Aspects of connected speech.

Assimilation.

- separately articulated phonemes

- connected speech
- major aspects of the C. Sp. – Assimilation.
- - categories of assimilation
Separately articulated phoneme.
Connected speech.

 When a phoneme is articulated separately it displays all

its characteristic features. But phonemes are seldom
articulated in isolation.

 In speaking they are generally used in sentences

consisting of a number of words, and, consequently, are
pronounced in sequences of sounds, interrupted by
pauses.
Assimilation
 The modification of a consonant by a neighbouring consonant in
the speech chain is known as assimilation.
 Also we do observe such major aspects of connected speech as
Catenation, Intrusion, Elision.
 Assimilation is the alternation of a speech sound to make it
more similar to its neighbors. It is the process of simplification
by which a speech sound is influenced by the surrounding sounds
to make them more similar.
 Assimilation occurs frequently in English, both within words and
between words. It happens and it does so in 3 different
directions:
 - progressive
 - regressive
 - palatalization
Progressive assimilation
 In a sequence of sounds A + B, sound A changes sound –
i.e. the conditioning sound precedes and affects the
following sound.
Examples:
Regressive assimilation
 In a sequence of sounds A + B, sound B changes sound A – i.e.
the assimilated sound precedes and is affected by the
conditioning sound.
 This is the most common type of assimilation in English.
 Examples:
 Palatalization
 In a sequence of sounds A + B, A and B are combined into C – i.e.
the reciprocal assimilation. The first sound and the second
sound in a sequence come together and create the third sound.
 Examples:
All cases of palatalization involve an alveolar consonant
+ the approximant /j/
 Obligatory – NON-obligatory assimilation
 Obligatory assimilation occurs in the speech of all people who
speak a certain language, no matter what style of speech is used.
 It has become fixed as part of the phonological structure and is
included in the articulation basis, so it has to be mastered in
learning the pronunciation of a certain language.

 Non-obligatory assimilation appears in rapid, casual speech

and its degree may vary, depending on speaking rate, style
and individual peculiarities of speech.
Complete – Partial assimilation
When one or more features of the phoneme are affected, we
have partial assimilation as in tree for example, [t] becomes
post-alveolar under the influence of the following [r], but it
retains its distinctive features and is still occlusive, forelingual
and fortis.

When all the features of the phoneme are adapted, we have a

case of complete assimilation, for example, in rapid casual
speech [t] will become [p] before a bilabial consonant, as
in that person: [ðæpˈpɜ:sn].
Thank you for your attention!