Pronunciation
INTRODUCTION TO LINKING
At its simplest, linking is the merging of
multiple words together until they sound as if they are only one word. Native
speakers of English all do this naturally. Linking is an advanced topic for
non-native speakers, but learning to correctly link words can result in
significantly more fluid and fluent sounding English speech. Failing to link
words naturally results in spoken English which may have awkward pauses, extra,
unnecessary sounds, and which will sound very foreign to native speakers.
Techniques used for linking words depend
on specific adjacent sounds where the words meet in the sentence.
Blending sounds
Blending is smoothly transitioning from the pronunciation of
one sound into the next sound. Blending works well for linking from one
continuous consonant--a fricative, approximant, or nasal sound--to another
different continuous consonant.
In the phrase "this month," the
's sound' /s/ blends smoothly into the 'm sound' /m/.
Blending can also be used to link
continuous consonants and vowel sounds, as in the phrase "this
afternoon." Here the /s/ of the word "this" is
shared between both words.
Coarticulation:
overlapping sounds
Coarticulation occurs when adjacent sounds overlap
one another, causing a change in one or both sounds' pronunciation. Two examples
of coarticulation include nasal aspiration and lateral
aspiration.
Nasal aspiration occurs when the 'd sound' /d/ links
into the 'n sound' /n/. The tongue moves into the position of the /d/,
but the sound is not completed with the typical aspiration (release of air).
Instead, the stopped air is released as an /n/. The International
Phonetic Alphabet symbol for nasal aspiration is [d̚ n].
An example of nasal aspiration occurs in
the phrase "good news": the air is stopped as a /d/, but
released as an /n/.
Lateral
aspiration is similar in concept to nasal aspiration in that the
air is stopped as a normal /d/, but released as a different sound
as an 'l sound' /l/. The International Phonetic Alphabet symbol for
lateral aspiration is [d̚ l].
In the phrase "bad luck,"
the /d/ links into the /l/, and lateral aspiration
occurs.
Assimilation:
changing sounds
Assimilation is a more drastic type of
coarticulation. Instead of "sharing" part of a sound, the merged
sounds are pronounced as an entirely different sound. Two examples of
assimilation occur when the 't sound' /t/ or /d/ precede
the 'y sound' /y/.
When the /t/ and /y/ assimilate,
the sounds merge into the 'ch sound' /ʧ/. This causes the phrase
"don't you" /doʊntyu/ to be pronounced as
"donchou" /doʊnʧu/.
The /d/ assimilates with
the /y/ and is pronounced as a 'j sound' /ʤ/. This
causes the phrase "did you" /dɪdyu/ to be pronounced
as "dijou" /dɪʤu/.
Intrusion: Adding
sounds
Intrusion is placing an additional sound
between other sounds. For instance, adding a slight 'w sound' /w/ or /y/ between
vowel sounds is a helpful technique for pronouncing both vowels clearly.
In the phrase "he asked," a
small /y/ is added between the 'long e' /i/ and
'short a' /æ/. This allows both vowel sounds to be pronounced fully
and separately without pausing between words.
A slight /w/ is added to
link the 'oo sound' /u/ to the 'short i' /ɪ/ sound
in the phrase "do it." Again, this allows both vowel sounds to be
pronounced clearly.
Elision: Omitting
sounds
Elision occurs when a sound is removed from a word. For
example, when a /t/ or /d/ is between two
other consonant sounds (but not the first sound of a word), the /t/ or /d/ can
be omitted.
In the phrase "kept going,"
the /t/ is between two consonant sounds and can be omitted.
In the phrase "diamond ring,"
the /d/ is between two consonant sounds and can be omitted.
Geminates: Double
sounds
Geminates occur when one word ends with
and the next word begins with the same consonant sound. Continuous consonants
link to each other differently than stops and affricates.
Identical double continuous consonants
link by pronouncing one, single sound for an extended period of time. In the
phrase, "social life," the 'l sound' /l/ is produced
for more time than if the sound occurred alone.
When linking identical stop sounds, the
stopped portion of the sound is held for an extended period of time, then released.
In the phrase "pet turtle," the /t/ is stopped, held
for extra time, then released. This stop, hold, and release signals the
pronunciation of both sounds.
The j sound /ʤ/ and ch
sound /ʧ/ are the only affricate sounds in English. In a sequence of
identical affricates, no special linking occurs and the sounds are pronounced
twice in a row. Therefore, in the phrase "orange juice," the j
sound should be pronounced twice.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Seattle Learning Academy. “Introduction to Linking — Pronuncian:
American English Pronunciation.” 2016. N.p., 2007. Web. 13 Dec. 2017.
https://pronuncian.com/introduction-to-linking/
EXERCISE ONE PRONUNCIATION
LINKING WORDS PART I
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Latham-Koeing,Christina;Oxenden,
Clive; Hudson, Jane. ENGLISH FILE UPPER-INTERMEDIATE. Oxford, United Kingdom:
Oxford University Press , 2014.
EXERCISE TWO PRONUNCIATION
Linking Consonant to Vowel and Disappearing /h/
Matching exercise.
Disappearing /h/
Match the items on the right to the items on the left so as to make sentences linking certain words.
In spoken English, unstressed pronouns beginning with /h/, like he, her and him, usually drop the /h/ sound after a consonant.
In spoken English, unstressed pronouns beginning with /h/, like he, her and him, usually drop the /h/ sound after a consonant.
