Phonetics as a science. Transcription. Difference in articulation bases of the English and Russian languages

О.В. СУСЛОВА

Л.П. КОВАЛЬЧУК

ПРАКТИЧЕСКАЯ ФОНЕТИКА

АНГЛИЙСКОГО ЯЗЫКА

УЧЕБНО-МЕТОДИЧЕСКОЕ ПОСОБИЕ

Челябинск 2010

ФЕДЕРАЛЬНОЕ АГЕНТСТВО ПО ОБРАЗОВАНИЮ

Государственное образовательное учреждение

высшего профессионального образования

«ЧЕЛЯБИНСКИЙ ГОСУДАРСТВЕННЫЙ УНИВЕРСИТЕТ»

 

 

О.В. СУСЛОВА

Л.П. КОВАЛЬЧУК

ПРАКТИЧЕСКАЯ ФОНЕТИКА

АНГЛИЙСКОГО ЯЗЫКА

УЧЕБНО-МЕТОДИЧЕСКОЕ ПОСОБИЕ

Челябинск 2010

УДК 371.011

ББК 74. 200.507

Г24

Суслова, О.В.

Практическая фонетика английского языка: учебно-методическое пособие/ О.В. Суслова, Л.П. Ковальчук – Челябинск: «Челябинский государственный университет», 2010. – 36 с.

 

 

Учебно-методическое пособие представляет собой нормативный курс фонетики английского языка. Цель данного пособия формирование навыков правильного английского произношения и подготовкастудентов к будущей профессиональной деятельности. Данное пособие предназначено для студентов направления 620100 – лингвистика и межкультурная коммуникация, изучающих английский язык.

Пособие состоит из теоретической и практической частей, в которых излагаются основные положения фонетики английского языка, представлены упражнения, направленные на усвоение и закрепление материала.

 

Рецензенты:

Н.В. Комиссарова, кандидат педагогических наук, доцент (Чел. юрид. институт МВД РФ)

Е.А. Титова, кандидат филологических наук (Чел. гос. ун-т)

 

 

© О.В. Суслова, Л.П. Ковальчук, 2010

©Челябинский государственный университет, 201

INTRODUCTION

The book is concerned with the phonetic system of English which consists of the following components: speech sounds, the syllabic structure, word stress, and prosody. These four components constitute what is called the pronunciation of English.

The course is based on the type of English pronunciation which is known as “Received Pronunciation”. This book is an attempt to answer a question: How is English pronounced? English today is the native language of nearly 400 million people and the second language of many others all over the world. A language so widespread is bound to be different in different places. We are all aware that the Scots and the Australians, Londoners and New Yorkers, Irish, New Zealanders, South Africans, Jamaicans, Welsh, and Canadians do not sound the same when they speak. We make an attempt to treat such variants of pronunciation as would be natural in the speech ov a native speaker.

The course contains explanations, rules, questions, tasks and exercises. The exercises in listening comprehension are also included.

 

 

SECTION I

MAIN THEORETICAL CONCEPTS

 

Unit 1

 

Phonetics as a science. Transcription. Difference in articulation bases of the English and Russian languages

Phonetics is a branch of linguistics that studies the sound matter, its aspect and functions. Phonetics formulates the rules of pronunciation for separate sounds and sound combinations. The central concerns in phonetics are the discovery of how speech sounds are produced, how they are used in spoken language, how we can record speech sounds with written symbols and how we hear and recognise different sounds.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) stated phonetic symbols for sounds of many existing languages. These are transcription symbols.

[ɪ] pin [eɪ ] play [m] many [r] red

[i:] tree [ai] time [b] by [j] you

[e] pen [ɔɪ] boy [p] pay [z] zed

[æ] pan [aʊ] town [n] no [s] see

[ɒ] pot [ǝʊ] tone [d] do [v] verb

[ʌ] but [eǝ] hair [t] too [f] fan

[ǝ] above [ʊǝ] tour [g] go [ð] this

[ʊ] look [ɪǝ] here [k] key [θ] thin

[u:] moon [l] lay [ʒ ] genre

[ɑː] part [ŋ] sing [∫] she

[ɔː] port [w] win [ʤ] jug

[ɜː] girl [h] he [ʧ] chess

 

Writing transcription symbols one should use the form of print rather than handwriting. Don’t use any capital letters. Don’t show any punctuation. Use square brackets. Note that the primary stress is indicated by ['] before the stressed syllable: e.g. father ['fa:ðǝ]. Secondary stress is shown by [ ֽ ] before the syllable: e.g. examination [ɪg ֽzæmı 'neı∫ǝn].

 

Glossary

apical ['æpık∂l] - апикальный (кончик языка вверху за верхними зубами)

dorsal ['dɔːsl] - дорсальный (кончик языка за нижними зубами)

palatalization [ pæl∂t∂laı'zeı∫n] - палатализация (смягчение согласных)

aspiration [æspı'reı∫n] - аспирация (придыхание)

protrude [pr∂'tru:d] - вытягивать (губы)

vowel ['vαu∂l] - гласный

consonant ['kɒns∂n∂nt] - согласный

 

Unit 2

Fig.1 The speech organs

Unit 3

Monophthongs.

Unit 4

Unit 5

Diphthongs. Diphthongoids.

Main Theoretical Concepts:

A diphthong is a vowel sound in the pronunciation of which the organs of speech start in the position of one vowel and glide gradually in the direction of another vowel, full formation of which is not accomplished. It is a complex sound consisting of two vowel elements pronounced so as to form a single syllable. The first element of the English diphthong is called the nucleus. It is strong, clear, distinct. The second element is called the glide. It is rather weak.

There are eight diphthongs in English. They are divided according to the glide. There are:

1) three diphthongs with a glide towards [ɪ]: [eɪ, ai, ɔɪ];

2) two diphthongs with a glide towards [ʊ]: [ǝʊ, aʊ];

3) three diphthongs with the glide towards [ǝ]: [ɪǝ, eǝ, ʊǝ].

The vowels in the articulation of which the organs of speech change their position but very slightly are called diphthongized vowels or diphthongoids: [iː, uː].

Sound [e]

Unit 6

Word-stress

Main Theoretical concepts:

 

Word-stress - is the singling out of one or more syllables in a word, which is accompanied by

1. the change of the force of utterance,

2. pitch of the voice,

3. qualitative and quantitative characteristics of the sound, which is usually a vowel.

In English word-stress is free, that is it may fall on any syllable in a word,

f. ex. mother ['mʌð∂], occasion [∂'keɪʒn], detonation [det∂'neı∫n].

There are three degrees of word-stress in English: primary - strong, secondary - partial, weak - in unstressed syllables, f. ex. certification [ sз:tıfı'keı∫∂n]. Stressed syllables in the text have the symbol ['] f. ex. ′Are you 'coming 'back on Sunday?

Rules of word stress

1. In words of 2 or 3 syllables the primary stress mostly falls on the first syllable, e.g. 'error, ΄Cabinet, ΄sensible.

2. In prefixal words the primary stress typically falls on the syllable following the prefix, e.g. im ΄ possible, re ΄ call, be ΄ hind.

3. In prefixal words with prefixes having their own meaning, the place of stress is on the prefix, e. g. ΄ anti- ΄ Capitalist, ΄ non- ΄ Party, ΄ ex- ΄ minister.

4. In prefixal verbs which are distinguished from similarly spelt nouns and adjectives, the place of stress is on the second syllable, nouns and adjectives have their stress on the initial syllable, e.g.

verb	noun	adjective
to com'pound	-	'compound
to in'crease	'increase	-

5. Suffixes: -esce, -esque, -ate, -ize, -fy, -ette, -ique, -ее, -еег, -ade have the place of stress on the preceding syllable or on themselves, e.g., pictu ' resque,, ciga ' rette, tech ' nique,, refe ' ree,, pio ' neer.

6. Suffixes: -ical, -ic, -ion, -ity, -ian, -cient, -iency, -ecus, -ual, -uous, -ety, -itous, -ive, -ative (-Hive), -itude, -ident, -inal, -ital, -wards have the place of stress on the preceding syllable, e.g. eco ' nomic, gra ' mmatical, po ' sition, ma ' jority, ' special, etc.

7.In words of four or more syllables the place of stress is on the antepenultimate syllable (third from the end), e. g. e'mergency, ca ' lamity, his ' torical.

For more information on word-stress study pp. 138-145 in “The Practical Course in English Phonetics” by M.A. Sokolova (the position of word-stress, words with primary and secondary stress, words with two primary stresses, stress in compound words etc.).

Sound [æ]

As a matter of fact the handsome lad has broken his ankle in the accident.

 

Fat Pat had a fat cat

Unit 7

 

Intonation

Main Theoretical concepts:

Intonation is a complex unity of the prosodic features which are

· speech melody,

· sentence-stress,

· tempo,

· rhythm,

· pauses.

Speech melody describes falls and rises of the voice-pitch falling on vowels and voiced consonants. In English six main tones are distinguished. They are:

Low Fall (низкий нисходящий)

Low Rise (низкий восходящий)

High Fall (высокий нисходящий)

High Rise (высокий восходящий)

Fall Rise (нисходящий восходящий)

Rise Fall (восходящий нисходящий)

Mid Level

Sentence - stress is the greater prominence with which one or more words in a sentence are pronounced as compared with the other words of the same sentence. The greater prominence is achieved by a combination of the following means:

1. by uttering the stressed syllable with greater muscular tension;

2. changing the pitch level or pitch direction with which the stressed syllable is pronounced;

3. pronouncing the stressed syllables longer than they would be pronounced when unstressed;

4. pronouncing the vowel of a stressed syllable without changing its quality.

Sentence - stress serves to single out words in the sentence according to their relative semantic importance.

f. ex. But 'Andrew was 'not ↓calm. (Andrew, not, calm are stressed because they are most important semantically).

Sentences are usually separated from each other by pauses. If necessary, the sentence is subdivided into shorter word-groups according to the sense. These word-groups are called sense-groups or syntagms.

For example: Do you ΄ really ΄ mean to tell me | you ΄ haven’t ΄ had a suit since then ||.

When we talk we do not talk in single words but in groups of words spoken continuously, with no break or pause; we may pause after a group, but not during it. These groups may be long (How did you manage to do it so neatly and tidily?) or short (Yes or No).

When one group is very closely connected grammatically to the next, there is a very slight pause, marked by (|). When two groups are not so closely connected, there is a longer pause, marked by (||), and this double bar is also used to mark the end of a complete utterance.

Rhythm is a recurrence of stressed syllables. Connected English speech comes as a series of closely-knit groups of words, each group containing only one stressed syllable. These are rhythmic groups. A rhythmic group consists of one stressed syllable and following it unstressed syllables.

f. ex. But 'Andrew was'not ↓ calm.

1 2 3

How do you decide what words or syllables go together in a rhythm unit? Here are the rules:

1. Any unstressed syllables at the beginning of a word group must go together with the following stress group:

2. If the unstressed syllable(s) is part of the same word as the stressed syllable they belong to the same rhythm group:

3. If the unstressed syllable(s) is closely connected grammatically to the stressed word, although not a part of that word, they belong to the same rhythm unit:

4. Whenever you are in doubt as to which rhythm unit unstressed syllables belong to, put them after a stress rather than before it. So in He was older than me, if you are doubtful about than, put it with older and not with me.:

 

Sound [Λ]

Unit 8

Intonation pattern

 

Main Theoretical concepts:

Intonation patterns containing a number of syllables consist of the following parts:

· the pre - head,

· the head,

· the nucleus

· the tail.

The pre - head includes unstressed and half - stressed syllables preceding the first stressed syllable.

The head includes the stressed and unstressed syllables beginning with the first stressed syllable.

The last stressed syllable is called the nucleus.

The unstressed and half - stressed that follow the nucleus are called the tail.

E.g. It was a ‘very sunny ↓day yesterday.

It was a … - the pre - head

…very sunny - the head

…day… - the nucleus

…yesterday. - the tail

The rises and the falls that take place in the nucleus or start with it are called nuclear tones.

The nucleus is the most important part of the intonation pattern as it defines the communicative type of the sentence, determines the semantic value of the intonation-group, indicates the communicative center of the intonation-group or of the whole sentence.

The communicative center is associated with the most important word or words of the intonation-group or of the sentence.

The nuclear tone of the final intonation-group is determined by the communicative type of the whole sentence.

The communicative types of sentences are differentiated in speech according to the aim of the utterance from the point of view of communication, i.e. in order to show if the sentence expresses a statement of fact, a question, a command or an exclamation.

There are four communicative types of sentence:

1. Statements e.g. I like music.

2. Questions e.g. Can you prove it?

3. Imperative questions or commands e.g. Try it again.

4. Exclamations e.g. Right you are!

The falling nuclear tone shows that the non-final intonation-group is complete, important by itself and is not closely connected with the following intonation - group.

A longer pause after an intonation-group pronounced with the falling tone makes the intonation-group even more significant.

E.g. I'll tell him all when he comes.

The rising nuclear tone shows that the non-final intonation-group is closely connected in meaning with the following intonation-group, is not important by itself and implies continuation.

e.g. Generally ↑ speaking, I prefer tennis.

In English notional words (nouns, adjectives, verbs, etc.) are generally stressed. Form - words and most pronouns (personal and possessive mainly) are generally unstressed. But any part of speech may be stressed if it is semantically important.

E.g. ' What is he ' going to ↓ do? - do is the communicative center.

' What is↓ he going to do? - he is the communicative center.

Unit 9

Strong and weak forms.

 

Main Theoretical Concepts:

Now we will consider certain well-known English words that can be pronounced in two different ways, which are called strong forms and weak forms. As an example, the word that can be pronounced [ðæt] (strong form) or [ðǝt] (weak form). The sentence I like that is pronounced [ai laik ðæt] (strong form); the sentence I hope that she will is pronounced [ai hǝʊp ðǝt ∫i: wɪl] (weak form). There are roughly forty such words in English. It is possible to use only strong forms in speaking, but most native speakers of English find an 'all - strong - form' pronunciation unnatural and foreign - sounding, something that most learners would wish to avoid. Secondly, and more importantly, speakers who are not familiar with the use of weak forms are likely to have difficulty understanding speakers who do use weak forms; since practically all native speakers of British English use them, learners of the language need to learn about these weak forms to help them to understand what they hear.

We must distinguish between weak forms and contracted forms. Certain English words are shortened so severely (usually to a single phoneme) and so consistently that they are represented differently in informal writing, e.g. it is - it's; we have - we've; do not - don' t.

Almost all the words which have both a strong and weak form belong to a category that may be called function words - words that do not have a dictionary meaning in the way that we normally expect nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs to have. These function words are words such as auxiliary verbs, prepositions, conjunctions, particles, pronouns, articles, etc. There are fairly simple rules; we can say that strong form is used in the following cases:

i) For many weak - form words, when they occur at the end of a sentence. For example, the word 'of' has the weak form [ǝv] in the following sentence: I'm fond of chips [aim fɒnd ǝv t∫ɪps], but when it comes at the end of the sentence, as in the following example, it has the strong form [ v]: Chips are what I'm fond of [t∫ɪps ǝ wɒt aim fɒnd ɒv]

Many of the words given below (particularly the first nine) never occur at the end of a sentence, e.g. the, your. Some words (particularly the pronouns numbered 10 - 14 below) do occur in their weak forms in final position.

ii) When a weak - form word is being contrasted with another word, e.g. The letter from him, not to him. [ðǝ letǝ frɒm ɪm nɒt tu: ɪm]

A similar case is what we might call a co - ordinated use of prepositions: I travel to and from London a lot [ai trævl tu: ǝn frɒm lΛndǝn ǝ lɒt], A work of and about literature [ǝ wз:k ɒv ǝn ǝbaʊt lɪtrɪt∫ǝ]

iii) When a weak - form word is given stress for the purpose of emphasis, e.g.: You must give me more money [ju mΛst gɪv mi: mɔː mΛnɪ]

iv) When a weak - form word is being 'cited' or 'quoted', e.g.: You shouldn't put 'and' at the end of a sentence [ju ∫udnt put ænd ǝt ði end ǝv ǝ sentǝns]

Another point to remember is that when weak - form words whose spelling being with 'h' (e.g. her, have) occur at the beginning of a sentence, the pronunciation is with initial [h], even though this usually omitted in other contexts.

In the rest of the chapter, the most common weak - form words will be introduced.

Some words have more than one weak form and the following list tells you when to use one and when the other:

and [ǝn]

as [ǝz]

but [bǝt]

than [ðǝn]

that [ðǝt] (The word that in phrases like that man, that’s good is always pronounced [ðæt] and never weakened.)

he [i:]

him [ım]

his [ız]

her [з:] (At the beinning of word groups the forms [hi:], [hım], [hız], [hз:] should be used: [hi: 'laıks ıt], [hз: 'feıs ız 'red])

them [ðǝm]

us [s] (only in let’s)

[ǝs]

do [dǝ] ([dǝ] is only used before consonants. Before vowels, use the strong form [du:])

does [dǝz]

am [m] (after I)

[ǝm] (elsewhere)

are [ǝ] (before consonants)

[ǝr] (before vowels)

be [bı]

is [s] (after [p, t, k, f, θ])

[z] (after vowels and voiced consonants except [z,, d ]

(After [s, z, ∫,, t∫, d ] the strong form [ız] is always used: ['wıt∫ız 'raıt?])

was [wǝz]

has [ǝz] (after [s, z, ∫,, t∫, d ]

[s] (after [p, t, k, f, θ])

z (elsewhere)

have [v] (after I, we, you, they)

[ǝv] (elsewhere)

had [d] (after I, he, she, we, you, they)

[ǝd] (elsewhere)

(At the beginning of word groups the forms [hæz 'enıwΛn 'f∂vnd]

When has, have, had are full verbs they should always be pronounced [hæz, hæv, hæd])

can [kǝn ]

shall [∫!]

will [l] (after I, he, she, we, you, they)

! (after consonants, except [!])

[ǝl] (after vowels and [l])

would [d] (after I, he, she, we, you, they)

[ǝd] (elsewhere)

must [mǝst]

a [ǝ] (before consonants)

an [ǝn] (before vowels)

the [ðǝ] (before consonants)

(Before vowels the strong form [ði:] should be used: [ði: 'α:nts ǝn ði: 'Λŋk!z])

some [sǝm]

[sΛm] (When some means certain quantity it is always stressed and therefore pronounced ['sΛm ǝv maı 'frendz])

at [ǝt]

for [fǝ] (before consonants)

[fǝr] (before vowels)

from [frǝm]

of [ǝv]

to [tǝ] (before consonants) Before vowels the strong form [tu:] should be used

The word not has the weak forms [nt] (after vowels) and [nt] (after consonants) when it follows are, is, should, would, has, have, could, dare, might. Examples: [ð∂ı 'α:nt 'kΛmıŋ; hi: 'hæznt ∂'raıvd]. Notice especially the forms can’t [kα:nt], shan’t [∫α:nt], don’t [d∂vnt], won’t [w∂vnt], mustn’t [mΛsnt], in which can, shall, do, will, must are changed when they combine with not. Practise all the examples given here and be sure that the weak forms are really weak, then make up similar examples for yourself and practise those too.

Practical Tasks:

Transcribe the following sentences. Use the appropriate forms of the weak - form words.

1. I want her to park that car over there.

2. Of all the proposals the one that you made is the silliest.

3. Jane and Bill could have driven them to and from the party.

4. To come to the point what shall we do for the rest of the week?

5. Has anyone got an idea where it came from?

6. Pedestrians must always use the crossings provided for them.

7. Each one was a perfect example of the art that had been developed there.

Sound [ɒ ]

Unit 10

Syllable formation

Main Theoretical Concepts:

Syllable - is one or more speech sounds forming a single uninterrupted unit of utterance which may be a whole word, e.g. lamp; or a part of it, e.g. second.

1. In English the syllable is formed:

a) by any vowel (a monophthong or a diphthong) alone or in combination with one or more consonants e.g. are [a:] = vowel (+ consonant)

b) by a word - final sonorant (lateral or nasal) immediately preceded by a consonant e.g. bottle = bo - ttle [bo-tl] - consonant + sonorant. But if sonorants in word - final position are preceded by a vowel sound they are not syllabic

syllabicnon - syllabic

sadden sand

doesn't don't

2. [w, j] are never syllabic, they are always syllable initial.

The syllabic consonants are [n, l]. There are few words with the syllabic [m]. The syllabic [n] occurs as a result of progressive assimilation of the forelingual consonant [ n] to the preceding back lingual consonant [k, g] e.g. [beI - kэn] → [beI - kn]

3. Many English words are pronounced with a neutral vowel before the final sonorant. The sonorant becomes non – syllabic e.g. radical [ræ-dIkl] or [ræ-dI-kэl]

4. Many English words are spelt with a vowel letter before the final sonorant and have only one pronunciation with a syllabic final consonant e.g. garden [ga:dn], season [si:zn]

5. The sonorant [n] is always syllabic in the contracted negative forms of auxiliary and modal verbs

E.g. isn't couldn't mightn't

wasn't hasn't oughtn't

haven't wouldn't

6. The sound may lose their syllabic character when they occur in the middle of a word before a vowel belonging to a suffix

7. syllabicnon - syllabic

listen [li-sn] listening [lis-nin]

drizzle [dri-zl] drizzling [driz-lin]

8. Every syllable has a definite structure of form depending on the kind of speech sound it ends in.

There are two types of syllable distinguished from this point of view.

a) a syllable which ends in a vowel sound (an open syllable)

b) a syllable which ends in a consonant sound (a closed syllable)

Practical Tasks:

Sound [eı]

No pains no gains.

To call a spade a spade.

Graphic equivalents of the sound [eı]

[eı] is pronounced when spelt

a take [teık]

ai wait [weıt]

ay say [seı]

ei vein [veın]

ey they [ðeı]

ea great [greıt]

 

Divide the words into syllables: needless, Britain, huddle, possibly, suppose, boundary, temporary, reasonable, parliament.

 

Unit 11

Syllable division

Main Theoretical Concepts:

I. Syllable division is effected by an increase in the force of utterance including an increase in muscular tension and in the force of exhalation or the onset of a fresh breath pulse at the beginning of a syllable. E.g. without

1) [wIðαut] An increase of the force of utterance takes place at the beginning of the consonant [ð]. The point of syllable division is between the vowel [I] and the consonant [ð]

2) [wIð-αut] - an increase of the force of utterance takes place at the beginning of the diphthong [αu]

II. Correct syllable division at the junction of words may be of great importance because the wrong syllable division may lead to the confusion or to a mistake

E.g. She saw them eat [∫I so: ð∂m i:t]

She saw the meat [∫I so: ð∂ mi:t]

III. Phonetic syllables do not coincide with the graphic ones: writ-ing [rαI-tIŋ], bet-ter [be-t∂], mak-er [meI-k∂]

IV. The division of English words into syllables is governed by the following principle rules.

V. Functions of syllables:

1. constructive - syllables form words, phrases, sentences

2. distinctive: a nice house[∂ nαıs hαus]

an ice house [∂n αıs hαus]

I scream [αI skri:m]

ice - cream ['αIskri:m]

an ocean [∂n '∂u∫n]

a notion [∂ 'n∂u∫n]

Practical Tasks:

Sound [αı]

Out of sight out of mind

Graphic equivalent of the sound [αu]

[αu] is pronounced when spelt

ou house [hαus]

ough plough [plαu]

ow how [hαu]

 

Sound [ ǝʊ ]

Don't go home alone because nobody knows how lonely the road is

Sound [ ɪǝ ]

Unit 12

Consonants

Unit 13

Consonants

The place of articulation

The place of articulation is determined by the active organ of speech against the point of articulation. According to the position of the active organ of speech against the point of articulation (the place of articulation) consonants are classified into: (1) labial, (2) lingual, (3) glottal .

Labial consonants are subdivided into: a) bilabial and b) labiodental. Bilabial consonants are produced with both lips. They are the English [p, b, m, w]. Labiodental consonants are articulated with the lower lip against the edge of the upper teeth. They are the English [f, v].

Lingual consonants are subdivided into: a) forelingual, b) mediolingual and c) backlingual. Forelingual consonants are articulated with the tip or the blade of the tongue. According to the position of the tip of the tongue they may be: a) apical and b) cacuminal. According to the place of obstruction forelingual consonants may be: dental, alveolar, palato-alveolar, post-alveolar. Dental consonants are articulated with the tip of the tongue projected between the teeth [θ, ð]. Alveolar consonants are articulated with the tip of the tongue on the alveolar ridge [t, d, s, z, n, 1]. Palato-alveolar consonants are articulated with the tip or the blade of the tongue against the teeth ridge, the front part of the tongue raised towards the hard palate—two places of articulation [t∫, ʤ, ∫, ʒ ]. Post-alveolar consonants are articulated with the tip or the blade of the tongue against the back part of the teeth ridge [r].

Mediolingual consonants are produced with the front part of the tongue. They are always palatal. Palatal consonants are articulated with the front part of the tongue raised high to the hard palate [j].

Backlingual consonants are also called velar, they are produced with the back part of the tongue raised towards the soft palate "velum" [k, g, ŋ].

The glottal consonant [h] is articulated in the glottis.

 

The work of the vocal cords

According to the work of the vocal cords and the force of exhalation consonants are subdivided into voiced and voiceless. The force of exhalation and the degree of muscular tension are greater in the production of voiceless consonants therefore they are called by the Latin word “ fortis”, which means “strong, energetic”. Voiced consonants are called “ lenis ”, “soft, weak”, because the force of exhalation and the degree of muscular tension in their articulation are weaker. Sonorant sounds do not enter “fortis” – “lenis” opposition.

Voiced consonants are: [b, d, g, z, v, ð, ʒ, m, n, ŋ, 1, r, j, w, ʤ].

Voiceless consonants are: [p, t, k, s, f, θ, h, ∫, t∫].

Unit 14

Assimilation

Main Theoretical Concepts:

Assimilation is a modification in the articulation of a consonant under the influence of an adjacent consonant. It is the chief factor due to which the principal variants of phonemes are modified into subsidiary ones.

The consonant which articulation of which is modified is called the assimilated sound.

The consonant, which influences the articulation of the neighboring consonant, is called the assimilating sound.

Assimilation may affect all the features of the articulation of consonant or only some of them.

1. a) the point of articulation, i.e. the principal (alveolar) variants of the phonemes [t, d, n, l, s, z,] are replaced by their subsidiary dental variants.

b) both the point of articulation and the active organ of speech.

e.g. congress- the forelingual alveolar [n] is replaced by the back - lingual velar [ŋ] if the prefix con-bears either a primary or a secondary stress.

I can go [ I k∂n 'g∂u] → [ I kŋ 'g∂u] - a vowel between [n] and [k] in an unstressed syllable is omitted in rapid speech so [n] → [ŋ]

2. the manner of the production of noise

e.g. give me ['gIm mI]

The constrictive noise fricative [v] before the occlusive nasal sonorant [m] at the word boundary in rapid speech is modified. So [v] → [m] - constrictive → occlusive sonorant.

let me ['lem mI] - [t] → [m] - occlusive noise plosive → occlusive sonorant

The manner of noise production is affected by assimilation in cases of:

a) lateral explosion: when a plosive is followed by [l]

e.g. pleasure, candle, cattle

The closure for the plosive is not realized till the off-glide for [l]: the sides of the tongue are lowered and the air escapes along them with lateral explosion.

b) loss of plosion or incomplete plosion in the clusters:

1. of 2 similar plosives [pp, pb, tt, td, kk, kg]

2. of 2 plosives with different points of articulation [kt, dg, tb]

There is only one explosion for the 2 plosives. The closure of the organs of speech for the second plosive is made before the release of the first one.

e.g. a ct, fa ct, goo d g irl

c) nasal plosion - a plosive followed by the syllabic [n, m] has no release, the air escapes through the nasal cavity

e.g. bu tton, su bm arine

3. the work of the vocal cords

A voiceless consonant may be replaced by a voiced one under the influence of the adjacent voiced consonant or vice versa

e.g. goose, goose berry - voiceless [s] → voiced [z]

used, used to - voiced [z] → voiceless [s]

The English sonorants [m, n, l, r, j, w] are partly devoiced when they are preceded by the voiceless consonants [s, p, t, k]

e.g. s m all, p l ease, t r y, s l ow, q u ick, t w enty

4. the lip position

The labialized subsidiary variants of the phonemes [k, g, t, s,] etc. are used under the influence of the following bilabial sonorant [w]

e.g. quick ['kwIk], twenty ['twentI], language

5. the position of the soft palate

Nasal consonants influence oral ones

e.g. let me [le m mI'] - [t] → [m], oral → nasal

kindness - [d] → [n], oral → nasal

Unit 15

Assimilation

Main Theoretical Concepts:

Assimilation which occurs in everyday speech in the present - day pronunciation is called living.

Assimilation which took place at an earlier stage in the history of the language is called historical.

e.g. question ['kwestjǝn] → ['kwesʧn]

As far as the direction of assimilation is concerned it can be:

1. progressive (A → B), when the 1^st of the 2 sounds affected by the assimilation makes the second sound similar to itself

e.g. what's this - [z] is replaced by [s] under the influence of [t]

2. regressive (A←B), when the preceding consonant is influenced by the one following it.

e.g. news, newspaper - [z] → [s] under the influence of [p]

3. reciprocal, double (A↔B), when two adjacent consonants influence each other

e.g. twenty ['twentI] - [t] becomes labialized under the influence of [w]. [w] is assimilated to the voiceless plosive [t] and is partly devoiced.

Assimilation may be of three degrees:

1. complete: the articulation of the assimilated consonant fully coincides with that of the assimilating one

e.g. horse - shoe (horse + shoe) - [s] changes into [s]

does she - [z] → [S] in rapid speech

2. partial: the assimilated consonant retains its main phonemic features and becomes only partly similar in some feature of its articulation to the assimilating sound.

e.g. [t, d, n, l, s, z] are assimilated to the dental consonants [t, d]

3. intermediate: the assimilated consonant changes into a different sound but does not coincide with the assimilating consonant.

e.g. goose, gooseberry - [s] [z] under the influence of [b]

Assimilation is called contextual if the articulation of a word is changed in combination with other words

e.g. news, newspaper, horse-shoe, etc.

The modification can be conditioned: a) by the complementary distribution of the phonemes; b) by the contextual variations in which phonemes may occur at the junction of words; c) by the style of speech: official or rapid colloquial.

 

SECTION II

LISTENING COMPREHENSION

Unit 1

Topic of the report: Parts of the world (continents, oceans).

Listening: Round the world. Guess the country.

Task: You will hear three guessing games. One person thinks of a country, and says two or three things about it. The others try to guess the country. Listen to the tape and, every time there is a pause, try to guess the country.

After listening to the dialogs twice, reproduce them from the third person singular.

Words: the Caribbean

the Mediterranean

Iceland

mountainous

to be divided

jungles

 

Unit 2

Topic of the report: Spiders: tarantula, black widow.

Listening: Tarantula. One day in California. Fear of spiders.

Task: You will hear four extracts about spiders. After listening to it, mark the facts about tarantulas in the table. Which do you think are true? Write ‘yes’ or ‘no’ in column A and B.

Facts	A	B
Tarantulas are the biggest of all spiders.
Black widow spiders are more dangerous than tarantulas.
Tarantulas can bite.
Tarantulas are poisonous.
Pet rabbits are more dangerous than tarantulas.
Most snakes are poisonous.
Most spiders are poisonous.

After listening to the stories twice, reproduce them from the third person singular.

Words:

tarantula

sandhills

black widow

bite

poisonous

jogging

dangerous

hairy

harmless

spider

Topic of the report for the next listening: Tell about embarrassing situations that have ever happened to you.

Here are some examples:

- After a meal in a restaurant, you realise you have no money with you.

- You see someone you’ve met before, and you can’t remember their name.

- You forget a close friend’s birthday.

- etc.

Unit 3.

Topic of the report: Tell about embarrassing situations that have ever happened to you.

Listening: Embarrassing moments. Sunday afternoon.

 

Task: You will hear a woman telling a story about an embarrassing occasion. The story is in eight sections. Each time the tape stops, try to guess what will happen in the next section, and complete the sentences.

Section 2 Suddenly I heard…

Section 3 I opened the door, and I saw…

Section 4 They said…

Section 5 So I…

Section 6 When my husband came back…

Section 7 Then we discovered that…

Section 8 So they…

After listening to the story twice, reproduce it from the third person singular.

Words:

vehicle

knocking on the door

elderly ladies

cardigan

obviously

good gracious

to go mad

to chat

red-faced

Unit 4.

Listening: Embarrassing moments. Two stories.

Task: You will hear two stories about embarrassing situations. After listening to the stories twice, answer the questions below in the written form.

Story A

Where was the speaker? Why was she there?

What time of year was it? What was the weather like?

What were other people doing?

What did the dogs do?

Story B

Where was the speaker?

Why was he there?

Who did he see?

What did she look like?

What did he decide to do?

Was she his friend?

Words:

to walk a dog

to creep up

blonde

to tug one’s hair

knickers

to be pleased at

middle-aged

Topic of the report for the next listening: Reasons of global warming and its consequences.

 

Unit 5.

Topic of the report: Reasons of global warming and its consequences.

Listening: FC, 2008: Test 1, Paper 4, Part 1.

Task: You will hear people talking in four different situations twice. For questions 1-4, choose the best answer (A, B or C).

 

1. You overhear a woman recommending a campsite.

Why does she recommend it?

A It’s close to tourist attractions.

B Its’ in an area of natural beauty.

C It has a wide range of facilities.

 

2. You overhear two friends talking about global warming.

How does the girl feel about it?

A pessimistic about the future

B surprised at the effects it’s having

C unconvinced that there’s a problem

 

3. You overhear a young couple talking about moving to the country.

Why does the man object to the idea?

A He wouldn’t be able to work there.

B He’d miss the facilities of the city.

C He wouldn’t be near to his friends.

 

4. You hear a part of a radio programme about food.

Why should listeners call the programme?

A to take part in a recipe competition

B to find out about a cookery course

C to ask questions about cooking

Words:

campsite

stunning views

wave

to surf

well-meaning friends

to drop in

award-winning books

nutritionist

canteen

survey

admin tasks Topic of the report for the next listening: Snow-kiting as a winter sport

Unit 6

Topic of the report: Snow-kiting as a winter sport

Listening: FC, 2008: Test 1, Paper 4, Part 1.

Task: You will hear people talking in 4 different situations twice. For questions 5-8, choose the best answer (A, B or C).

1. You hear the beginning of a programme about college canteens.

What point is being made about them?

A The choice of food has improved.

B Students like the food on offer there.

C Teachers complain about the quality of the food.

 

2. You hear a young woman talking about her career.

Why did she accept a job in a bookshop?

A She needed a steady income.

B She thought it would be enjoyable.

C She hoped to improve certain skills.

 

3. You hear part of a programme about a clothes designer.

What does the woman like about the clothes he designs?

A They are practical.

B They are colourful.

C They are original.

 

4. You overhear a discussion about the sport of snow-kiting.

What does the man say about it?

A It’s easier to learn than other winter sports.

B It’s more dangerous than other winter sports.

C It requires less equipment than other winter sports.

Words:

to praise to the sky

catwalk

nursery slopes

to err

Topic of the report for the next listening: Tell about 2-3 party games you know. Answer the following:

- What do you need to play it?

- How many people do you need?

- How do you play it?

- How do you win?

Unit 7

Topic of the report: Tell about 2-3 party games you know.

Listening: Childhood. Party games.

Task: You will hear children describing the four games. After listening to the tape, complete the table below.

	Game
You all sit in a circle.	B,C
One person has to leave the room.
You choose a friend to play the game with.
You have to be as quick as you can.
You have to wait your turn.
The first person to finish is the winner.
You usually get in a terrible mess.

After the second listening reproduce the rules of the games.

Words:

thimble

dice

gloves

raw eggs

hard-boiled eggs

to crack

to get messy

roll of toilet paper

to wrap up

 

Topic of the report for the next listening: Shakespeare’ play Macbeth. It’s success and tragedy.

Unit 8

Topic of the report: Shakespeare’ play Macbeth. It’s success and tragedy.

Listening: Believe it or not. Macbeth.

Task: You will hear a woman talking about a superstition that is common among actors in the theater. Listen to the tape twice and answer the questions:

1. What is the superstition about?

2. How can one avoid its power?

3. How can the spells be broken? Which of these things are mentioned?

- turn round three times

- say ‘Macbeth’ backwards

- say ‘Sorry’

- knock on the door

- swear

- shrug one’s shoulders

- leave the room

- leave the theaterWhat are the reasons of the superstition according to the speakers’ opinion?

Words:

superstition

to break the spell

dressing room

in a clockwise direction

to swear

to shrug off

shield

to behead

to get stabbed

sleepwalking

Topic of the report for the next listening: Hot- air balloon trips.

Unit 9

Topic of the report: Hot-air balloon trips.

Listening: FC, 2008: Test 2, Paper 4, Part 4.

Task: You will hear an interview with Patric Shaw, who works as a pilot for a company that organises hot-air balloon trips, twice. For questions 1-7, choose the best answer (A, B or C).

 

1. According to Patrick, what worries people most when they take a balloon trip?

A how far the wind will take them

B whether they will hit some obstacle

C what the experience of landing will be like

 

2. Why does Patrick recommend joining the ground crew?

A It’s the best way of learning about balloons.

B It provides some experience of flying a balloon.

C It can be a fun way of earning extra income.

 

3. What makes the job of the ground crew particularly difficult?

A poor communication with the pilot

B unpredictable weather conditions

C the nervousness of the passengers

 

4. Patrick says that all members of the ground crew must

A be physically strong.

B have good social skills.

C know their area well.

 

5. Patrick finds it unsatisfactory when new crew members

A fail to cooperate with each other.

B distract him with unnecessary questions.

C don’t accept the way things should be done.

 

6. What does Patrick say about balloon competitions?

A It is often difficult to determine who has won.

B The finishing target area is often unmarked.

C Some competitors are requesting clear rules.

 

7. Patrick thinks his particular skills as a pilot result from

A the way in which he was trained.

B the fact that he’s adventurous by nature.

C the amount of experience he has.

Words:

Ballooning

up-and-down movements

to be anxious about something

to bounce off

take-off

ground crew

chase vehicle

to retrieve a balloon

to get on with

licence

bush

Topic of the report for the next listening: Edible and poisonous mushrooms.

Unit 10

Topic of the report: Edible and poisonous mushrooms.

Listening: Bread and mushrooms. Edible or poisonous?

Task: You will hear someone describing the mushrooms. Listen and decide which of the mentioned mushrooms are edible and which ones are poisonous.

Having listened to the tape twice, describe each mushroom: a field mushroom, a fly agaric, a cep, a death cap.

Words:

stem

gills

field mushroom

fly agaric

drug

hallucination

delicious

cep

sponge

pores

death cap

Topic of the report for the next listening: Life of bees

Unit 11

Topic of the report: Life of bees

Listening: Bees. Life in the hive.

Task: You will hear a beekeeper talking about life in a beehive. Having listened to it twice, decide which of these sentences are true, and which are false? (Write T or F.)

1. The queen bee lays eggs. ____

2. The workers collect nectar from flowers. ____

3. The queen bee turns the nectar in to honey. ____

4. The workers look after the young bees in the hive. ____

5. Drones are female bees. ____

6. The drones’ job is to guard the hive. ____

7. The drones die at the end of the summer. ____

Words:

to hatch

nurse bees

cell

guard bees

forager bees

nectar

drone

Topic of the report for the next listening: Exploring underground caves.

 

Unit 12

Topic of the report: Exploring underground caves.

Listening: FC, 2008: Test 4, Paper 4, Part 1.

Task: You will hear people talking in four different situations twice. For questions 1-4, choose the best answer (A, B or C).

 

1. You hear part of a programme about music in schools.

Why are fewer children joining school choirs?

A They are unwilling to sing in public.

B Their parents don’t encourage them to sing.

C Their teachers lack the necessary musical skills.

 

2. You overhear a conversation about evening classes.

Why did the girl decide to register for a photography course?

A She wanted to take better holiday snaps.

B She thought it would help her in her career.

C She needed a relaxing change from her studies.

 

3. You overhear two people talking about a new café.

What did they both approve of?

A the size of the portions

B the originality of the food

C the efficiency of the service

 

4. You hear a man talking about exploring underground caves.

What is he?

A an experienced caver

B a journalist

C a student

Words:

choir

involve

decline

adolescence

digital photography

to overload

CV

to be entrusted

reckon

baguettes

escape

outer space

unappealing

pastime

challenge

Topic of the report for the next listening: How to behave during a job interview.

Unit 13

Topic of the report: How to behave during a job interview.

Listening: FC, 2008: Test 4, Paper 4, Part 1.

Task: You will hear people talking in four different situations twice. For questions 1-4, choose the best answer (A, B or C).

 

1. You overhear a woman talking about a job interview she had.

What does she say about it?

A Some of the questions were unfair.

B She felt she was insufficiently prepared.

C The interviewers put her under pressure.

 

2. You overhear a woman talking about a language course.

What does she criticize about it?

A There are too many students.

B Grammar isn’t focused on.

C It isn’t challenging enough.

 

3. On the radio, you hear a man talking about food.

What does he do?

A He’s a shop owner.

B He’s a cookery writer.

C He’s a chef in a restaurant.

 

4. You hear a man talking about moving house.

How did he feel after moving to a new area?

A worried that he wouldn’t see his old friends

B concerned about how his children would adapt

C surprised by how welcoming his new neighbours were

Words:

to put at ease

achievements

to gain

fluent

pace

to be tempted

to bother

bunch of something

Topic of the report for the next listening: What does it mean to be a ceramicist.

Unit 14

Topic of the report: What does it mean to be a ceramicist?

Listening: FC, 2008: Test 5, Paper 4, Part 4.

Task: You will hear an interview with a man called David Shaw, who is a professional ceramicist, making pottery objects out of clay. For questions 1-7, choose the best answer (A, B or C).

 

1. What does David say is an absolute requirement for people considering a career in ceramics?

A They must feel a passion for it.

B They must be physically very fit.

C They must have enough patience.

 

2. David says it took him a long time to

A develop his own style.

B make his business profitable.

C decide to work at ceramics full-time.

 

3. What does David find most enjoyable about his job?

A the fact that the results are unpredictable

B the feedback he gets from his customers

C the knowledge that he creates useful pieces

 

4. What does David say he finds particularly difficult?

A doing administrative tasks

B finding time to research new ideas

C finishing new commissions on time

 

5. What reasons does David give for his recent success as a ceramicist?

A He’s been luckier than other ceramicists.

B He’s put in more effort than in the past.

C He’s started to follow certain fashions.

 

6. How does David feel about the possibility of teaching ceramics?

A He feels unprepared for it.

B He fears it might distract him.

C He’s unsure about finding time.

 

7. David advises people who want a career in ceramics to

A talk to established ceramicists.

B go to ceramics exhibitions.

C attend a ceramics course.

Words:

crucial

bubble

kiln

wheel

glaze

slap

to be apprenticed

curve

tangible

workshop

to attune

Суслова Оксана Валентиновна

Ковальчук Лидия Петровна

Практическая фонетика

Английского языка

учебно-методическое пособие

 

Редактор

Компьютерная верстка

 

 

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Челябинский государственный университет

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