MODIFICATION OF ENGLISH SOUNDS IN CONNECRED SPEECH

Modification of English consonants in connected speech (assimilation).

Modification of English vowels in connected speech (accommodation). Liaison.
Elision. Reduction
Language in everyday use is not conducted in terms of isolated, separate units;
it is performed in connected sequences of larger units, in words, phrases and longer
utterances.
ASSIMILATION takes place when a consonant changes its character under the
influence of a neighbouring consonant.
Several TYPES of assimilation can be recognized:
a) partial (e.g. put there) or
b) total (horse-shoe [ho:ʃu].
The DIRECTION of assimilation can be:
a) progressive, when the first of the two sounds affected by assimilation makes the
second sound similar to itself. But these assimilations are less common in English.
They occur in some contractions, e.g. it's, that's;
b) regressive, when the second of the two sounds affected by assimilation makes
the first sound similar to itself, e. g. tram, read that;
c) double, or reciprocal, when the two adjacent sounds influence each other,
e.g. twice /t/ is rounded under the influence of /w/ and /w/ is partly devoiced
under the influence of the voiceless /t/.
Assimilation can affect the following:
▪ the place of articulation;
▪ the manner of articulation;
▪ the work of vocal cords.
Assimilation according to the place of articulation is the following:
1. Dental assimilation: alveolar [t, d, l, n] become dental under the influence of
interdental [T,D] : e. g. breadth, said that, feel this.
2. Post-alveolar assimilation: alveolar [t, d] become post-alveorlar under the
influence of the neighbouring [r] : e. g. tree, true, dream.
 3. Labialization: consonants [t, d, k] become labialized under the influence of
the neighbouring [w] : e. g. twitter, dwelling, quite.
4. Affrication: the combination of alveolar [d] and mid-lingual [j] turn into
fricative [dZ] : graduate [grxdZueit ], did you [didZu]; the combination of
alveolar [t] and mid-lingual [j] turn into fricative [tS], e.g. congratulate
[kongrxtSuleit]; the combination of [s] and mid-lingual [j] turn into fricative
[S], e.g. issue [iSu]; the combination of [z] and mid-lingual [j] turn into
fricative [Z], e.g. does your mother call you [dAZqmATq].

According to the manner of articulation such assimilation is differentiated:

1. Loss of plosion. When two plosive consonants stand together (plosive consonants:
[t, d, p, b, k, g]) the first one loses its plosion, e.g. put down, sacked (partial
regressive assimilations).
2. Nasal plosion: When one of plosive consonants is followed by a nasal sonorant [n]
or [m], nasal plosion occurs, e.g. sudden, not now, at night, let me see (partial
regressive assimilations).
3. Lateral plosion: When a plosive consonant is followed by a lateral sonorant [l],
lateral plosion occurs, e.g. settle, table, at last.

Assimilation can affect the work of the vocal cords and sounds become voiced
or devoiced under the influence of the neighbouring sounds. In particular, voiced
sounds become voiceless when followed by another voiceless sound, e.g.:
1. Devoicing/Voicing: is best demonstrated by the regressive assimilation in
such words as news paper (news [z] + paper); gooseberry (goose [s] + berry).
2. Devoicing:
a) English sonorants [m, n, r, 1, j, w] preceded by the voiceless consonants [p, t,
k, s] are partially devoiced, e.g. smart, snake, tray, quick, twins, play, pride (partial
progressive assimilation).
devoicing assimilation affects mostly grammatical items: [z] of “has”, “is”,
“does” changes to [s], and [v] of “of”, “have” becomes [f], e.g. She's five. Of course.
She has fine eyes. You've spoiled it. Does Pete like it?
 b) the weak forms of the verbs “is” and “has” are also assimilated to the final
voiceless consonants of the preceding word, e.g. Your aunt's coming. What’s your
name? (partial progressive assimilation)
c) devoicing assimilation affects mostly grammatical items: [z] of “has”, “is”,
“does” changes to [s], and [v] of “of”, “have” becomes [f], e.g. She's five. Of course.
She has fine eyes. You've spoiled it. Does Pete like it?
In casual informal speech devoicing assimilation is often met, e.g. have to do it
['hxf tə'du:], five past two ['faif pa:st 'tu:]

ACCOMMODATION – the modification of a consonant under the influence of the

neighbouring vowel or vice versa.
Accommodation can be of the following TYPES:
1. Labialisation: when consonants are labiolized (rounded) under the influence of
the neighbouring rounded back vowels, e.g. pool, moon, rude, soon, who, cool, etc.
2. Spread lip position of consonants: consonants acquire spread lip position when
they are followed or preceded by front vowels [i:], [i], e.g. tea – beat; meet – team; feat
– leaf, keep – leak; sit – miss.
3. Nasalization: vowels are nasalized as the result of prolonged lowering of the soft
palate under the influence of the neighbouring sonants [m] and [n], e.g. and, morning,
men, come in.

LIAISION (insertion) - connecting of the final sound of one word or syllable to

the initial sound of the next or inserting the extra sound between them.
When a word which ends in a vowel is followed by another word beginning with
a vowel, the so-called intrusive "r" is sometimes pronounced between the vowels, e.g.
Asia and Africa ['ei ʃ ər ənd ə], the idea of it [рi:ai'diər əvit], ma and pa ['mа:r ənd 'pa:].
The so-called linking "r," is a common example of insertion, e.g. clearer, a
teacher of English. When the word final vowel is a diphthong which glides to [i] such
as [ai], [ei] the palatal sonorant [j] tends to be inserted, e.g. saying ['seijiŋ]; trying
['traiiŋ].
In case of the [u]-gliding diphthongs [əu], [au] the bilabial sonorant [w]
is sometimes inserted, e.g. going ['gəuwiŋ], allowing [ə'lauwiŋ]. The process of
inserting the sonorants [r], [j] or [w] may seem to contradict the tendency towards the
economy of articulatory efforts. The explanation for it lies in the fact that it is
apparently easier from the articulatory point of view to insert those sounds than to leave
them out. The insertion of a consonant-like sound, namely a sonorant, interrupts the
sequence of two vowels (VV) to make it a more optional syllable type: consonant +
vowel (CV). Thus, insertion occurs in connected speech in order to facilitate the
process of articulation for the speaker, and not as a way of providing extra information
for the listener.
ELISION or complete loss of sounds, both vowels and consonants, is observed in
the structure of English words. It is typical of rapid colloquial speech and marks the
following sounds:
1. Loss of [h] in personal and possessive pronouns he, his, her, him and the forms
of the auxiliary verb have, has, had is wide spread, e.g. What has he done? ['wɔt
əz iˎdAn].
2. [1] tends to be lost when preceded by [ɔ:], e.g. always ['ɔ:wiz], already [ɔ:'redi],
all right [ɔ:'rait].
3. Alveolar plosives are often omitted in a cluster of consonants, if they are
followed by another consonant, e.g. next day ['neks 'dei], just one [' ʤAs 'wAn],
mashed potatoes ['mxʃ рə'teitəuz]. If this cluster of consonants with a plosive at the end
is followed by a vowel, the consonant remains, e.g. first of all, passed in time.
Whole syllables may be elided in rapid speech: library ['laibri], literary ['litri].
Examples of historical elision are also known. They are initial consonants in the
words “write”, “know”, “knight”, the medial consonant [t] in “fasten”, “listen”,
“whistle”, “castle”.
Recommended Literature
1. Паращук В.Ю. Теоретична фонетика англійської мови: Навчальний посібник
для студентів факультетів іноземних мов. – Вінниця, НОВА КНИГА. – 2005. –
C.136.
2. Практическая фонетика английского языка: учебник для вузов / М. А.
Соколова, К. П. Гинтовт, Л. А. Кантер и др. - М. : Владос, 2001. – C. 122-125.