Profesorado Superior de Lenguas Vivas

Fonética Inglesa II – Profesorado – 1er Parcial – mock exam

1. & 2. Listen to the audio material and write the dialogues.

3. Write the transcription and underline the stressed words on the transcription.

The history of money – Part 1

Before money, people bought and sold goods with animals. But you can’t carry animals around
your neck or in a bag so people needed something small. About three thousand years ago, the
Chinese used seashells, and later they used metal coins. The Romans also bought and sold
objects with metal coins.

4. Write the transcription of the following sentences. Underline the stressed words. Account for the use of
stress (or lack of stress) of the highlighted words. Are they stressed or unstressed? Why?

I definitely liked her, but his acting was terrible! He let me down.

5. Why do younger people tend to pronounce /ɪnˈteɡrəl/ instead of /ˈɪntəɡrəl/ (integral)? What is this
process? Explain it briefly.

6. Which one is correct: ? Why?

7. Is this an example of coalescence, elision or assimilation? Explain briefly.

Didn’t you go? / dɪdntʃʊ gəʊ /

8. When are compound words double-stressed? (2 reasons, 1 example for each)

9. Affixation gives rise to double stress. Provide an example of a double stressed word with a prefix, and
another one with a suffix.

10. What are the characteristics of these weak forms (compared with the strong form)?
Strong form: Weak form: Characteristics
/ hæv / / həv /
/ əv /
/v/

11. Distinctive Word Accentual Pattern: Provide an example of a word which is different only in its
accentual pattern for different grammatical categories.

12. What is one of the functions of English intonation? Explain it briefly. Provide an example.
KEY
1- Dictation

HOME OR HOMELESS?
Every year, thousands of young people in Britain leave home in search of a better or more exciting life. Many of
them go to London, attracted by the bright lights, the nightlife, the youth scene and the hope of finding work.
16-year-olds who leave school with few or no qualifications find it very hard to get a job; indeed, in some British
cities, particularly in the North, finding work is almost impossible for unqualified people, especially young people.

/ həʊm ɔː həʊmləs //
/ evrɪ jɪə / θaʊzn̩dz əv jʌŋ piːpl̩ ɪn brɪtn / li:v həʊm / ɪn sɜ:tʃ əv ə betər / ɔː

mɔːr ɪksaɪtɪŋ laɪf // menɪ əv ðəm ɡəʊ tə lʌndən / ətræktɪd baɪ ðə braɪt laɪts

/ ðə naɪtlaɪf / ðə juːθ si:n / ən ðə həʊp əv faɪndɪŋ wɜːk //

/sɪkstiːn jɪər əʊldz / hʊ li:v sku:l wɪð fjuː ɔː nəʊ kwɒlɪfɪkeɪʃnz / faɪnd ɪt

verɪ hɑ:d tə get ə dʒɒb / ɪndiːd / ɪn səm brɪtɪʃ sɪtɪz / pətɪkjʊləlɪ ɪn ðə nɔːθ /

faɪndɪŋ wɜ:k ɪz ɔːlməʊst ɪmpɒsəbl fər ʌnkwɒlɪfaɪd piːpl̩ / ɪspeʃəlɪ jʌŋ piːpl //

2- Dictation of nuclei
A: James?
B: Yes?
A: Careful! The step!
B: Oh! Exhausted!
A: Janet?
B: Better, but still in hospital.
A: Still!
B: Yes.

eɪ/ dʒeɪmz /
biː/ jes /
eɪ/ keəfʊl / ðə step /
biː/ əʊ / ɪɡzɔːstɪd /
eɪ/ dʒænɪt /
biː/ betə / bət stɪl ɪn hɒspɪtl /
eɪ/ stɪl /
biː/ jes /
3- Transcription

4. Write the transcription of the following sentences. Underline the stressed words. Account for the use of
stress (or lack of stress) of the highlighted words. Are they stressed or unstressed? Why?

definitely: it is stressed. Adverbs are stressed.

her: it is stressed. Personal pronouns are normally unstressed; but here, it is stressed for (the
sake of) contrast (between her acting and his).
but: it is stressed. Conjunctions are normally unstressed.
was: it is unstressed. The verb “to be” in the affirmative is usually unstressed.
me: it is unstressed. Object pronouns are normally unstressed;

5. Why do younger people tend to pronounce /ɪnˈteɡrəl/ instead of /ˈɪntəɡrəl/ (integral)? What is this
process? Explain it briefly.

This is due to changes in the accentual pattern of the word. This type of change is known as
rhythmic changes: there is a tendency to avoid a succession of weak syllables.

6. Which one is correct: ? Why?

is correct because walking has a nominal function (it is a gerund),

so the noun is single stressed. You can explain this compound as a stick used for walking.

(it’s not a stick that is walking, but a stick for walking)

7. Is this an example of coalescence, elision or assimilation? Explain briefly.

Didn’t you go? / dɪdntʃʊ gəʊ /

It is an example of coalescence. Two phonemes are reduced to one phoneme

which is none of the original phonemes. /t/ + /ʃ/ are reduced into /tʃ/

8. When are compound words double-stressed? (2 reasons, 1 example for each)

Compound words are double-stressed when…

1. the first element of the compound is an adjective

2. the first element of the compound indicates sex, rank or profession.

9. Affixation gives rise to double stress. Provide an example of a double stressed word with a prefix, and
another one with a suffix.

With a prefix:

With a suffix

10. What are the characteristics of these weak forms (compared with the strong form)?

Strong form: Weak form: Characteristics

/ hæv / / həv / Obscuration of vowel
 / əv / Elision of consonant and
obscuration of vowel
/v/ Elision of vowel and consonant

11. Distinctive Word Accentual Pattern: Provide an example of a word which is different only in its
accentual pattern for different grammatical categories.

import /ˈɪmpɔːt/ (noun) /ˈɪmˈpɔːt/ (verb)

12. What is one of the functions of English intonation? Explain it briefly. Provide an example.

▪ The accentual function of English intonation: through intonation certain words stand out from the
reminder.
e.g. I don’t like cold weather.