Types of reduction

Key words and expressions:

quantitative reduction, shortening of a vowel, qualitative reduction, obscuration of vowels, elision

Three different types of reduction are noticed in English.

1. Quantitative reduction, i.e. shortening of a vowel
sound in the unstressed position, affects mainly long vowels, e.g.
he [hi: — hı].

2. Qualitative reduction, i.e. obscuration of vowels which affects both long and short vowels.

Vowels in unstressed form-words in most cases undergo both quantitative and qualitative reduction, e.g. to [tu: — tu ּ — tυ].

3. The third type is the elision of vowels in the
unstressed position.

Recommendations. 1. Reduced vowels should be made very weak. Sometimes they are even dropped in fluent speech, e.g. factory ['fæktrı].

2. 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.

3. When practicing reading as well as speaking weaken un-
stressed form-words, personal and possessive pronouns, auxiliary
and modal verbs whenever it is necessary.

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