Practice saying these words, paying special attention to the reduced vowels in boldface:

Transcription

1 Reducing Vowels and Dropping Syllables Learn with Lloyd! ( Vowels in unstressed syllables, especially immediately before or after a stressed syllable, are usually reduced in strength. Vowel reduction is somewhat optional in slow speech, as speakers try to enunciate more clearly; however, it is very common in moderate to fast speech. General patterns for vowel reduction 1. Most vowels are reduced to or, both of which are neutral, low-energy, and short. 2. Combination vowels that include ɚ (for example, ɚ and ɚ) are usually reduced to ɚ. 3. Nearly any non-ɚ vowel can be reduced to, but vowels in syllables that have the potential to be pronounced,,,, and ( front vowels ) are usually reduced to. In this handout, most non-ɚ reduced vowels are indicated by ; keep in mind that is also possible. Stressed syllables are underlined. Practice saying these words, paying special attention to the reduced vowels in boldface: Example Words IPA Example Words IPA kilometer ɚ fertile ɚ determine ɚ vinyl divide authority ɚ decision occurred ɚ secure ɚ political pedestrian photograph kindness professor ɚ except (or unreduced ) occasion accept (or semi-reduced ) modern ɚ acknowledge (or semi-reduced ) energy ɚ unless dollar ɚ consist forward ɚ ɚ balloon grammar ɚ final similar ɚ important ɚ familiar ɚ virus ignorance ɚ curriculum ɚ information ɚ suggest effort ɚ surface ɚ doctor ɚ signature ɚ soldier ɚ curtain ɚ survive ɚ accurate ɚ amateur ɚ candidate picture ɚ organization ɚ glamour ɚ

2 Reducing Vowels and Dropping Syllables Learn with Lloyd! ( p. 2 Patterns of Interest In unstressed syllables, the letter i is usually reduced. Practice reducing the vowels in these suffixes to or. -ion discussion -ian Parisian -ial spatial -ious delicious -ic specific -ical comical -ity calamity -ify clarify -itive positive -itude attitude -ization globalization Notice that globalization is, not. This is the standard pattern for -ization nouns; however, their partner -ize verbs are pronounced with the vowel. Verb: -ize IPA Noun: -ization IPA organize ɚ organization ɚ customize Λ customization realize realization Final syllable -ate in most long (3+ syllables) nouns and adjectives is reduced to or ; however, final syllable -ate in long verbs is not reduced -- it s pronounced with a full vowel:. Practice saying the following verbs and noun/adjective pairs (notice the stressed syllable in each pair does not change): Verbs: -ate = (NOT reduced) Nouns/Adjectives: -ate = (REDUCED*) alternate ( ) alternate ( ) appropriate ( ) appropriate ( ) approximate ( ) approximate ( ) associate ( ) associate ( ) deliberate ( ) deliberate ( ) duplicate ( ) duplicate ( ) elaborate ( ) elaborate ( ) estimate ( ) estimate ( ) graduate ( ) graduate ( ) moderate ( ) moderate ( ) separate ( ) separate ( ) *Exceptions: -ate in noun/adjectives magistrate and candidate can be pronounced ; in chemical terms such as "carbohydrate", final -ate is usually pronounced.

3 Reducing Vowels and Dropping Syllables Learn with Lloyd! ( p. 3 In American English, the suffix -ile is often reduced to or. Most British speakers (and some American speakers) pronounce this syllable with a full vowel:. Am.E.: -ile = fertile ( ) fragile ( ) hostile ( ) missile ( ) Br.E (and sometimes Am.E.): -ile = fertile ( ) fragile ( ) hostile ( ) missile ( ) However, there are many exceptions to this pattern in American English, including these words, which are pronounced with a full vowel: : meanwhile profile reconcile percentile quartile The letter i in prefixes anti-, semi-, and multi- is usually semi-reduced to (from original vowel ) in common words, but it can be pronounced with full vowel, especially in hyphenated, less common, or invented words. Hyphenated/rare/invented words: i is often pronounced (but sometimes semi-reduced to ) anti-family semi-awake multi-graduate student Common words (often single, unhyphenated words): i is usually semi-reduced to (but sometimes unreduced: ) antidepressant semiautomatic multinational antibiotic semiconductor multitalented Officially pronounced ɚ, our is often reduced to ɚ in phrases where it is unstressed -- and sometimes when it is stressed: our house = ɚ (full) or ɚ (reduced) our class= ɚ (full) or ɚ (reduced)

4 Reducing Vowels and Dropping Syllables Learn with Lloyd! ( p. 4 Exercise -- Mark any reduced vowels in these words by writing,, or ɚ below the vowels. Remember that reduction is sometimes optional, and and are often interchangeable, so more than one solution may apply to reducible syllables. addressing American associates (noun) communicate communication communicator concisely defines dictionary effectiveness exactly heritage jargon language organization profession similar specialists specialized technical terminology today useful vocabulary Dropped Syllables CV syllables (those consisting of a consonant sound C + a vowel sound V) are usually spoken distinctly in English. However, in some words in which a CV syllable follows a stressed syllable, and is then followed by one or more unstressed syllables, the vowel may be dropped or moved to a following syllable. When this happens, the word loses a syllable. Here are some examples (droppable vowel indicated by v): Syllable Pattern v = vowel c = consonant r = consonant r Example Words with Original Syllable Division Approximate Pronunciation with Dropped Syllable IPA Pronunciation with Dropped Syllable vc cv rvc cvc in te res ting in trist ing cvc cv cv cc com for ta ble comf ter bl Λ ɚ (ɚ moves to t syllable) cv cv rvc fa vo rite fa vrit cvc cv rvcc dif fe rent dif rint cvc cv rvcc res tau rant res trant v cv cvc cv rv e le men ta ry e le men tree cv cv rvc cv na tu ral ly na truh lee v cvc cv aw ful ly aw flee v cv cv cv cvc cv e co no mi cal ly e co no mi klee cv cv cv cc ve ge ta ble veg tuh bl cv cv cvc cho co late chah klit

5 Reducing Vowels and Dropping Syllables Learn with Lloyd! ( p. 5 Only a few words in English drop a syllable. Learn those exceptional words individually, and assume almost all other words do not drop a syllable. Here are some examples of words you might think drop a syllable because their syllable patterns are similar to those we just examined. However, they do not drop a syllable: Syllable Pattern (similar to some patterns for words that can drop a syllable) Example Words Pronunciation (IPA) Comments cv cv cvc be ne fit Pattern is identical to that of chocolate, which can drop a syllable, but remember: words like chocolate are exceptional vc ccv rv vcc ex per i ence ɚ cv cv c v cvc si tu a tion ccvc cv cv cv cv flex i bi li ty cv cv cv cvc po li ti cal Adverbs ending in -ally often drop v cv cv cv cvc e co no mi cal a syllable (politically is pronounced po li tic ly ); however, the original adjective forms do not drop a syllable: po li ti cal Start your own list of words whose syllable patterns you want to remember, especially those in which a syllable can be dropped, and those in which you should avoid dropping syllables. * * * * * Final note on vowel reduction: Most English words with two or more syllables have at least one reduced vowel (,, or ɚ). From time to time, devote conscious attention to vowel reduction as you speak, and soon you ll be reducing vowels like a native!