Types of reduction

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Optional literature:

Соколова М.А., Гинтовт К.П., Кантер Л.А. Практическая фонетика английского языка: Учеб. Пособие. – М.: ВЛАДОС, 2001. – С. 122-132.

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MODIFICATION OF VOWELS IN CONNECTED SPEECH. REDUCTION

In unstressed positions vowels tend not to be pronounced clearly. У ненаголошеній позиції голосні як правило не вимовляються чітко. Reduction is a term to describe the historical process when vowel sounds become weak, short or disappear in unstressed positions. Редукція – це термін на позначення історичного процесу послаблення, скорочення та зникнення голосних звуків у ненаголошеній позиції. Many unstressed syllables contain the vowel [ ], a neutral vowel which is not found in stressed syllables. Compare the sound of the vowel in the stressed syllable in the words on the left with that of the vowel in the same syllable, unstressed, in the related words on the right:

a: hum a nity [ ] hum a n [ ]

mon a rchic [ ] mon a rch [ ]

practic a lity [ ] practic a lly [ ]

secret a rial [ ] secret a ry [ ]

e: pres e nt (v) [ ] pres e nt (n) [ ]

prot e st (v) [ ] prot e st (n) [ ]

The vowels [ ] and [ ], which are relatively neutral in quality, are also common in unstressed syllables.

Non-reduced unstressed sounds are often found in:

a) compound words, e.g.: blackboard [ ], oilfield [ ].

b) borrowings (запозичення) from other languages, e.g.: programme (Fr.) [ ].

Reduction is closely connected also with sentence stress: stressed words are pronounced with great energy of breath. Редукція пов’язана також з фразовим наголосом: наголошені слова вимовляюється енергійніше. Function words lose sentence stress because they have no informational importance, partially or completely.

So reduction is realized:

a) in unstressed syllables within words, e.g.: demonstrative [ ].

b) in unstressed auxiliary and modal verbs, personal and possessive pronouns within intonation groups and phrases, e.g.: What do you think you can do? [ ].

TYPES OF REDUCTION

1. quantitative кількісна reduction – shortening of a vowel sound in the unstressed position, affects mainly long vowels, e.g.: he [ ]. When does he come? [ ]

2. qualitative якісна reduction – change of vowels towards [ ], affects both long and short vowels, e.g.: can [ ]. You can easily do it. [ ].

3. the third type is the elision випадіння (= omission) of vowels in the unstressed position, e.g.: I’m up already. [ ].

Reduced vowels should be made very weak!!!

NB:▲ Unknown words especially compound and borrowed should be looked up in a dictionary (!!!) to check their pronunciation. Be sure not to reduce vowels of full value in the unstressed position, unless you are to do so.

Possible mistakes of learners of English:

1) they do not shorten or change unstressed vowels in the cases they should be strongly reduced, e.g.: forget [ ], of course [ ].

2) they easily reduce the vowels of full value in unstressed positions where there should be no reduction at all, e.g.: blackboard [ ], architect [ ].

3) they do not always observe secondary stress in polysyllabic words and reduce the vowel of full value. Care should be taken to observe the rhythmical tendency of secondary stresses and to pronounce the vowel of full value in the syllables marked by secondary stresses, e.g.: conversation [ ], university [ ].

Any good dictionary can help you in the three cases mentioned above.

4) Function words and especially personal and possessive pronouns, auxiliary and modal verbs are often made strongly stressed by the learners, though they have no special logical prominence. Mind that those words are normally unstressed and are very weak in English speech. Learners who aim at a native English accent must learn the weak forms of function words and regard them as the regular pronunciations, using the strong forms only on those limited occasions where they are used (e.g. under special emphasis or contrast, and in final positions). Для засвоєння бажаного англійського акценту потрібно вивчити і постійно вживати слабкі форми службових слів, окрім тих випадків, коли вживаються сильні форми (під логічним наголосом та у фінальних позиціях).

WEAK FORMS

In spoken English words which bear the major part of information are generally stressed and are called notional words. Слова, що несуть основне інформаційне навантаження, наголошуються їх називають „значеннєвими”. These are: nouns, adjectives, main verbs, adverbs, numerals, interrogative, demonstrative, emphatic pronouns. The other words in a sentence are mostly function words службові which link the notional words and help us in this way to form an utterance поєднують значеннєві слова і допомагають нам будувати речення. They are: articles, prepositions, conjunctions, particles, and also auxiliary and modal verbs, personal and possessive pronouns. These are not many in number but they are among the commonest words of the language. As function words are normally unstressed in a sentence their weak reduced forms are generally used in speech, e.g.: He said he’d come in the morning. [ ].

Words	strong forms	weak forms	examples
the
a
an
at
from
of
to
into
for
you
he
she
we
me
her
us
them
your
our
be
am
are
is
was
were
have
has
had
can
could
must
will
would
shall
should
do
does
and
that
but
than
as
or
to
there

The strong forms of auxiliary and modal verbs, personal and possessive pronouns and function words are by far more rarely used. They are used in their strong forms when they are used in isolation, when they become the communicative centres of utterances. The following cases should be also remembered as the traditional use of strong forms in the English language.

♣ Prepositions have their strong forms though they remain unstressed:

a) at the very end of an intonation group or phrase, e.g.: What are you looking at? [ ].

b) at the end of an intonation group or phrase when they are followed by the unstressed pronoun, e.g.: I’m not talking to you. [ ].

But: [ ].

♣ Polysyllabic prepositions followed by a pronoun at the end of a phrase are stressed as a rule, e.g.: Have a look under it. [ ].

♣ Auxiliary and modal verbs have their strong forms:

a) at the end of an intonation group or a phrase whether stressed or not, e.g.: Who has done it? – Mary has [ ].

Are you free? - I am [ ].

b) at the beginning of general and alternative questions, e.g.: Can you get it by tomorrow? [ ].

c) in contracted negative forms, e.g.:

I don’t know the man. [ ].

♣ The following form-words should be remembered as having no weak forms whatsoever: what, where, when, how, which, on, in, with, then.

♣ The verb to have used as a content word in the meaning of to possess has no weak forms (whether stressed or not) though often unstressed, e.g.: I have a little brother. [ ].

♣ The demonstrative pronoun that is never reduced while the conjunction that is, e.g.: I know that. [ ]

But: I know that he is here. [ ].

♣ All the form-words, auxiliary and modal verbs, personal and possessive pronouns are generally stressed and consequently have their strong forms in case they become the logical centres of phrases, e.g.: I’m speaking of your work, not of your sister’s. [ ].

Ukrainian speech is characterized by different rhythmical structure. Personal and possessive pronouns, auxiliary and modal verbs are often stressed in Ukrainian, compare:

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