INTONATION , THOUGHT GROUP AND CONNECTED SPEECH

THOUGHT GROUP

English speakers help their listeners to understand them by separating words into thought groups, orally by making a pause and using a falling pitch or in writing by using punctuation marks at the end of each thought group.

 v  What does mean a thought group?

A thought group is a group of words that belong together; it can be a short sentences or part of a longer sentence.

 v  Each thought group has a focus word.

“Some of words have been  taken of Pronunciation, Practice Activities, and A resource book for teaching English pronunciation. Martin  Hewings  pág 129, Unit 15.”

THOUGHT GROUP RULES

Examples:

I love traveling.

“Let`s go to the mall,” Peter said. But Kristin replied, “OK.”

Examples:

(4x3) + 3 = 15    four times three   plus three equals fifteen

My dog is cute, your cat too.

“Some of words have been taken of Pronunciation, Practice Activities, and A resource book for teaching English pronunciation. Martin  Hewings  pág 129,131,133 Unit 15.”

INTONATION

RISING AND FALLING INTONATION

Declarative statements, commands and Wh- Questions usually use falling intonation.

Examples:

 v  Declarative statements:

·         I live in Los Angeles, CA.

·         I do not like cauliflower.

 v  Commands:

·         Get up!

·         Sit down!

·         Come over here!

 v  Wh- Questions

·         How`s your father?

·         Where do you live?

·         Who do you live with?

 v  Yes/No questions usually use rising intonation:

Examples:

·         Have you done it?

·         Will you go?

·         Are you sure?

·         Do you like it?

 v  Tag questions eliciting agreeing usually use falling intonation and tag questions signaling uncertainty usually use first falling intonation and at the end rising intonation:

Examples:

1. Tag questions eliciting agreeing:

·         You aren`t a tourist, are you?

2. Tag questions signaling uncertainty

·         You like jazz music, don`t you?

CONNECTED SPEECH

Connected speech is really important when you are trying to speak English like, most native speakers stringing words together because speech is a continuous stream of sounds, without clear-cut borderlines between them.

The pronunciation of a word will change depending on the words around it. Changes in pronunciation within and across word boundaries include changes to individual sounds and new sounds being inserted. Learners have to become aware of these changes in order to understand authentic speech, and to help their pronunciation.

SOME ASPECTS OF CONNECTED SPEECH

      1.      LINKING

Link words is when we join words in a sentence, because of this words tend to sound different that when we pronounce them individually. We tend to link final consonants to initial vowels or vice versa.

 Examples:

 v  Get on. ( geton )

 v  Not at all. ( notatall )

 v  It´s no joke. ( snow joke)

 v  Put on ( puton )

 v  Get out ( getout )

 v  Come out ( cumout )

1. Elision:

Elision is the disappearance of a sound in connected speech, vowels from unstressed   syllables are the first to be elided in non-precise pronunciation. / h /, / t / and / d / sounds are commonly elided.

Examples:

 v  Chris(t)mas.

 v  Int(e)rest.

 v  Sim(i)lar.

 v  Libr(a)ry.

 v  Mus(t) be.

 v  You an(d) me.

 v  You shouldn´t (h)ave

 v  Tell (h)im.

 1.    REDUCTIONS

Reductions are reduced forms of English word groups. Reduced forms are used only on speaking or very informal writing. *These are not real words.

Examples:

 v  Want to      =  wanna

 v  Going to     = gonna

 v  Got a           = gotta

 v  Kind of        = kinda

 v  Could have  = coulda/ couldav

 v  Get you        = getcha

 "All of these aspects of connected speech, among others, will help you to sound more natural when you are speaking"

“Some of words have been taken of http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/knowledge-database/connected-speech and http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/articles/connected-speech-2."