SIMILITUDE

It is a process by which a sound influences another sound. It is a fact. Thus, a partially breathed /l/ is used in
English in such words as please /pli:z/, play /ple/ and we say there is similitude between this /l/ and the /p/.

ASSIMILATION
It is a process by which a sound is replaced by another sound under the influence of a third sound which is
near to it in the word or sentence. The term may also be extended to include cases where a sequence of two
sounds coalesces and gives place to a single new sound different from either o the original sounds; this type
of change may be termed coalescent assimilation.
There are two kinds of assimilation:
Historical: it is an assimilation which has taken place in the course of development of a language,
and by which a word which was once pronounced in a certain way came to be pronounced
subsequently in another way. Example of HISTORICAL ASSIMILATION: the change of /m/ to
/n/ in the word ant from /mt/ to /nt/. Example of HISTORICAL COALESCENT
ASSIMILATION: the reduction of the sequence /tj/ to the affricate /t/ in the word picture from
/pktjur/ to /pkt/.
Contextual: it is an assimilation which is occasioned when words are juxtaposed in a sentence, or in
the formation of compounds, and by which a word comes to have a pronunciation different from that
which it has when said in isolation. Example of CONTEXTUAL ASSIMILATION: the change of
/s/ to // when horse /h:s/ and shoe /hu:/ are put together /h:ssu:/. Example of CONTEXTUAL
COALESCENT ASSIMILATION: when dont /dunt/ and you /ju:/ are put together /duntu/.

The distinction between similitude and assimilation should be carefully observed. The term similitude is
used to describe an existing fact. Assimilation is a process by which certain pronunciations are evolved or
changed within a sentence.

ELISION
It is the disappearance of a sound. There are two kinds of elision:
Historical: loss of all /r/- sounds finally and before consonants in Southern English, for example in
words such as arm, horse, church, more, other. Loss of /l/- sounds in word such as walk, half. Elision
of unstressed vowels, especially in // and // in words such as: history /hstr/ is now /hstr/, and
university /ju:nv:st/ is now /ju:nv:st/.
Contextual: is frequent in English, especially in rapid speaking. Examples made in ordinary speech:
blind man /blan mn/, a good deal / gu d:l/.

LENGTH (of quantity of the sound)

It is the length of time during which a sound is said to be held continuously in a given word or phrase.

RHYTHM
It is a succession of sounds or syllables in the manner in which strong-weak, long-short sounds. It is also
defined as the order in which things are done and produced.
STRESS
It is the force with which a sound or syllable is UTTERED (not accented). It is essentially a subjective
notion. We know that Spanish is a syllable- time language. English is a stress- time language. Stressed
syllables have a tendency to occur at regularly spaced intervals, irrespective of the number of unstressed
syllables in between. As there is less time for each syllable in stressed ones, words are run together and
reduction and consequent contraction occur.
INTONATION
It is the variation which take place in the peach of the voice in connected speech. Intonation + stress means
prominence.
SYLLABLE
It is a small sound sequence containing a peak of prominences.
CHRONEMES
It is the length of vowel sounds divided into allophones.

PHONETIS HAS TWO ASPECTS OF STUDY: segmental (transcription of sounds), and suprasegmental
(it includes intonation, stress, prominence).

WEAK AND STRONG FORMS

One of the most fascinating features of the English language which has surprised travellers from the times of
the Roman Empire is the use of the weak forms. WEAK FORMS CAN OCCUR IN ENGLISH BECAUSE
ENGLISH IS A STRESS TIME LANGUAGE. WEAK FORMS ARE USED BY NATIVE SPEAKERS
ONLY IN SPEECH.