it is particularly important to think of English pronunciation in terms of phonemes rather than letters of the alphabet.

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION 11

UNITI

THE PHONEMIC SYSTEM OF ENGLISH 15

Unit aims 16

1. 1. Phonetics and phono1ogy 16

1. 2. The connection of phonetics and phono1ogy with non-

1inguistic and 1inguistic sciences 17

1. 3. The importance of phonetic studies 19

1. 4. Phonetic symbo1s and types of transcription 19

1. 5. Types of standard pronunciation 23

1. 5. 1. Received Pronunciation * (RP) 23

1. 5. 2. General American (GA) 24

1. 5. 3. British Non-Regional Pronunciation 24

Key concepts 25

Further reading 26

UNIT 2

THE ENGLISH VOWELS PHONEMES 27

Unit aims 28

2. 1. The c1assification of speech sounds 28

2. 2. C1assification of Eng1ish Vowe1s 28

2. 3. Eng1ish Primary and Secondary Vowe1 Charts 30

2. 4. The description and distribution of Eng1ish

monophthongs and diphthongs 31

English Contemporary Language. Phonetics, Spelling and Vocabulary 5

2. 4. 1. English front vowels 33

2. 4. 2. English back vowels 34

2. 4. 3. English central vowels [A, 3:, 9, v]. 36

2. 5. Diphthongs 35

2. 5. 1. Glides to /i/ 38

2. 5. 2. Glides to /u/ 38

2. 5. 3. Glides to /9 39

2. 5. 4. English tripthongs 39

Key concepts 3 8

Further reading 38

UNIT 3

THE ENGLISH CONSONANT PHONEMES 39

Unit aims 40

3. 1. Classification of English consonants. 40

3. 2. The plosive consonants. 41

3. 3. The affricate consonants It[, d/. 42

3. 4. The fricative consonants f, v, 8, 0, s, z, f, 3, h/. 43

3. 5. The nasal consonants Im, n, 1)/. 46

3. 6. The liquid consonants Il, rl. 48

3. 7. The semi-vowels Ij, w/ 50

Key concepts 51

Further reading 51

UNIT 4

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN BRITISH AND AMERICAN

ENGLISH 52

Unit aims 53

4. 1. Pronunciation differences 53

4. 1. 1. The vowel system 53

6 English Contemporary Language. Phonetics, Spelling and Vocabulary

4. 1. 2 The consonant system 55

4. 2. Differences in spelling 57

4. 2. 1. Phonetic spelling tendencies 58

4. 2. 2. The omission of 'superfluous ' letters in American

English 58

4. 3. Lexical differences in main subject areas 59

4. 3. 1. People and their immediate environment 59

4. 3. 2. Human interaction and communication 61

4. 3. 3. Social institutions 62

4. 3. 4. Natural environment 62

Key concepts 63

Further reading 64

UNIT 5 65

PRONUNCIATION AND SPELLING 65

Unit aims 66

5. 1. The spelling of consonants 66

5. 2. Vowel markers 67

5. 3. Keeping a spelling constant 68

5. 4. Silent letters 70

5. 5. Homographs and homophones 70

5. 6. Pronunciation and etymology 71

Key concepts 73

Further reading.

UNIT 6

ASPECTS OF CONNECTED SPEECH 74

Unitaims 75

6. 1. Linking r and intrusive Iri 75

6. 2. Assimilation 76

6. 2. 1. Regressive assimilation 76

English Contemporary Language. Phonetics, Spelling and Vocabulary 7

6. 2. 2. Progressive assimilation 77

6. 2. 3. Reciprocal assimilation 77

6. 2. 4. Obligatory and non-obligatory assimilation 78

6. 3. Elision 79

6. 3. 1. Vowel elision 79

6. 3. 2. Consonant elision 80

6. 4. Strong and weak forms offunction words 81

6. 4. 1. Uses ofweakforms 81

6. 4. 2. Uses ofstrongforms 83

Key concepts 84

Further reading 85

UNIT 7

SYLLABLES AND STRESS IN ENGLISH 86

Unit aims 87

7. 1. The English Syllable 87

7. 1. 1. The nature ofthe syllable 87

7. 1. 2. The structure ofthe English syllable 87

7. 1. 3. Types ofsyllable 89

7. 2. Stress in English 92

7. 2. 1 The nature ofstress 89

7. 2. 2. Primary and secondary stress 91

7. 2. 3. Stress and vowels 93

7. 2. 4. Some word stress guidelines 94

7. 2. 5 Stress guidelines for compounds 96

7. 2. 6 Sentence stress- the basis ofrhythm in English 97

7. 2. 7 Stress shift and semantic implications 98

Key concepts 101

Further reading 1 O 1

8 English Contemporary Language. Phonetics, Spelling and Vocabulary

UNIT 8

ENGLISH AS AN INTONATION LANGUAGE I02

Unit aims 1 03

8. 1. Definition and components of intonation 103

8. 2. The tone-unit as the basic unit of intonation 1 04

8. 3. Tone pattems in Eng1ish 1 06

8. 4. Functions of intonation 1 08

8. 5. Intonation and sentence types 110

8. 5. 1. Declaratives 111

8. 5. 2. Imperatives and exclamations 111

8. 5. 3. Questions 111

8. 6. Contrastive ana1ysis of intonation in Eng1ish and

Romanian 114

Key concepts 116

Further reading 117

BIBLIOGRAPHY 119

GLOSSARY 123

EXERCISES 203

English Contemporary Language. Phonetics, Spelling and Vocabulary 9


Autor(i): Neagu Mariana, Mares Roxana
Data aparitiei: 08-2013
Pagini: 226

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