Unit 2

Lesson 12
Accent in Connected Speech & Weak and Structured Form of words.
By connected speech we mean an utterance made up of several words. In English connected
speech, we can find accentual features that are similar to the accentual features of polysyllabic
words said in isolation. In a polysyllabic word said in isolation, one syllable stands out from
ˌ
the rest, as in sub mit, the second syllable is more prominent than the first, so we say that the
second syllable of this word receives the accent. Or it may happen that the two syllables stand
out from the rest, one carrying the primary or tonic accent and the other carrying the secondary

accent, as in ˌvariabˌility- the first syllable carries secondary accent and the third syllable
carries the primary accent. In connected speech some words stand out from the rest. For
example,

ˌ
1. He came.
ˌ ˌ
2. Meet me at ten.
ˌ ˌ
3. Buy me a pen.
ˌ ˌ
4. Have you met my wife?

The sentences when they are said neutrally (i.e., the context not demanding special emphasis
on any word) are said in such a way that the words marked with a vertical bar above them stand
out from the rest.
If in a bit of connected speech several syllables are prominent only one will receive the primary
or tonic accent. This is usually the last prominent syllable. Non-tonic accent is marked with
ˌ
`
usual stress mark [ ] and the tonic accent is marked with [ ] if tone is falling, [/] if the tone is
rising. For example,

ˌ ˌ
1. Take the dog for a `walk.
ˌ ˌ ˌ
2. This is the house that Jack `built.
ˌ
3. Have you met my wife?
ˌ
4. Sing a `song.
 ˌ ˌ
5. I want to buy a `pen.

Another example can be cited below.

Peter and Mary have decided to visit their Relatives.
When this sentence is spoken in a normal, unemotional way, the words Peter, Mary, decided,
visit and relatives will be more prominent than the remaining words in the sentence. In
connected speech, only that syllable of a polysyllabic word is made prominent, which is
prominent when the word is pronounced in isolation.

ˌ ˌ ˌ ˌ ˌ
Peter and Mary have de cided to visit their relatives.

Those syllables in a polysyllabic word that do not receive the accent when it is said in
isolation do not receive the accent when it forms part of the connected speech.
The choice of the syllable receiving the primary accent depends on the meaning the

speaker wants to convey. For example, He ` ˌcame. If the speaker wants to emphasise that
the person referred to as He came and not anyone else, he will then pronounce the word He
with primary accent. Both he `came and `he ˌcame are possible, but `he came (with no accent
on came) is not possible.
Example—the word go cannot remain unaccented.

1. I should go`
`
2. I should go ˌ
3. `I should ˌgo
 ❖ Accent in Weak and Structured Form of words

The meaning conveyed by an utterance largely determines the accentual patterns in connected
speech, the accentual patterns in connected speech are freer than those of individual words. In
normal speech, content or lexical words are more likely to receive accent than form or
grammatical words. Content words are nouns, adjectives, adverbs, main verbs and
demonstrative and interrogative pronouns. Those are the words that help us form a picture in
our head; they give us the contents of our story and tell our listener where to focus his or her
attention.

Structured words are auxiliary or helping words, prepositions, articles, conjunctions, personal
pronouns and relative pronouns. These words are the words we use to make our sentences
grammatically correct. Since form words don't give us the main information, we don't usually
want or need to do anything to give them added attention and the words remain unstressed. In
utterances said without any special emphasis content words receive accent and form words do
not.
For example,

ˌ ˌ ˌ
1. `
Tom has just re turned from London.
ˌ ˌ
`
2. I bought a car on Tuesday.

Sometimes weak forms are easy to spot, because we use contractions in the spelling to show
it: I am French (strong form) I'm French (weak form). The reason and function of using
unstressed syllables or weak forms in connected speech is to maintain the rhythm in the
sentence, where stress is given only on the content words, omitting the stress on form words.

Both strong and weak forms are given with the phonetic transcription.