Cuadernillo Intonation 2021

PHONETICS AND PHONOLOGY III 2022
UNIT 1- THE SYLLABLE
It is the unit of syllabicity. The elements of syllable structure are nucleus and
consonantal or marginal phonemes.nuclear phonems are obligatory in the structure
while marginal phonemes are optional. Thus the syllable structure can be expressed as
follows: (C)V(C). e.g: tile, .aisle, I, tie, etc.
Fundamental concepts of the theory of prominence:
PROMINENCE: when we speak we give more emphasis to some parts of an utterance

than to others. we can make a syllable stand out with respect to its neighbouring
syllables in a word, and in doing so the word containing that particular syllable will stand
out with respect to the rest of the words in the utterance. The elements which produce
prominence at syllable level are:
PITCH:
differences in pitch are produced at the vocal folds. The tenser the vocal folds are, the
faster they vibrate and the higher the note that is produced. What we hear is a higher or
lower note. So, articulatorily, pitch depends mainly on the tension and consequent rate
of vibration of the vocal folds. Auditorily, pitch is that property of a sound in terms of
which it can be placed on a scale running from high to low.
LOUDNESS:
From an articulatory point of view, loudness is caused by greater muscular energy and
breath force. Auditorily, it is defined as that property of a sound which enables us to
place it on a scale going from loud to soft.
LENGTH:
Auditorily, it is that property of a sound which enables us to place it on a scale that goes
from long to short.
1 Prof./Lic. Claudio A. Sosa

QUALITY:
Articulatorily, quality depends on the shape of the cavities or resonators whose function
is to modify the almost inaudible note produced at the vocal folds. Auditorily, quality is
defined as that feature in terms of which two sounds, similarly presented and having the
same pitch loudness and length, are still perceived as different.
AUDITORY CORRELATES OF PROMINENCE
CORRELATES SYLLABLES
Pitch High-low
Loudness Loud-soft
length Long - short
quality Strong - weak
All four elements can play a part in making a syllable stand out from the rest. The really
prominent syllables are so identified because they display the most decisive of the
elements producing prominence: pitch contrast.
Stress and accent
Prominence is exclusively a phonetic notion used to refer to the general distinctiveness

of an utterance of any length.
Stress and accent have phonological status.
STRESS ACCENT
 It is a feature of the word, a lexical  It is a feature of the utterance, a
abstraction or a decontextualized concrete contextualized category.
form.  It is an observable phenomenon.
 It is merely analytical.  It is an exponent of stress.
 It is a potential for accent.  A feature of prominence whose
 It is a feature of prominence in main perceptual component is
which the dominant perceptual pitch change.
component is loudness.
Stress is a phonological property of words. Stresses in words however, cannot guarantee

that the word will get an accent in a particular context, since this will depend on two main
factors:

 The rhythmic structure of the utterance.

 Pragmatic-discoursal principles, which regulate accentuation according to:
1- Word classes
2- The information structure of the utterance
3- Language specific rules
ACCENT AND PROMINENCE

 The most easily perceived type of prominence is pitch prominence signaled by
changes in pitch.
 There are three main places in an intonation group where pitch prominence can
be confused with pitch accent. The first occurs just after the last nuclear accent,
particularly if the prominent syllable is said on a relatively high pitch, or if it
performs a rising pitch movement after an accented fall.
 A syllable is accented when it begins pitch contrast.
 Ambiguity between accent and prominence can also take place before the first
accent in the intonation group, in the stretch of utterance technically known as
PRE-HEAD.
 Ambiguity between prominence and accent can occur when the first pitch accent,
which indicates the beginning of the HEAD, and the last pitch accent, which is the
nucleus, form a sequence of level tones, either high or low.
 Tertiary stresses do not involve pitch prominence.
DEGREES OF WORD STRESS

 A syllable is prominent when it contains a strong vowel or displays some kind of
pitch movement or performs a rhythmic beat.
 Primary stresses are the most logical candidates for nuclear accents and
secondary stresses can become nuclear accents only in utterances implying some
kind of contrast.
LEXICAL LEVEL CONTEXTUAL LEVEL

Primary stress Nuclear accent, pre-nuclear accent, unaccented
syllable in pre-head and tail
Secondary stress Pre-nuclear accent, unaccented syllable in pre-head
and tail, nuclear accent in contrastive contexts.
Prominent syllable Unaccented syllable in pre-head and tail, nuclear
accent in very contrastive contexts.
Non-prominent Unaccented syllable in pre-head and tail.
syllable

PROMINENCE AND STRESS

 Prominence is a PHONETIC term. It’s general.
 Stress is a PHONOLOGICAL term. In English, words tend to have two or more
stresses. Stress is fixed (the stress cannot be changed) and free( it can fall on any
syllable within the word)
PROMINENCE STRESS
First level Primary stress
Second level Secondary stress
Third level Tertiary stress
Fourth level Weak
 The primary stress indicates or highlights the most important idea in the tone
group. It’s the most outstanding because it has pitch movement. There’s only one
in each tone group. It has pitch movement, pitch contrast, quality, quantity
and loudness.
 The secondary stress highlights secondary ideas. It only has the four
characteristics of prominent syllables: pitch contrast, quality, quantity and
loudness.
 The tertiary stress falls on content words but it does not highlight it’s meaning; it
only keeps the rhythm with just two elements of prominence: quality and
quantity.
THE WORD- ACCENT
Gimson describes the word as a commutable linguistic entity, higher than the phoneme,
which may either constitute a complete utterance or may be substituted in a longer
utterance for words of the same class.
It may be thought of as a shape or pattern constituted from the qualitative and

quantitative elements of its phonemes. In polysyllabic words, the word shape has an
identity determined by the relationship of its parts.
A word has a pattern consisting of a syllable or syllables which stand out from the
remainder, which are said to be accented.
Accent is fixed: the main accent always has a definite place in each word it occurs on.
It’s also free: the main accent is not tied to any given position in the chain of syllables of a
word.

According to Gimson, a syllable is accented when stress, pitch,quality and quantity make
it more prominent than its neighbours.
Stress is manifested as relatively great breath effort and muscular energy in the
articulation of a sound which is intense; it is perceived as loudness. Pitch, which is
associated with stress make a syllable more prominent.
Sound quality: vowels are more prominent than consonants and those which are vowel-
like stand out from the rest. There are some phonemes which are more likely to occur in
accented syllables. Others do not.
Quantity: the long vowels and diphthongs are always associated with prominence even in
weakly accented syllables.
Word stress and grammatical category:

Nouns and adjectives tend to be accented on the first syllable and verbs on the second.
SIMPLE WORD: It is one which is made up of a single grammatical unit called

stem.
COMPLEX WORDS: They have at least three or more morphemes.

INTONATION PATTERNS
(A)STATEMENTS
 Neutral, straightforward, conclusive statements normally take a falling tone, e.g.:
A: It’s starting to rain. B: I must take my umbrella then.
 Non-conclusive statements take some kind of rising tone, e.g.:
He turned round suddenly and there she was.
 Enumerations take a rise on each element to indicate that the list is incomplete,
and a fall on the final element to indicate conclusiveness, e.g.:
I’ve brought apples, peaches, oranges… cf.
I’ve brought apples, peaches, and oranges.
 A falling-rising nucleus indicates some kind of implication, which may be either
expressed or understood, e.g.:
I didn’t want to come, but I felt I had to.
I enjoy reading (the implication being: even if you don’t)
 Apologies generally take a divided falling-rising tone, i.e. a tone which is spread
over different syllables, e.g.:
I’m terribly sorry.
 Awe and astonishment are often expressed by means of a rising-falling tone, e.g.:
There were thousands of them!
CORRECTIONS

a) The voice falls on the correct word to emphasize it.
A: Her birthday is on the tenth of December.

B: No, it’s on the fifth of December.
A: You apply to three universities.

B: No, you apply to four universities.
A: The universities must interview you.
B: No, the universities may interview you.
A: The television programme starts at ten to nine.

B: No, the television programme starts a t ten to seven.
A: It’s an Australian programme.
B: No, it an American programme.
b) the voice falls and rises on the incorrect information, then falls on the correct
information to emphasize it.
A: Her birthday isn’t the tenth of December. It’s the fifth.
A: 8.30, John Day.

B: No, the person at 8.30 isn’t John Day.
A: 10.00, Jay Frazer.
B: No, it isn’t Jay Frazer. It’s May Frazer.
(C)COMMANDS
 These generally take some kind of falling intonation, e.g.:
A: Stop it! B: Don’t interfere!
 Commands may change from sharp orders to polite requests by the use of a fall
plus rise, e.g.:
Pass me the ashtray, John
 In addressing children, a rising tone preceded by a high level tone is frequently
heard, thus giving the effect of encouragement and reassurance, e.g.:
Hold Mummy’s hand
 An imperative spoken with a falling-rising nuclear tone becomes a warning, e.g.:
Look out. You’ll drop them
Be careful!
(D)EXCLAMATIONS
 These normally take some kind of falling intonation, e.g.:
A: What an awful day it’s been! B: Disgusting!
A: How lucky you happened to be here! B: Yes!
 Expressions of gratitude can vary in intonation depending on their degree of
intensity, e.g.:

Thank you (deeply grateful)
Thank you (lighter)
Thank you (casual)
LISTING.
The voice rises on each item of the list, until the last one where it falls.
A: She bought some potatoes, some peas and some peaches.
A: I’d like a cup of tea, a mixed salad without onion, and some bread and butter with plum
jam.
A : Johnny has to buy some coffee, wash the floors, and wind the clocks.
YES/ NO SHORT ANSWERS.
The voice often falls on yes, which could be a complete answer, and also on was,
which is also a complete, definite statement. The speaker often goes on to give a
more detailed answer, also with a fall.
A: Was a good party?

B: Yes, it was.
A: Does Ben want a cigarette?

B: No, He doesn’t. He’s stopped smoking.
A: Has Susan put on weight?

B: No, She hasn’t. She’s still on a diet.
(B)QUESTIONS
 Wh-questions: Wh-questions normally take a falling intonation, e.g.:
A: Where are my gloves? B: Where did you put them?
 Yes-no questions: they are normally said on a rising tone, e.g.:
Did you bring your camera?
Yes-no questions may take the form of declarative questions, or their subject and verb
may be omitted altogether. In either case, they take a rising intonation, e.g.:
You’re ready? Like it? Happy?
Short, negative yes-no questions can be turned into exclamations by changing from
rising to falling intonation, e.g.:
Wasn’t it nice? (question) vs.
Wasn’t it nice! Or Wasn’t it nice! (exclamations)
In the same way, the question Will you? Can be changed into an exclamation by using a
falling tone, e.g.:
Will you stop it? Vs. Will you stop it!

 Question tags
 When expressing doubt, question tags are said on a rising tone, no matter
whether they are part of an utterance, or are said in answer to an utterance, e.g.:
It’s nearly six, isn’t it? (=or is my watch wrong?)
A: I told you about it B: Did you? (=I’m not sure that you did)
 Question tags which merely seek confirmation of what has been said, or are used
as “fillers” to keep a conversation going, take a falling intonation, e.g.:
She’s quite pretty, isn’t she?
A: What lovely roses B: Yes, aren’t they?
 Alternative questions
They take rising intonation on the first element of choice, and falling intonation on the
second, e.g.:
A: Shall we go out or stay at home?
B: You mean tonight or tomorrow night?
 Echo questions
These are used either to express incredulity, or to ask for a repetition of something the
listener fears he has misheard. They generally take a high rising tone, e.g.:
A: I’ve jammed it! B: You’ve what?
B: They’ve won. B: Really?
This same tone is used when the listener has not heard, or has not been paying
attention, e.g.:
A: Darling
B: Mm?
A: It’s nearly half past eight.
B: Pardon?
a) The speaker repeats something said by other person:
A: Have you got any postcards?

B: Postcards? Yes, they are in the drawer with the envelopes.
A: Have you seen my sports shirts?

B: Your sports shirts? They are being washed.
A: Have you moved my maths books?

B: Your maths books? They’re on the bookshelves.
A: Have you seen my reading lamp?

B: Your reading lamp? No, it’s on the desk.
A: Will you iron my tennis shorts?

B Your tennis shorts? No, you can iron them yourself.
A: Can I help you?

B: Yes, please. I’m looking for a book about woodwork.
A: A book about woodwork? What about Woodwork for Beginners by Peter Bull?
It’s full of good ideas.
B: Thank you. I’ll look at it.
A: Can I help you?

B: I hope so. I’m looking for a book about knitting.
A: A book about knitting? Here’s a very good book called Good Looking Wollens, by
Michael Foot. You could look at that.
B: Yes, that looks good.
b) to query what the other person said, ask for further explanation.
A: Every cook should have a computer.

B: A computer?
A: Yes, to keep a record of menus and recipes.
A: I’d choose a corkscrew.

B: A corkscrew?
A: Yes, it would be useful to open wine bottles quickly.
A: Dave bought a cook book.

B: A cook book? He doesn’t even get close to a kitchen.
A: I know, but he’s taking some cooking lessons now.
c) because he/she did not hear,understand or believe what was said.
A; The new manager is coming tomorrow. He’s name’s Sprot.

B: What’s his name?
A: Lumley castle is on your left.

B: Where is Lumley castle?
A: Lord and Lady Lumley have a collection of wild animals
B: What have they got?
A: We`re going into the castle’s greenhouse to see the orchids collection.
B: What are we going to see?
POLITE RISE.

Because a rise sounds less definite than a fall, it can be used to sound polite,
especially when beginning a conversation. It’s also common when answering the
phone.
A: Cavendish Manufacturing Company?
A: Can I help you?

B: Yes. Im looking for some cheap shoes.
A: The ones on that shelf are quite cheap.
B: No, thank you. They’re too shiny.
A: Would you like to choose some from this shelf, then?
B: Right… I’ve chosen these.
A: Would you like to pay cash or by cheque?
B: Cash, please.
SUBORDINATE CLAUSE OR NON-FINAL PHRASE.
Rise in the subordinating phrase, fall in the main clause.
A: Before I read this book, I thought stress was an executive disease.
A: One day, our teacher asked us to write a story.
A: Before we had the computer, I could never find the right piece of paper.
A: Once we buy the photocopier, it’ll be a lot easier to organize the material for students.
A: After the café opened on the corner, I didn’t have to drink coffee at the office.
STATEMENTS IMPLYING “BUT….”
The voice falls and rises. The fall marks the important information, the rise implies
that though the speaker may have made a positive statement, he/she is going to
qualify it. He/she may actually say “but….” or may simply imply it.
A: Did you have a good holiday?

B: the weather was very good. (but everything else was awful)
A: Is your brother all right?

B: yes, my brother is all right, but my mother’s very tired.

UNIT 2- INTONATION-
THE TONE GROUP.
THE ELEMENTS OF TONE GROUP STRUCTURE
PRE-HEAD Only the unstressed syllables preceding

the first stress. (no pitch movement)
HEAD It contains all the syllables, stressed
and unstressed, from the first
secondary stress up to the primary.
TONIC SEGMENT From the tonic syllable up to the end.
TONIC SYLLABLE It is the syllable bearing the pitch
movement
TAIL Rhythmical stresses
The HEAD alone constitutes the PRE-TONIC SEGMENT. The TONIC SYLLABLE and
THE TAIL constitute the TONIC SEGMENT.
 The streets were crowded, he said.

(TS)
(PH) (H) TS (TAIL)
The only obligatory element of the foot structure is the TS. The others are optional
elements.
STRESS( ARNOLD) WEAK: all the unstressed syllables.
STRONG: TONIC: accent 1°
NON-TONIC: pitch prominent 2°
rhythmical 3°
POSITION OF THE ACCENT IN THE TONE GROUP.
In English the most important idea tends to occur at the end of the tone group and the
head tends to work as an introduction to it. But in some cases, the tonic stress can be
moved to another syllable. The main reasons are contrast or repetition. It means that
some other idea is contrasted, or the idea in final position is not new.
Stress shift: It’s the readjustment of stressed and unstressed syllables under the
influence of other prominences in the group. The process of stress shift is due to the

rhythm of the language which tends to separate strongly stressed syllables by weak
ones. In the process, weak syllables are under the influence of ASSIMILATION,ELISION
AND GRADATION in order to compress them and go over them very rapidly. When
strongly stressed syllables are very near, we adjust the tempo of the utterance. As a
consequence of this process, double stressed words tend to diminish one of the two
stresses in context.
 A syllable bearing primary stress is the one which normally initiates pitch contrast;
a secondary stress is less likely to be pitch contrast initiator, but it can certainly
play that role whren the rhythmic pressure of the context causes the redistribution
of stresses called stress shift. This change of roles is the result of the tendency in
English to separate strong, primary stresses by weak, unstressed syllables.
 Stress shift in English Affects both simple and compound words whose citation
pattern consists of a secondary stress in the same word. This double-stress
pattern, however, accommodates to the pattern of stresses which precede and
follow in the text, in such a way that stresses on consecutive (or almost
consecutive) syllables are avoided.
Citation form: automatic 

Attributive
use:
Predicative use: 
 Double-stressed compounds can also be subject to stress shift when used as
adjectives or adverbs.
Cit ation form:
Attributive
use
Predicative use: 
 Proper names and names represented by initials can also undergo stress shift in
the same conditions:
Citation form: 
Attributive use: 
Predicative use: 
 Stress shift also affects phrasal verbs, the citation pattern of which consists of two
stresses.
Citation form: 
Attributive use: 
Predicative use: 
 A small group of single, late stressed adjectives, exhibit a similar tendency. Their
predicative pattern is the same as their citation pattern.
Citation form: 

Attributive use:

Predicative use:

 Single-stressed place names
Citation form: 

Attributive use:

Predicative use: 
 Short phrases containing two stresses and which combine with further stressed
material can also be affected by stress shift.
Very warm+ welcome

Good night+ kiss 
A hard day+ night

Not very+ much

Very little+
time

Intonation
It may be defined as the variations (rises and falls) of the voice in connected speech. It’s
the melody of the language.(Roach,P). It may be defined as the variations which tale
place in the pitch of the voice in an utterance. (Jones, D.) this melodic patterns are of
considerable social and linguistic importance and common to a community.
Intonation and tone languages
In some languages intonation is part of the structure of sentences; that is to say, a

change in intonation will produce a change in the meaning of the whole unit. These are
called intonational languages(English). In other languages, however, intonation is part of
the structure of words. So, a change in the intonation pattern of the word will produce a
change in the meaning of the particular word. These are called Tone languages.
(Chinese)
Functions of intonation. (Roach,P)
a- Attitudinal Function: it shows the speaker’s attitude or feelings towards a person or

situation. It enables us to express emotions and attitudes as we speak. This adds
a special kind of meaning to the spoken language.
b- Accentual function: the stresses are together with the movements of the voice.
Intonation includes all the patterns of stresses before and after the movement of
the voice. It helps to produce the effect of prominence on syllables that need to be
perceived as stressed. This placement of the tonic is to mark out the most
important group in a tone unit.
c- Grammatical function: you can change the grammatical category of utterances by
means of intonation. The placement of boundaries between phrases, clauses or
sentences, the difference between sentences and questions, the use of
grammatical subordination can be indicated by means of intonation.
d- Discourse function: (language in context) to study all the possibilities that interfere
in a speech act, the regulation of conversational behavior and turn-taking. It also
analizes what is to be taken as “new” information, what is already”given”, contrast,
what kind of response is expected, etc, can be indicated by means of intonation.
e- Indexical: intonation may act as a marker of personal or social identity. What
makes mothers sound like mothers, lovers sound like lovers, lawyers sound like

lawyers, clergymen sound like they do, newsreaders and officials sound like they
do? Partly, it is their characteristic intonation.(Well, J.C)
f- Psychological: intonation helps us organize speech into units that are easy to
perceive, memorize and perform. We can all repeat strings of up to five but not a
string of ten, unless we split it into two units. For that we need tonality.(Well, J.C)
Characteristics of intonation(O’Connor and Arnold)
a- Significant: it conveys meaning. Utterances which are only different in

intonation may as a result differ from each other in meaning.
b- Systematic: there’s a well-defined system of intonation patterns which we learn
and use to produce definite meanings. These patterns can be described and
given rules to be used.
c- Characteristic: each language has its own intonation. The use of wrong
patterns may cause misunderstandings.
Correlates of intonation: (O. Lira)
The final effect produced by any utterance is the result of the interaction of a
number of variables which are mutually related, and which correlate with
intonation in its strictly traditional sense. Some of these correlates are of a
linguistic nature, others of a non-linguistic nature and its important to be at
least aware of their existence since they all interact to produce substantial
distinctions or even subtle shades of meaning.
The tone group: it is the unit of intonation. It carries contrastive patterns of pitch
or intonation. It contains one and only one maximum of prominence which is the
strongest syllable of the most important word in the tone group.
It consists of one or more than one foot (unit of rhythm)
Its structure consists of two elements: the tonic segment, which is the tone bearing
part and is obligatory and the pre-tonic segment that includes all the stresses
before the pitch movement, which may be absent.
The three Ts of intonation: Tonality, tonicity and tone. (an overview)
THE THREE Ts
Tonality: it is the breaking up of an utterance into tone groups. Tonality is the placement
of tone group boundaries. A Tone group is a sense group, it is connected with meaning.
It’s a meaningful unit, or an information unit.
I saw John in Paris.

Tone group boundaries do not mean pause, but it means pitch movement. Rule: to make
sense, it depends on you, context, speed.
If the tone group coincides with a clause, tonality is neutral.
If there are two information units, then it is not neutral.
In Paris, I saw John.
Tonicity: it means which is the most important unit in a tone group. It is the word I need
to emphasize to be understood by the listener. Each tone group will have a word which is
the most important and this word will have pitch movement. Tonicity can be unmarked or
neutral or marked.
He’s at home
The most important idea is the tonic, the word that carries the pitch movement. If the
tonic coincides with the last content word, tonicity is unmarked or neutral.
I have never seen John in Paris.
What! I saw John in Paris. (TL: neutral – TC: marked)
Many times the most important idea is not the last content and it is any function word in
any position, so we say tonicity is marked.
He is at home.
The choice of information units is personal.
Tone: (O’Connor and Arnold)
It is the pitch scheme or the pitch movement, primarily on the tonic. The tonic carries the
pitch movement. It’s closely associated with meaning.
BASIC TONES
High fall Yes High rise Yes
Low fall Yes Low rise Yes

Rise fall Yes Fall rise Yes
The combinations of basic tones and the stresses in the head of the tone group have
names and are meaningful.
Tonality
As we have seen, the speaker has considerable discretion over the size and the number
of IPs into which the spoken message will be divided. There are strong tendencies,
however, exerted by the grammar over tonality. Some components of syntactic structures
are more likely than others to be made into separate IPs, set off by intonation breaks.
First there is an intonation break at every sentence boundary. This is a major intonation
break, more important than the intonation breaks within a sentence.
II Now here’s the news. l it has been announced I that……

IIThat’s the end of part one. I in part two, we shall….
A second rule is that each clause tends to be said as a separate IP. So if a sentence
consists of several clauses, there will usually be an intonation break at each clause
boundary:
When I cough, I it hurts my throat.

I’ll tell you, I but you must keep it a secret.
In general, the speaker will insert the intonation boundary anywhere where it will make
the grammatical structure clearer. There is considerable difference in the meaning of the
next sentences:
He was looking l up the street vs. He was looking up l the street.

The speaker can resolve this ambiguity by placing an intonation boundary as appropriate.
Some structures are usually uttered as two different IPs.
We’ll arrive at about ten.l The children can come along later. (different grammatical
subject)
He turned round ,l and a strange sight confronted him. (coordinate clauses)
Mary’s prepared, l and we’ve all just eaten, l a delicious meal.(coord. Clause, diff.
subj,ellipted ob= int break is virtually obligatory)
Some clauses require no intonation break.

She was sitting and thinking. (coord. Clause, ellipted subj)
Peter likes and trusts him. (coord. Clause, ellipted obj.)
I ‘ve washed and ironed the clothes. (Vs. I’ve washed l and ironed the clothes)
I want to apologize. – I think he’s wrong. – he said he was sorry. (count as single
clauses)
Vocatives
in initial position tend to form different IPs.
Linda, l could I have a word with you?
Jenny and Peter, l I want you to take the left side.
Vocatives in final position are usually attached to what precedes forming one IP.
This, Mr. Roberts, l is the young man I told you about.
Don’t do it, Mrs. Worthington.
Adverbials
in initial position are frequently given their own IP.
On Thursday evening , l I’m having dinner at Patsy’s.
Unfortunately, l we’re not going to be able to make it.
Other advs: under the circumstances, During the last three years, Technically, etc.
In the middle of a clause, an adv acts as a parenthesis, so it has its own IP.
Well we could l this year l do something different.
At the end of a clause, they may be adverbs of manner which modify a verb, so they are
integrated to what precedes, as part of the same IP.
She dances beautifully.
I just can’t take him seriously.
Adjuncts (sentence adverbials) that modify the whole clause, are typically given their
own IP.
Apparently, l she’s getting divorced.

Seriously, l when do you think you’ll be able to finish it?
I’ve been talking to Robert, l as a matter of fact.
The officials, l surprisingly, l raised no objections.
Heavy noun phrases

A long noun phrase is particularly likely to have its own IP.
The head of a large school l has a lot of responsabilities.
The people I’ve been talking to l were quite definite about it.
(this style is more likely when reading aloud and in formal speeches.)

Topics
The first element in a clause is typically the topic (or theme), while the remainder is the
comment ( or rheme). This first element is most often its grammatical subject. We can
signal its status 1)in various syntactic ways, 2) by choosing an appropriate tone and 3) by
giving it a separate IP.
As for Jeremy, l he can do what he likes.
Martha l will have to wait.
a) We can topicalize other clause elements such as objects or complements which
are usually followed by an intonation break.
His rudeness l I shall ignore. l But his actions I cannot forgive.
Rather good meals l they serve at the Carvery.
I loved the singing, l but the acting l I thought was atrocious.
b) In cleft sentences.
One constituent of the sentence is fronted and introduced by it is or it was, etc
This topicalized constituent must include focused material and therefore an intonation
nucleus. If there is further focused material, then there should be an intonation break.
I chose Veronica. ( not cleft)
It was Veronica that I chose. (cleft)
It was Veronica l that I chose. ( cleft, with focus on I) (sp making contrast between own
choice and someone else’s)
c) Pseudo-cleft sentences involve what. There is usually an intonation break between
the two halves of the construction.
What they didn’t like l was the noise.
What I’m looking for l is a saucepan.
Defining and non-defining relative clauses.

Defining RC usually have their own IP while Non-defining RC do not.
Who’s Nikki? I) She`s my sister who lives in Canada.
II) She’s my sister, l who lives in Canada.
i) DRC=Implies that I have more than one sister and singling out the particular
one who lives in Canada.
ii) NDRC=Implies that I have one sister and throwing in extra information about
her.
Still, there can be a certain degree of ambiguity in sentences like this:

i) He used a comma that was wrong. (DRC: the type of comma was
wrong)
ii) He used a comma, l which was wrong. ( NDRC: either the comma was
wrong or his using it was wrong)
DRC are more frequent in conversation than NDRC. In typical cases such as these, there
is no intonation break before the DRC.
This distinction also applies to certain other constructions as well:

Look at that house near the bus stop.(not the other houses)
Look at that house l near the bus stop. (extra info)
In particular it applies to phrases in apposition.

i) This is my colleague Charles. (a particular one of my various colleagues)
ii) This is my colleague, l Charles.( involves presenting the person’s name and
status)
iii) This is my colleague, Charles.( two possibilities: the name’s a vocative or I
make a difference between my colleague Charles and my cousin Charles)
UNIT 3 – TONICITY AND TONE
Tonicity
Basic principles
Phonetically, we accent a syllable by giving it a prominent change in pitch, or movement

in pitch, or the start of a pitch movement. An accented syllable is also rhythmically
stressed (Rhythmic beat).
Pragmatically, we accent a word by accenting its stressed syllable (or at least one of
them). This indicates the importance of the word for what we are saying.
The most important decision a speaker makes in selecting an intonation pattern is to

decide where the nucleus goes: which is the last word to be accented. In doing so, the
speaker chooses the tonicity of the intonation phrase. But how do we decide this? The
nucleus must go on a stressed syllable, that is the syllable which has lexical stress.
The nucleus is usually located on or near the last word of the intonation pattern. By
definition, the nuclear accent is the last accent in the IP. So, clearly, the tendency is for
the nucleus to be towards the end of the IP. If the last word is then important for the
meaning, it will be accented and thus bear the nucleus.
It is only if the words towards the end of the IP are for some reason not accented that the
nucleus will go on an earlier word.
I want to buy a lemon.

The bridge is about to collapse.
She’s just started a new relationship.
A kilo of pears.
Pay attention.
A bar of chocolate.
-What do I do next? –You need to apply.
Content words and function words.

Content words: nouns, adjectives, most verbs and most adverbs: words that have
meanings that can be defined in a dictionary and probably have straightforward
translations equivalents in other languages. E.g.: table, head, remember, yellow,
suddenly.
Function words: pronouns, preposition, articles, auxiliary verbs, modal verbs: words
whose meaning may need to be explained in a grammar rather than a dictionary, and
which may not have exact equivalents in other languages. Eg: me, at, the, are, would.
Generally speaking, we accent content words but not function words. Therefore, the
nucleus is typically placed on the last content word in the IP:
I can’t hear you.

I’m very annoyed with her.
In particular, the nucleus does not usually go on a personal pronoun, a preposition, an
auxiliary verb or a modal verb. Those words only bear the nucleus if special
circumstances apply. If an IP ends with a personal pronoun or a preposition, the nucleus
normally goes earlier.
To select a suitable place for the nucleus, we start from the end of the IP and work back.
In these examples we disregard the final pronoun:
She’s done it.

I’ll tell them.
And the final preposition:
What are you looking at?

Who was she talking about?
Or both preposition and pronoun:
I’ll be thinking of you.

I’ve just received a letter from her.
And final auxiliary or modal verb:
Chloe earns twice as much as Robert does.

He did better than I thought he would.
So, to decide where the nucleus goes, start at the end of the IP and work your way back
towards the beginning , ignoring any function word. Unless special circumstances apply,
the nucleus should probably go on the first content word you encounter as you move
backwards.
Exercise: Place the nucleus on the right word.

Have you forgotten me?
What can I write with?
I’ll be waiting for you.
She brought her baby with her.

Old and new new information
The general rule is to accent new information and not old information. That is, we remove
potential accents from old information.if all the information in the utterance is considered
new, then the nucleus is placed on the last lexical item.
-Madam? – I’d ‘like a ‘gin and tonic.
-madam? - I’d ‘like a gin and tonic.
As long as the last lexical item contains new information, it is accented and thus bears
the nucleus. However, if the last lexical item contains old information, then it is not
accented and the nucleus goes earlier, that is on the last lexical item that does contain
new information.(the repeated items are not accented)
- How about a gin and tonic? - I’d prefer a vodka and tonic.
- Do you object to dogs? - No, I adore dogs.
- Who doesn’t want to dance? - Bill doesn’t want to dance.
We deaccent repeated words even if, strictly speaking, they contain new information. We
tend to say:
- A green chair and a blue chair.
- Tina Rodman and Jane Rodman.
- But: a green chair and a blue curtain.
Old info sometimes appears in the form of synonyms. In such a case we deaccent the
synonym.
- Shall I wash the clothes? - oh, I hate doing the laundry.
- Shall I walk there? Yes, I like going on foot.
Prospective and implied givenness.

It is not only repeated words that tend not to be accented, but also words that are about
to be repeated.
- A red triangle and a blue square.
- A red triangle and a blue triangle. (it was planned as a complete unit in advance)
Here, the word triangle is deaccented the second time because it’s repeated and the first
because it’s going
to be repeated. Accentuation and tonicity depend on the speaker’s mental planning. This
sequence was planned as a complete unit in advance. But if the speaker utters the
first IP while he has not yet planned the second, we get an alternative pattern:
- A red triangle I and a blue triangle.
The speaker also has the possibility of deaccenting items that are not repeated, thus
convey new material, as a way of forcing on the hearer the view that this material is not
new.
- I’d like to speak to the manager. A) She’s much too busy. B) She’s much too
busy
a)Neutral tonicity, b) the speaker forces the hearer to agree with the idea that the
manager is too busy and
emphasizes the degree of her being busy, so we have marked tonicity with the nucleus
on much.

Two passengers with far too much luggage get on a taxi. The driver loaded most of the
luggage in the trunk but didn’t find room for the last suitcase which he placed on the back
seat. One passenger says:
- We’ve solved that problem.
The placement of the nucleus on that leaving problem to go in the tail, can be interpreted
as implying that life is a succession of problems. The speaker treats this notion of
problem as given and implies a contrast between that problem and other problems.
Broad and narrow focus.

Focus refers to the concentration of attention on a particular part of the message. We can
bring everything into focus(broad focus=unmarked tonicity) or we can focus selectively on
one part of it(narrow focus=marked tonicity) the part of the IP in focus is called the focus
domain. The nucleus marks the end of a focus domain. Broad focus means that the focus
domain is the whole IP.
- What happened next? - Everyone burst out laughing.
In narrow focus, only part of what we say is brought into focus.

- Who brought the wine? - Mary
-Mary did.
-Mary brought the wine.
-I think it was Mary.
-I think it was Mary that brought the wine.
All five versions have narrow focus. The focus domain is the item Mary. Intonation
indicates that we’re concentrating attention on the relevant information: Mary, and not on
the old, given and repeated material that follows Mary in the longer versions.
- What did Mary bring? - The wine.
-She brought the wine.
- Mary brought the wine.
- It was the wine that she brought.
- What she brought was the wine.
Contrastive focus
A particular kind of narrow focus is contrastive focus. Here the nuclear accent draws
attention to a contrast the speaker is making. Any following material following the nucleus
is unaccented and forms part of the tail of the IP.
- You may have started your essay, I but have you finished your essay?
The contrast is between started and finished, the repeated non-contrastive material your
essay is often replaced by a pronoun or omitted.
- You may have started your essay, I but have you finished( it)?
- Phillip can run faster than Jim (can run)(can)
Any word including function words can be accented for contrast.
I’m writing a letter. I what are you doing?

It wasn’t under the table, I but actually on it.
I can send a fax to him, I but I can’t receive a fax from him.

Source: Wells, J.C, English Intonation, an Introduction, Cambridge UP,2006
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PHONETICS AND PHONOLOGY III 2022

UNIT 1- THE SYLLABLE

Fundamental concepts of the theory of prominence:

PROMINENCE: when we speak we give more emphasis to some parts of an utterance

1 Prof./Lic. Claudio A. Sosa

AUDITORY CORRELATES OF PROMINENCE

Stress and accent

Prominence is exclusively a phonetic notion used to refer to the general distinctiveness

Stress and accent have phonological status.

Stress is a phonological property of words. Stresses in words however, cannot guarantee

2 Prof./Lic. Claudio A. Sosa

 The rhythmic structure of the utterance.

ACCENT AND PROMINENCE

DEGREES OF WORD STRESS

LEXICAL LEVEL CONTEXTUAL LEVEL

3 Prof./Lic. Claudio A. Sosa

PROMINENCE AND STRESS

THE WORD- ACCENT

It may be thought of as a shape or pattern constituted from the qualitative and

4 Prof./Lic. Claudio A. Sosa

Word stress and grammatical category:

SIMPLE WORD: It is one which is made up of a single grammatical unit called

5 Prof./Lic. Claudio A. Sosa

6 Prof./Lic. Claudio A. Sosa

A: Her birthday is on the tenth of December.

A: You apply to three universities.

A: The television programme starts at ten to nine.

A: Her birthday isn’t the tenth of December. It’s the fifth.

A: 8.30, John Day.

7 Prof./Lic. Claudio A. Sosa

A: She bought some potatoes, some peas and some peaches.

YES/ NO SHORT ANSWERS.

A: Was a good party?

A: Does Ben want a cigarette?

A: Has Susan put on weight?

8 Prof./Lic. Claudio A. Sosa

a) The speaker repeats something said by other person:

A: Have you got any postcards?

A: Have you seen my sports shirts?

A: Have you moved my maths books?

A: Have you seen my reading lamp?

A: Will you iron my tennis shorts?

9 Prof./Lic. Claudio A. Sosa

A: Can I help you?

A: Can I help you?

A: Every cook should have a computer.

A: I’d choose a corkscrew.

A: Dave bought a cook book.

c) because he/she did not hear,understand or believe what was said.

A; The new manager is coming tomorrow. He’s name’s Sprot.

A: Lumley castle is on your left.

10 Prof./Lic. Claudio A. Sosa

A: Cavendish Manufacturing Company?

A: Can I help you?

SUBORDINATE CLAUSE OR NON-FINAL PHRASE.

Rise in the subordinating phrase, fall in the main clause.

A: Before I read this book, I thought stress was an executive disease.

A: One day, our teacher asked us to write a story.

STATEMENTS IMPLYING “BUT….”

A: Did you have a good holiday?

A: Is your brother all right?

11 Prof./Lic. Claudio A. Sosa

THE TONE GROUP.

THE ELEMENTS OF TONE GROUP STRUCTURE