1.

ARTICULATION BASIS OF ENGLISH

2. The English vowel system

3. The English consonant system
4. The syllable formation and division

5. Word stress
В ICC ЕСТЬ БОЛЬШЕ ИНФЫ, КОМУ НАДО СТР 16 ІСС
6. Vowel Reduction

7. Assimilation
8. English intonation and its components.
Intonation can be defined as a unity of speech melody, timbre, utterance stress,
temporal characteristics (duration, pausation, tempo) and rhythm.
- Rhythm is a periodic recurrence of rhythmic units of different size and level.
- Speech melody may be defined as the variations in the pitch of the voice in the
connected speech.
- Timbre (or voice quality) can be defined as a tonal colouring of the speaker’s
voice which helps to convey some meaning.
- Utterance stress is the relative degree of prominence given to various words in an
utterance.
- Tempo can be defined as the speed of speaking.
- Pause is a break between phonation pieces.

9. Intonation and its functions.

Intonation is based on its two functions: the constitutive function, the distinctive
function.
The Constitutive Function. Intonation forms sentences. Each sentence consists of
one or more intonation groups.
The Distinctive Function. Intonation also serves to distinguish communicative
types of sentences, the actual meaning of a sentence, the speaker's emotions or
attitudes to the contents of the sentence, to the listener or to the topic of
conversation. One and the same word sequence may express different meaning
when pronounced with a different intonation pattern.

10. The structure of intonation group. Types of pre-heads.

The Segments of Intonation Group

The intonation contour of an extended syntagm consists of three functionally
important parts:

1. The pre-head.
2. The scale, or head.
3. The terminal tone.
4. The tail.

Types of Pre-Heads
• A low pre-head consists of unstressed syllables pronounced at a low pitch, or
gradually ascending in pitch towards the head or the nucleus:
e.g. But you’ll be home in time for dinner?
• A high pre-head consists of unstressed syllables pronounced on a high pitch. A
high pre-head gives to the utterance an extremely emotional character and may be
regarded as a feature of emphatic speech. It sounds exclamatory, emphatic, if used
with low fall. if the high pre-head used with the high fall, it sounds even more
emphatic, categoric, final or concerned. When using rise-fall - it sounds self-
satisfied and smug. With the fall-rise it may sound challenging.
e. g. How can you be so obstinate?
11. Sentence stress

Sentence stress is greater prominence given to one or more words in a sentence. In

emotionally neutral speech sentence stress is more or less equally distributed
among all the notional words of the sentence.
The normally accented words are:
1. Nouns.
2. Pronouns: demonstrative, indefinite, interrogative, emphatic, absolute.
3. Notional verbs.
4. Adjectives.
5. Numerals.
The unstressed elements as a rule are:
1. Pronouns: personal, possessive, reflexive, relative. 2. Auxiliary verbs.
3. Prepositions.
4. Conjunctions.
5. Articles.
6. Particles.

Sentence stress, to a greater degree, is determined by three factors:

1. By the relative semantic importance of words in the sentence which results
in logical stress.
2. By the rhythmical structure of the sentence.
3. By the style of speech.

Variations in Sentence Stress Auxiliary and modal verbs are stressed:

1. In short answers and in negative contracted forms, e. g. Yes, I do. You

needn’t worry.

2. When “do” is used for emphasis, e. g. I do.

3. In slow colloquial style when they begin general or alternative questions, e. g.

Are you a student? Can you help me?
Note. In rapid colloquial style there is a tendency not to stress them, e. g. Are you a
student?
They are mostly unstressed when followed by the demonstrative pronouns “this”
and “that”, e. g. Is this a book? Can this be true?

II. Prepositions and Conjunctions.

1. In sentence-initial position they may be stressed when followed by an
unstressed syllable (slow colloquial style).
Slow coll. Rapid coll.

As to my future. As to my future.

If she wants to help her... If she wants to help her...
Note. 1. In case a preposition or a conjunction is followed by a proper noun it takes
no stress, e. g. If Nina wants to help her...

2. Sentence-initial “but” and “and” are unstressed, e. g. But he would never do
it. And in a moment...
Prepositions and conjunctions in sentence-final position, though unstressed have
vowels of full formation, e. g. What are you looking at//? What are
you listening to //?

III. Interrogative pronouns “what”, “how”, “when”, “why” take no stress in the
following type of utterances (they often become high-prehead syllables), e.
g. How are you? Where is it?
IV. “What” and “how” in exclamatory sentences followed by some emotionally
coloured words take no accent, e.g. How horrible! What fine weather we
are having today!

12. Logical Stress

Logical Stress serves to mark the semantic center of the utterance (a word or a
word-group that carries new information important for the speaker).
Logical Stress is observed when the syntagmatic stress is shifted from its normal
place (the last notional word of the intonation-group) to any of the preceding words
thus creating a new semantic center. Logical Stress is always combined with one of
the moving tones.
Stress on words that follow logical stress either disappears (rapid colloquial) or
becomes partial (slow colloquial).
e.g. He left for Kyiv yesterday. He left for Kyiv yesterday. He
left for Kyiv yesterday.
He left for Kyiv yesterday.

13. Rules of syntagmatic division

The syntagm is the smallest unit to which linguistic meaning can be attached. The
syntagm is an indispensable feature of intonation. A syntagm consists of one or
more syllables, each of them having a certain pitch and bearing a larger or smaller
degree of prominence. the term «syntagm» has a lot of synonyms: a sense group, a
breath group; a tone group, an intonation group, a tone unit.
There are three main criteria in dividing sentences into sytagms: semantic,
grammatical and phonetic. Syntagms are responsible for the syntactic structure of
sentences, as well as for the information they carry.
Rules of syntagmatic division:
1. The subject group and the predicate group consisting of more
than one word form separate syntagms (extended subject group):
What they will do next | is unclear.
How the process works | will be explained in the next lecture. (EPU, p 114 d45)
The last ten years of her life | were spent in France.
Some of the rarest birds in the world | can be found on the island. (EPU, p 116
d49)
Note: One-word subject can form a separate syntagm if it is emphasized (one of
the complex tones must be used on it)
- Is Anna John’s sister?
- No. Mary | is John’s sister.
2. Homogeneous members of the sentence:
John came | but didn’t stay long.
The teacher spoke of our country | and its peace programme.
3. Adverbial and parenthetical phrases at the beginning of the
sentence. In the final sentence they take the secondary stress (tail).
Unusual for this time of year | there was deep snow.
The train line will be closed for two weeks. In the meantime | a bus service will be
operating.
All over the world | people are concerned about the climate change. (EPU p 116 d
49)
BUT: He’s never late, to tell you the truth.
4. An apposition makes up a separate syntagm:
The main aim of this lecture | as I said earlier | is to discuss the causes of the First
World War.
The new camera in our product range | to be available in September | will be aimed
at a professional photographer. (EPU p 118 d 54)
5. Alternative and disjunctive questions:
Do you live here | or out of town?
You live here, | don’t you?
6. In slow colloquial participial, gerundial, infinitive and
prepositional phrases can form syntagms:
She is sitting by the window | reading a book.
We too have a house | in a London suburb.
7. Complex and compound sentences make up two syntagms:
If you are late | 'ask the per'mission to 'come in.
We have cut costs substantially | and will continue to invest.
It’s only one view | but it’s supported by recent research. (EPU)
8. Before and after a non-defining relative clause:
The head of the police force | who is to retire next year | has criticized the new law.
I would like to thank the conference organizers | who have worked hard.
BUT notice that defining relative clauses are less likely to be separated for the
noun they refer to:
The number of people who are emigrating | is increasing steadily.
We objected to the recommendation that was put forward. (EPU p 114 d45)

14. Characteristic features of English rhythm

Rhythm is a periodic recurrence of rhythmic units of different size and level.
Rhythm is generally measured in regular flow of speech in which stressed and
unstressed syllables occur at definite intervals.
There are two kinds of speech rhythm: syllable-timed rhythm and stress-timed
rhythm. Every language in the world is spoken with one kind of rhythm or with the
other. Each language has developed its own characteristic speech rhythm.
Rhythm in English, Russian and some other stress-timed languages is based
primarily on the alteration of strongly and weakly stressed syllables. Within each
intonation group the stressed syllables occur at fairly equal intervals of time.
This means that if there are any unstressed syllables between stressed ones, they
have to be fitted in without delaying the regular beat.
In English as well as in Russian words of more than one syllable have one or more
stressed syllables, Every English word has a definite place for the stress and it
cannot be changed The correct stressing of polysyllabic words helps to secure the
recurrence of stress which with the other factors, results in correct speech rhythm.
To acquire a good English speech rhythm one should arrange sentences into
intonation groups and then into rhythmic groups; link every word beginning with a
vowel to the preceding word; weaken unstressed words and syllables, obscuring
the vowels in them; making the stressed syllables occur regularly within an
intonation group.
(Sokolova p. 223)

15. Speech tempo and its functions

By speech tempo we mean the relative speed (of slowness) of utterance which is
measured by the rate of syllable succession and the number and duration of pauses
in a sentence.
The average rate of delivery may contain from about two to four syllables per
second for slow speech (lento), from about three to six syllables for normal speech,
and from about five to nine syllables for fast speech (allegro).
Every speaker has a norm which characterises his usual individual style of
utterance. Some people speak more quickly, some more slowly; some people use
more variations of tempo than others. Tempo is a feature, which like loudness can
be varied from time to time by the individual speaker.
The rate ofspeaking varies constantly, When two strongly stressed syllables occur
close together, it is slower, when they are separated by unstressed syllables the
speed is faster. The speed of utterance becomes slower or faster according to the
number of unstressed syllables between the stressed ones.
Differences of rate are used to help the listener to differen tiate the more important
(slow rate) and the less important (fast rate) parts of the utterances, eg:
I want you to understand that it is very important.
We slow the last part of the sentence down and lengthen out the syllables to get a
stronger impression than if we say it at normal speed. An increase in the speed of
the utterance may show it is less important, eg:
His own plan, he now saw, would fall through.
Rate also performs emotional and attitudinal functions. It varies according to the
emotional state of the speaker and the attitude conveyed. Fast rate, for instance,
may be associated with anger, scolding, etc.
Slower than normal rate may be associated with anger, doubt, blame, accusation,
etc.
Variations of rate of speech and pausation are closely connected with different
phonetic styles, shades of meaning and the structure of the intonation group.
(Sokolova p. 219)

16. Types of melodic scales and their classification in English

17. Regular descending stepping scale, its functions and communicative value.
18. Broken descending stepping scale, its functions and communicative value.
19. Sliding scales, its functions and communicative value,
20. Scandent scale, its functions and communicative value.

21. Ascending scale, its functions and communicative value.

22. Level scale and its communicative meaning.
23. Basic nuclear tones in English.

24.
The Low Fall
The nucleus of the Low Fall starts at or a bit below the mid pitch level of the
normal range and falls to the normal range and falls to the bottom, the tail syllables
take the low pitch. As any falling tone it is final and chategorical in
character.
Besides, the Low Fall conveys some attitudes of its own, it sounds formal, serious,
firm or calm, cool, reserved, phlegmatic, depending on the prehead and scale that
precede it.
The Low Fall can be combined with any type of scale and the scale adds much to
the attitudinal meaning of the pattern.
The Low Fall preceded by the Descending Stepping Scale is used in categorical
statements, basic special questions, basic commands and exclamations.
Descending Stepping Scale + Low Fall
Categorical statements (businesslike, formal) e.g. My friend is a student of
English.

*Basic Special Questions (businesslike, serious)

e.g. When do you get to the office?

*Basic commands (businesslike, firm)

e.g. Try to do it now.
Go and fetch some chalk.

*Basic exclamations (businesslike, formal)

e.g. Many happy returns of the day.
Thank you very much!

*In insistent general questions this pattern sounds serious and urgent.
e.g. Do you really leave tomorrow morning?

*Low Level Scale + Low Fall (phlegmatic, detached). e.g. He leaves tomorrow
morning.

25. HIGH FALL

Patterns
1. (Low Pre-Nucleus+) High Fall (+Tail)
2. (Low Pre-Head +) Falling Head+ High Fall (+Tail)
3. (Low Pre-Head +) High (Medium) Level Head+ High Fall (+ Tail)
4. (Low Pre-Head+) Rising Head+ High Fall (+ Tail)

Patterns with No Head, Falling Head, High

(Medium) Level Head associated with High Fall) sound final,
categoric, light, airy, brisk and interested; convey personal con-
cern or involvement. In special questions they sometimes sound
very insistent and business-like:

Statements:
It's very ex'pensive. (No Head.)
!Can't i'magine how it's 'done. (F. H)
I can * hardly be'lieve it. (H. L. H.)

Special questions:
'What's the 'price of a 'single 'third
class 'ticket? (F. H.)
→ What did you 'say? (H. L. H.)

Imperatives
(commands):
Come as 'soon as you 'can. (F. H.)
* Throw it a'way. (H. L. H.)

Exclamations:
'How 'very 'noble of you! (F. H.)
* Good for 'you! (H. L. H.)
->
Note: If general questions are asked with the High Fall they
sound very insistent and business-like, eg:
IWould he 'listen to 'me? (F. H.)
→ Can he 'prove it? (H. L. H.)

Intonation groups or sentences pronounced

with the Rising Head + High Fall sound protesting, querulous,
irritated, disapproving. In special questions, imperatives and exclamations they can
sound with notes of unpleasant, critical or
affronted surprise.
eg Statements:
We've been 'waiting for 'ages.
Special questions: ,Why did you de'cide to do 'that?

26. The Fall-Rise

The Fall-Rise is a complex tone. It consists of two elements: the falling part and
the rising part.
The Fall-Rise can be high (emphatic) and low (neutral), but the fall is always
higher than the rise.
It is realised in speech in two allotones the use of which depends on the structure
of the word that takes it.
We speak about the Fall-Rise:
• Compressed into one syllable (undivided)
Yes.
• Spread over a number of syllables or words (divided).
Really...
As a matter of fact.

The Fall-Rise is often called an implicatory tone. It may convey different attitudes,
such as warning, hesitation, concern, correction, contradiction, contrast, apology.
The Fall-Rise is mostly used in:
1. Implicatory statements.
2. Requests.
3. Apology.
4. Non-terminal intonation groups, often tempo rises.
It is usually preceded by the Sliding Scale, though the Stepping Scale is also
possible.

27. The Low Rise

The Low Rise consisting of the nucleus only starts at or near the bottom of the
normal voice range and rises to the mid pitch level.

If there is a tail to it the nuclear syllable takes the low level pitch and the tail-
syllables carry the rise.
e.g. Certainly, he was busy yesterday.
The Low Rise sounds non-final, non-categorical, encouraging further
conversation.
Preceded by the Low Level Scale the Low Rise gives the utterance a perfunctory
ring. That is why it is often called a perfunctory tone.
It can be used in all communicative types of utterances.
1. Non-categorical statements
• Descending Stepping Scale + Low Rise – encouraging further
conversation
e.g. He knows it much better.

• Low Level scale + Low Rise – perfunctory

e.g. He knows it much better. John’s Mary’s brother.

2. Special Questions
• Descending Stepping Scale + Low Rise –interested
e.g. What do you usually do in the evening?
• Low Level scale + Low Rise – perfunctory
e.g. What do you usually do in the evening? What if we meet
tonight?

3. Basic General Questions

• Descending Stepping Scale + Low Rise – really interested
e.g. Is anyone away from the lesson? Haven’t you been at the library?

Is he studying science?
• Low Level scale + Low Rise – perfunctory e.g. Is anyone away from the
lesson?
Haven’t you been at the library?
4. Imperatives
• Descending Stepping Scale + Low Rise –encouraging e.g. I’m so upset –
cheer up,  don’t worry.
Come along,  hurry up.

5. Exclamations
• Descending Stepping Scale + Low Rise –airy, encouraging e.g. Sorry I must be
off.– So long, my dear. See you later.

28. RISE-FALL
Patterns
1. (Low Pre-Nucleus +) Rise Fall (+ Tail)

2. (Low Pre-Head +) Falling Head + Rise Fall (+ Tail)

3. (Low or High Pre-Head +) High (Medium) Level

Patterns with No Head, Falling Head, High or

Medium Level Head) sound impressed, awed, self-satisfied,
sometimes challenging:
It's ^ marvellous. (No Head)
I've 'never seen 'anything ^ like it.
(F. H.)

^Who did it? (No Head)

What 'difference does ^ that make?
(F. H.)
* How on earth should ^I know?
(Н. L. H.)
Look ^here. (No Head)
Try a 'different ^method. (F. H.)
Well ask him a^ gain then.
(Н. L. H.)
Of ^course I can! (No Head)
*How 'very pe^culiar! (F. H.)
*How very ^ nice of you! (H. L. H.)

The Stepping Head + Rise-Fall sounds censo-

rious, antagonistic, disclaiming responsibility:
eg Statements:
Не сan
'think what he 'jolly well
^ likes.
Special questions: 'Why don't you 'do 'something
a^ bout it?
Don't 'make so 'much ^ fuss
about it.
If 'only you'd 'taken some 'expert
ad ^ vice!
- impressed, awed, self-satisfied,
challenging
censorious, antagonistic, disclaiming
responsibility

29. Communicative types of utterances and their intonational organization

According to their role in the process of communication sentences are divided into
four types:

1. Statements (categoric, non-categoric, implicatory).

2. Questions (special, general, alternative, disjunctive).
3. Imperatives (commands, requests).
4. Exclamations.

Statements are sentences, which give information. A statement may be positive or

negative:

Negative sentences are formed by means of a particle not and a helping verb.

Statements are characterized by direct word order, the subject is followed by the
predicate. Statements usually have a falling tone.

Questions are sentences by which someone asks his hearer to give information.

a. General questions are also called “yes-no” questions. In general questions the
speaker wants to know whether some phenomenon exists or does not exist. A
general question opens with a helping or modal verb followed by the subject. It is
characterized by the rising tone
General questions opening with will/would may be considered as commands and
requests.

When negative questions become exclamations they express surprise and

disappointment.

b. An alternative question expects an answer to one or two or more alternatives

mentioned in the question.

An alternative question opens with a helping verb followed by the subject and the
choice is represented by the conjunction or. In this kind of sentences the intonation
rises on the first and falls on the last alternative. Sometimes an alternative
question indicates that the speaker is annoyed and irritated.

c. Tag questions are added to the end of the statement. They ask for confirmation
of the truth of the statement.

The tag has a rising tone. The falling tone indicates that the speaker knows the
answer and only asks for confirmation.

d. Special questions open with wh-words. They are followed by the helping verb
and the subject . Using this type of questions we ask for more detailed information.
The whwords are what, which, who, who, whose, where, when, why, how. Wh-
questions have a falling intonation.

Commands and requests is used to force someone to do smth or forbid someone

to do something . Commands are formed by the verb without particle to and
without the subject. Negative commands are formed with helping verb do even in
the sentences with the verb to be.
Commands may be softened by the word please, the rising tone, a tag question
with will you or won’t you, and a general question beginning with will/would and
can/could.

Commands with the subject you express anger, threat or irritation.

Exclamatory sentences (expression of surprise, anger or excitement) virtually

always have a falling tone.

30. Syntagmatic division of utterances

When we speak we make pauses necessary for understanding. They divide the
speech flow into syntagms. The syntagmatic division depends on the tempo and
the style of speech. The slow colloquial style is characterized by a greater number
of intonation groups, then the rapid colloquial.
To morrow | we 'meet at eight. (slow coll.)
To'morrow we 'meet at eight. (rapid coll.)
1. The subject group and the predicate group consisting of more than one
word form separate syntagms (extended subject group):
'John’s sister | 'entered the room.
BUT: 'John’s 'sister entered. (one-word predicate)
Note: One-word subject can form a separate syntagm if it is emphasized (one of
the complex tones must be used on it)
Mary | is 'John’s sister.
2. Homogeneous members of the sentence:
'John came | but 'didn’t stay long. (predicates)
The 'teacher 'spoke of our country | and its 'peace programme. (objects)
3. Adverbial and parenthetical phrases at the beginning of the sentence. In the
final sentence they take the secondary stress (tail).
A 'few minutes later | we 'hear a 'ring at the door.
To 'tell you the truth, | he’s 'never late.
BUT: He’s 'never late, to tell you the truth.
4. An apposition makes up a separate syntagm:
Kyiv, | the 'capital of Ukraine, | is a 'very 'beautiful city.
'Berry Smith, | his 'wife’s niece, | 'lives with us.
5. Alternative and disjunctive questions:
'Do you 'live here | or 'out of town?
You 'live here, | don’t you?
6. In slow colloquial participial, gerundial, infinitive and prepositional
phrases can form syntagms:
She is 'sitting by the window | 'reading a book.
We too have a house | in a 'London suburb.
7. Complex and compound sentences make up two syntagms:
If you are late | 'ask the per'mission to 'come in.
In English there is a number of words that normally do not take sentence stress.
They are form words (articles, prepositions, particles, conjunctions, functional
verbs) and pronouns (personal, possessive, relative and reflexive). In sound
sequence when unstressed they get reduced but have strong or full forms when
they are stressed.

31. Prosodic coordination and subordination

The degree of prominence of each of the intonation-groups depends on the
semantic relations between the adjacent parts of an utterance. These may be
classified into relations of:
a) equality,
b) inequality
c) mutual dependence.
The first type implies a relatively equal degree of semantic importance of the
adjacent parts which is often associated with their relative semantic independence.
It means that each of them can exist separately.Such tone-sequences can be
called coordinative.
eg. It is 'very vgenerous of you, | but you 'must be vcareful.
The second type means a kind of relationship where one of the two parts
is semantically dependent, in other words: it requires either an obligatory
continuation or a preceding part containing more important information. These
are subordinative tone-sequences.
eg. I shall 'have to 'take `these, | if there is no ˏchoice.
Co-ordinative and subordinative tone-sequences often correlate with grammatical
coordination and subordination. At the same time semantic relations between the
parts of an utterance in oral speech are not strictly bound to the grammatical
structure. Thus, co-ordinative relations may often be observed in complex
sentences, whereas parts of a compound sentence may sound as unequal in their
semantic weight.
The third type - relations of mutual dependence- is intermediate between the first
and the second. Both groups are equally important as far as the information
message is concerned, yet neither of them can be isolated. Such utterances are
frequently characterized by contrastive comparison and parallelism of the lexical
and syntactical structure of the adjacent groups, which are symmetrically balanced
as a result,
eg. Where there is a ´wish | there is a `way.
Since the semantic relations between the parts of a spoken utterance are always
reflected in its intonation (prosody), it is possible to identify the same types
of prosodic relations between the adjacent intonation-groups.

32. Intonation framing of complex and compound sentences

A compound sentence consists of two or more coordinated clauses. The choice of
the terminal tone depends on the degree of their semantic unity. If the non-final
sense-group is semantically independent and doesn’t imply continuation, the
falling tone is used.
e.g. It was getting dark, and I hurried home.
If the idea is not completed, the low rising tone or falling-rising tone can be used.
e.g. He nodded in agreement, but his eyes glittered with silent contempt.
A complex sentence consists of a principle and one or several subordinate clauses
which may precede, follow or break the main clause.
a) if the principle clause and the following subordinate clause present a single
semantic whole, they do not form separate sense-groups.
e.g. You can stay here as long as you want.
b) If the principle clause implies continuation, it is pronounced with the low-rising
tone.
e.g. It doesn’t really matter to me what all of them think.
c) If both clauses are semantically independent, they are pronounced with the Fall.
e.g. You can stay here if you really want to.
Subordinate clauses, preceding the principle one, form separate sense-groups. They
are pronounced with the Low Rise to stress the logical connection with the
following sense-group.
e.g. If anything can go wrong, it will go wrong.
The falling tone is also possible, depending on the semantic value of the clause.

33. The information conveyed by a sentence is expressed not only by proper words
and grammar structures, but also by intonation. The term intonation implies
variations of pitch, force of utterance and tempo.

The devices that are used in English to produce additional expressive effects
comprise, first of all, special means of emphasis, namely emphatic variants
of kinetic and static tones. Emphatic tones are used in speech for various
communicative purposes, increasing the semantic value of separate items of
an utterance or its overall semantic potential. Emphasis applied to a tone not
only increases the force of articulation and the effect of loudness, but also
changes the pitch characteristics moving the upper point of a kinetic tone
upward (extra-high pitch level) and the lower point of it downward (extra-
low pitch level), thus widening the interval of the pitch change.

Normal Emphatic The semantic role of an emphatic static tone is closely

con voice range voice range nected with the meaning of the nuclear tone.

Secondly, emotionally coloured intonation patterns, such as the ascending scandent

and sliding heads or the rising-falling tone as well as various modifications of
pitch, stress and duration features.

Special emphasis applied to a tone not only increases the force of articulation and

the effect of loudness, but also changes the pitch characteristics, displacing the
“normal” pitch height of the tone (extra-high or extra-low pitch levels). As a result
of these changes the whole voice range of an utterance is widened as compared
with the “normal” voice range of the “neutral” speech. An emphatic tone is
graphically represented by doubling the tone mark.

Emphatic stress is a stress placed on a particular word in a phrase or clause for

clarity or emphasis. Emphatic stress may be used in a sentence to compare,
connect, or clarify things. Usually emphatic stress singles out the word that the
speaker considers the most important, and in this case even a function word may
become stressed. Emphatic stress is the placement of articulatory prominence or
emphasis on a word in a sentence.
34.Phonetic expressive means of intensifying semantically important words in an
utterance.
The special media of language which secure the desirable effect of the utterance
are called stylistic devices or expressive means. They serve the purpose of logical
& emotional intensification of the utterance. They are distinguished to
phonographical, morphological, lexical, syntactical & lexico-syntactical levels. To
phonetic EMs & SDs the follow ones refer. Onomatopoeia – sound imitation, the
use of words whose sounds imitate those of the signified object or action, such as
“mew”, "murmur", "grumble", “bang”. Alliteration - the repetition of consonants,
usually at the beginning of words. Assonance - the repetition of similar vowels,
usually in stressed syllables. The above-mentioned EMs help to achieve the two
opposite effects: euphony (a sense of ease, pleasant, comfort in pronouncing &
hearing), or cacophony (a sense of stain, unpleasant, discomfort in pronouncing or
hearing).(The fair breeze blew. He swallowed the hint with a gulp, a gasp & a
grin.) Graphon — the intentional violation of the graphical shape of a word used to
reflect its authentic pronunciation or to convey the intensity of the stress,
emphasizing the stressed words. Graphon can give some information about the
speaker's origin, social & educational background, physical or emotional condition,
physical defects, young age i.e. & conveys the atmosphere of authentic life
communication. Types of Graphon: 1) italics; 2) multiplication (Alllll are free); 3)
capitalization (HELP): 4) hyphenation (h-e-l-p); 5) grammar (I wanna home) .6)
steps (manner of line’s arrangement ) (nairplane- airplane , Best jeans for this
Jeaneration To lexical EMs & SDs the follow ones refer. Metaphor - transference
of names based on the associated likeness between two objects. If a metaphor
involves likeness between inanimate & animate objects, we deal with
personification. Metonymy - transference of names based on the nearness of
objects or phenomena. If the transference is based on the relations between a part
& a whole we deal with synecdoche. (The skirt will be a mass of wrinkles in the
back. He made his way through the perfume & conversation.) Epithet expresses
characteristics of an object, both existing & imaginary. Through long & repeated
use epithets become fixed: true love, merry Christmas.There is affective (serve to
convey the emotional evaluation of the object by the speaker: nasty, magnificent)
& figurative or transferred (is formed of metaphors, metonymies, similes expressed
by adjectives: the smiling sun, the sleepless pillow). (Her painful shoes slipped
off). Hyperbole - a SD in which emphasis is achieved through deliberate
exaggeration. When it is directed the opposite way, when some feature is
intentionally underrated, we deal with understatement (She wore a pink hat, the
size of a button.) Oxymoron - a combination of two semantically contradictory
notions, that help to emphasize contradictory qualities simultaneously existing in
the described phenomenon as a unity (It was an open secret. The garage was full of
nothing.)

Declamatory Style
This intonational style is also called by some as "artistic, acquired or stage". It is a
highly emotional and expressive intonational style, that is why it needs special
training. Attitudinal, volitional and intellectual functions of intonation are of
primary importance here and serve to appeal to the mind, will and feelings of the
listener.
Terminal tones: common use of categoric low and high falls in final and even
initial intonation groups and on semantic centres; occasional use of rising and level
tones to break the monotony and in initial groups to connect segments of the
phrase, to lead the listener on the later developments.
Rate: deliberately slow, necessitated by the purpose of the reading: trie complete
understanding of the author's message by the listener; changes in the speed of
utterances are determined by the syntactic structures, importance of information
and the degree of emphasis.
Pauses: long, especially between the passages. Disjunctive pauses tend to be longer
than connecting ones. Internal boundary placement is always syntactically or
semantically predictable. A declamatory reading is distinctly marked by a great
number of prolonged emphatic pauses — the device used by.
Rhythm:properly organized, the isochronic recurrence of stressed and unstressed
syllables

Academic intonation style is frequently used, for example, by university lecturers,

schoolteachers, or by scientists in formal and informal discussions.

In academic style intellectual and volitional (or desiderative) intonation patterns

are concurrently employed. Basic intonation patterns are as follows: Law Pre-Head
+ Stepping Head (High Level Head) + Law Fall (High Fall, Law Rise). The
speaker's purpose here is not only to prove a hypothesis, to create new concepts, to
disclose relations between different phenomena, etc., but also to direct the listener's
attention to the message carried in the semantic component.

Speaker’s attitude. Although this style tends to be objective and precise, it is not
entirely unemotional and devoid of any individuality. Attention is focused on a
lecture on a scientific subject and reading aloud a piece of scientific prose.
The speed of utterance. In speech, variations and contrasts in the speed of utterance
are indicative of the degree of importance attached to different parts of speech
flow. Less important parts are pronounced at greater speed than usual, while more
important parts are characterised by slower speed.

Pauses. Pausation is not always semantically predictable. Some pauses, made by

the speaker, may be explicable in terms of hesitation phenomena denoting
forgetfulness or uncertainty (eg. Word-searching). The most widely used hesitation
phenomena here are repetition of words and filled pauses. Intentional use of these
effects enables the lecture to obtain a balance between formality and informality.
Reading scientific prose is characteristic by contrastive rhythmic patterns
(arhythmic utterance). Pauses are predominantly short, their placement and are
always semantically or syntactically predictable. Hesitation pauses are to be
avoided.

Volume. The volume may be slightly increased depending on the room and the
amount of listeners.

The publicistic style is used in public speeches and printed public works which are
addressed to a broad audience and devoted to important social or political events,
public problems of cultural or moral character.

The general aim of the publicist style is to exert influence on public opinion, to
convince the listener that the interpretation given by the speaker is the only correct
one and to cause him to accept the point of view expressed in the speech not
merely by logical argumentation, but by emotional appeal as well.

Due to its characteristic combination of logical argumentation and emotional

appeal, the publicistic style has features in common with the style of scientific
prose or official documents, on the one hand, and that of emotive prose, on the
other. Its coherent and logical syntactic structure, with an expanded system of
connectives and its careful paragraphing, makes it similar to scientific prose. Its
emotional appeal is generally achieved by the use of words with emotive meaning,
the use of imagery and other stylistic devices as in emotive prose. The publicistic
style also has some elements of emotionally coloured colloquial style as the author
has no need to make their speech impersonal (as in scientific or official style), but,
on the contrary, he or she tries to approximate the text to lively communication, as
though they were talking to people in direct contact.
 Informational style

Informational style is sometimes qualified as "formal"or "neutral", since in an

ideal setting it is least influenced by extralinguistic factors. It is manifested in the
written and spoken varieties of an informational narrative read or spoken aloud.
The majority of these texts are of a purely descriptive character and may be
presented in different forms: monologues, dialogues, polylogues.

As is widely known, spoken speech is less imperial, the spoken variety of such
texts expresses more personal concern and involvement.

Press reporting and broadcasting, is less emphatic if not impartial as the presenter
task is to deliver the message to the audience and not to convey his or her attitude
to it.

Informational style includes other spheres of communication: business and legal

intercourse, the reading of administrative documents and so on.

Prosodic means of a monologue

Pauses appear mostly at syntactical junctures normally of medium length.

However, by the end of the passage they tend to be longer and more frequent. The
length of a pause depends on the group it delimits – a phonopassage, a phrase, an
intonation group. Sometimes pauses may of emphatic character.

The volume is mostly medium throughout the passage, varying however at the
phonopassage boundaries.

The pitch is characterized by the decrease of levels and ranges within the passage.
Final categorical falls dominate in the passage. While in non-final segments mid-
level and low rising tones are quite common. Descending and level head are most
frequent.

The rhythm of the speech is systematic, properly organized and isochronic.

The tempo or speed of a passage of informational style is moderate or slow with

little variations.

The speaker’s attitude to the delivered information is always impartial,

dispassionate, reserved or resonant.

Prosodic means of a dialogue

Pauses punctuate phonopassages, phrases, intonation groups. They not only

delimit syntactical junctures but also mark hesitation and breath-taking breaks of
speech (filled and non-filled). Hence, there is by far a greater number of intonation
groups within a passage of an informational dialogue destroying the syntactical
structure of an utterance.

The volume of a spoken text of informational character is medium, contrastive at

the boundaries, with decreases towards the end of the passage and increases on
semantic centres.

The pitch patterns decrease in levels and ranges within a passage. Informational
dialogues or interviews are characterized by extensive us of final categorical falls
on semantic centres, non-final falls, mid-level and rising tones in non-final
intonation groups. descending falling heads are broken by the "accidental rise".
The emphasis is achieved by the use of high falls which sound quite abrupt for a
male voice.

The rhythm of interviewee’s speech is irregular, non-systematic, subjective

isochrony. The rhythmicality within the passage is mainly achieved by the
alternation of all prosodic features.

The tempo of spoken speech of informational character is rather variable, tending

to become faster on interpolations (the speaker introduces additional information,
something extraneous) while reversing to a more moderate speed on emphatic
centres.

The speaker’s attitude towards the information delivered is dispassionate,

businesslike, reserved, occasionally interested.

36
Informational - in press reporting, educational descriptive texts. May be
represented in monologues, dialogues, polylogues. Phonostylistic characteristics:
Loudness normal or increased; pauses are rather long; rhythm is stable, properly
organized; falling tones on the semantic centres, falling-rsisng or rising in the
initial intonation groups
Informational style is sometimes qualified as "formal"or "neutral", since in an ideal
setting it is least influenced by extralinguistic factors. It is manifested in the written
and spoken varieties of an informational narrative read or spoken aloud. The
majority of these texts are of a purely descriptive character and may be presented
in different forms: monologues, dialogues, polylogues.
As is widely known, spoken speech is less imperial, the spoken variety of such
texts expresses more personal concern and involvement.
Press reporting and broadcasting, is less emphatic if not impartial as the presenter
task is to deliver the message to the audience and not to convey his or her attitude
to it.
Informational style includes other spheres of communication: business and legal
intercourse, the reading of administrative documents and so on. It is considered to
be stylistically neutral.

37
2) Academic (scientific)- style of lectures (conferences, seminars). It is determined
by the purpose of communication as the speaker*s aim is to attract the listener*s
attention, to establish close contacts with the audience and to direct the public
attention to the message carried in the contents of the text. Phonostylistic
characteristics: Loudness increased; pauses are rather long; rhythm is properly
organized; high proportion of compound terminal tones (high fall + low rise, fall –
rise, rise-fall-rise), a great number of high categoric falls
In scientific (academic) style intellectual and volitional (or desiderative) intonation
patterns are concurrently employed. The speaker's purpose here is not only to
prove a hypothesis, to create new concepts, to disclose relations between different
phenomena, etc., but also to direct the listener's attention to the message carried in
the semantic component. Although this style tends to be objective and precise, it is
not entirely unemotional and devoid of any individuality. Scientific intonational
style is frequently used, for example, by university lecturers, schoolteachers, or by
scientists in formal and informal discussions.

38
Declamatory Style

This intonational style is also called by some as "artistic, acquired or stage". As we

see from these labels, the scholars suggest that this is a highly emotional and
expressive intonational style, that is why it needs special training. Attitudinal,
volitional and intellectual functions of intonation are of primary importance here
and serve to appeal to the mind, will and feelings of the listener.
The prosodic organization of such texts will vary greatly, depending on the type of
the theatrical performance — whether it is a tragedy, drama or comedy — and, of
course, on the social factors — the social and cultural background of the play
characters, their relationship, extralinguistic context, and so on.
Acting is a two-way conversation, players respond very directly and promptly to
the "feedback" they get from the audience; the "feedback" in their case being
almost certainly communal, collective, non-verbal language. Methods of
achieving, stimulating and maintaining this "conversation" with their audience
must inevitably be the mainspring of the actors' "training".
Terminal tones: common use of categoric low and high falls in final and even
initial intonation groups and on semantic centres; occasional use of rising and level
tones to break the monotony and in initial groups to connect segments of the
phrase, to lead the listener on the later developments.
Rate: deliberately slow, necessitated by the purpose of the reading: trie complete
understanding of the author's message by the listener; changes in the speed of
utterances are determined by the syntactic structures, importance of information
and the degree of emphasis.
Pauses: long, especially between the passages. Disjunctive pauses tend to be longer
than connecting ones. Internal boundary placement is always syntactically or
semantically predictable. A declamatory reading is distinctly marked by a great
number of prolonged emphatic pauses — the device used by.
Rhythm:properly organized, the isochronic recurrence of stressed and unstressed
syllables

39
Publicistic (oratorial)-this term serves for many kinds of oratorial activities
(especially this style uses in political speeches). Phonostylistic characteristics:
Loudness enormously increased; pauses are definitely long between the passages;
rhythm is properly organized; tones mostly emphatic, especially emotionally
underlined semantic centres, in non-final intonational groups falling-rising tones
are frequent

The publicistic style is used in public speeches and printed public works which are
addressed to a broad audience and devoted to important social or political events,
public problems of cultural or moral character.

The general aim of the publicist style is to exert influence on public opinion, to
convince the listener that the interpretation given by the speaker is the only correct
one and to cause him to accept the point of view expressed in the speech not
merely by logical argumentation, but by emotional appeal as well.

Due to its characteristic combination of logical argumentation and emotional

appeal, the publicistic style has features in common with the style of scientific
prose or official documents, on the one hand, and that of emotive prose, on the
other. Its coherent and logical syntactic structure, with an expanded system of
connectives and its careful paragraphing, makes it similar to scientific prose. Its
emotional appeal is generally achieved by the use of words with emotive meaning,
the use of imagery and other stylistic devices as in emotive prose. The publicistic
style also has some elements of emotionally coloured colloquial style as the author
has no need to make their speech impersonal (as in scientific or official style), but,
on the contrary, he or she tries to approximate the text to lively communication, as
though they were talking to people in direct contact. (Sokolova)

40
Conversational (familiar) - this kind of English is a means for everyday
communication, heard in natural conversational interaction between speakers. This
style occurs mainly in informal external and internal relationships in speech of
relatives, friends, well - acquainted people and so on. So this is spontaneous,
colloquial, informal, everyday speech.

The usage of familiar (conversational) style is typical of the English of everyday

life. It occurs both within a family group and in informal external relationships,
namely, in the speech of intimate friends or well-acquainted people. In such cases
it is the emotional reaction to a situational or verbal stimulus that matters, thereby
the attitude- and emotion-signalling function of intonation here comes to the fore.
Nevertheless intellectual and volitional intonation patterns also have a part to play.
In informal fluent discourse there are examples of utterance where the effect of
intellectual intonation is neutralized.

41. Interrelation of intonation in verbal and non-verbal contexts.

Intonation is very important in communication as it gives information beyond just
the basic meaning of the words. It can express the speaker's attitude or feeling
about something, as well as giving grammatical information (such as
distinguishing between a statement and a question).Intonation is used to indicate
the attitudes and emotions of the speaker, signalling the difference between
statements and questions, and between different types of questions, focusing
attention on important elements of the spoken message and also helping to regulate
conversational interaction. Intonation interrelate verbal and non verbal contexts.
For example, with respect to the vocal modality, intonation is linguistic or verbal;
but with respect to functions, it is nonverbal. In sum, intonation is a “hybrid”
system with properties of communication that are sometimes verbal and sometimes
nonverbal.

The uses of intonation shows that the information so conveyed is, in many cases,
impossible to separate from lexical and grammatical meanings expressed by words
and constructions in a language (verbal context) and from the co-occurring
situational information (non-verbal context). The meaning of intonation cannot be
judged in isolation. However, intonation does not usually correlate in any neat one-
for-one way with the verbal context accompanying and the situational variables in
an extra-linguistic context. Moreover, the perceived contrast with the intonation of
the previous utterance seems to be relevant. In the following example a connecting
phrase in the appropriate intonation conditions the stylistic force of the
accompanying sentence, and contrasts with the 'literal' meaning of the words:

You 'KNOW | I think he's RIGHT (= let me tell you, I think...)

You KNOW I think he's right (= you are aware that I think...)

42. The most obvious difference between standard American (GA) and standard
British (GB) is the omission of ‘r’ in GB: you only pronounce a written < r > if
there is a vowel sound after it, so we don’t say it in PARK /pɑːk/, HORSE /hɔːs/ or
FURTHER /ˈfɜːðə/. In American, though, we pronounce every written /r/ so
/pɑrk/, /hɔrs/ & /ˈfɜrðər/.

Vowel Sound Changes

Many of the 19 vowel sounds are very similar in American and British, however,
there are 8 sounds that significantly change as follows:

/ɒ/ to /ɑ/

In British (GB) we use back rounded open sound /ɒ/ for words like SHOP /ʃɒp/,
LOST /lɒst/ and WANT /wɒnt/. In American (GA) we don’t round the lips, so
it’s: /ʃɑp/, /lɑst/ & /wɑnt/. 

/æ/ to /e/

The pronunciation and usage of /æ/ is fairly similar in American and British; words
like CAT and MAD are very similar. There is a group of words, however,
containing the spelling ARR, which change from /æ/ to /e/ in
American. CARRY /kæri/ is /keri/ EMBARRASS /ɪmˈbærɪs/ is /ɪmˈberəs/ and
HARRY /ˈhæri/ is /ˈheri/, giving the name the same pronunciation as HAIRY
in American . MARRY, MERRY and MARY would all be the same too in
American English, but different in British: /ˈmæri/, /ˈmeri/ & /ˈmeəri/

/ɜː/ to  /ɜr/

The British thinking sound /ɜː/, found in words like HEARD /hɜːd/, FIRST /fɜːst/
and WORST /wɜːst/, is pronounced differently – with the tongue raised and
a /r/ quality in American, /hɜrd/, /fɜrst/ & /wɜrst/. This sound nearly always
has an ‘r’ in its spelling, but even when it doesn’t, American speakers say one,
like in the word COLONEL /ˈkɜrnəl/, which is /ˈkɜːnəl/ in British English.
/ɔː/ to /ɔr/ & /ɑ/

Long back rounded /ɔː/ as in SWORD /sɔːd/, FORCE /fɔːs/, THOUGHT /θɔːt/ &
LAW /lɔː/ is pronounced in 2 ways in American. /ɔr/ for words with ‘r’ so
SWORD /sɔrd/ & FORCE /fɔrs/, and /ɑ/ for words without /r/ so
THOUGHT /θɑt/ & LAW /lɑ/. This means that for many American speakers,
COT /kɑt/and CAUGHT /kɑt/ are the same, though COURT /kɔrt/ would be
different. In British English CAUGHT /kɔːt/ and COURT would be the same,
COT /kɒt/ would be different.

Vowel Length

There is a greater difference in British English between the length of vowel

sounds, with some being pronounced significantly longer than their American
counterparts. Some of this is owing to the additional pronunciation of ‘r’ in many
American vowel sounds as seen above. Most phonemic charts reflect this by
showing five or six English vowel sounds with two triangular dots, whereas most
charts do not offer this for American.

heard  /hɜːd/ /hɜrd/
bar  /bɑː/  /bɑr/
caught  /kɔːt/ /kɑt/
need   /niːd/  /nid/
shoe  /ʃuː/  /ʃu/

Consonant Sounds

Consonant sounds are largely similar in American and British with just a few
key differences:

/t/

When /t/ appears after a stressed vowel and before a weak vowel, American
speakers often make a voiced flap – a bit like a very fast /d/: WATER,
FIGHTER, GOT IT. In Standard British this would be pronounced as a normal /t/
WATER, FIGHTER, GOT IT, though in regional British accents, most famously
cockney, this would be a glottal stop: WATER, FIGHTER, GOT IT.

/r/

Apart from the higher number of /r/ sounds in American English, there is also
a small but significant difference in the way they are pronounced. In
American, the tongue curls back further, giving it a slightly muffled quality
– RIGHT, ARROW. Whereas in British the tongue is flatter and further
forward RIGHT, ARROW.

Yod (/j/) Dropping

In British English where /j/ appears after /t, d, n, l, s, z/ (the alveolar consonants) it
is omitted in American: /t/ TUNE /tjuːn, tun/, /d/ DUTY /ˈdjuːti, ˈduti/, /n/
NEW /njuː, nu/, /l/ LEWD /ljuːd, lud/, /s/ SUIT /sjuːt, sut/ /z/ EXUDE /ɪgˈzjuːd, ɪg
ˈzud/. This is often referred to as ‘yod dropping’.

Word Stress

Some words are stressed differently in American English, particularly those of

French origin where American keeps the last syllable stress and British goes for
first syllable (audio is British then American): GARAGE, GOURMET, BALLET,
BROCHURE, though this is reversed in the words ADDRESS and MOUSTACHE.

Intonation

The melody of British and American is quite different, though the structure of
speech is very similar. The most obvious difference is the British tendency to use
high falling intonation, hitting the main stress high and dropping down. Whereas
in American rising tones are more common, so you go up from the main
stress. This use of rising intonation on statements is sometimes referred to as
‘Upspeak’.