SuSe 2009© 2009, Lee Traynor, MA (Oxon) English for Science Pronouncing Polysyllables Long words, stress patterns and clues for saying the right thing

SuSe 2009 © 2009, Lee Traynor, MA (Oxon)

English for SciencePronouncing Polysyllables

Long words, stress patterns and clues for saying the right thing.


EfS Pronouncing Polysyllables

• Stress, stress marks and clues to where words are stressed;

• In words with 2 or more syllables.

• In English as in German, some syllables in polysyllabic words receive more emphasis than others.

• Stressed vowels have a more distinct, unstressed a less distinct sound.

What's going on here? What's stress?



• Stress on the wrong syllable may result in unintentional mirth.

• Try this with a foreigner: Give him a list of past participles beginning with umge- and then ask him/her to pronounce the word Umgebung.

• (S)he will probably say: 'Umge'bung instead of Um'gebung because the past participles (e.g. 'umge'fahren) are pronounced that way.

• A stress mark (') indicates where the stress is.

Stress in the wrong place, stress marks



Sometimes stress may be on either syllable, changing the function of the word, e.g.:

• 'produce, n. (Erzeugnis)

• pro'duce, v.t. (erzeugen)

Stress Marks: bisyllables/Stress Clues

In words with > 2 syllables look for:

• endings like –ic;

• the CIA group (sh!);

• or the third last syllable.

Clues



-ic, -ical, -ically:

are all stressed on the syllable before the –ic.

• 'practical 'practically;

• 'skeptic 'skeptical 'skeptically;

• 'basic 'basically;

• 'physical 'physically.

• At least one exception: 'rhetoric.

-ic Rules and Examples



CSTG

IOA

Common to this group are:

• the sounds ʃ, ʧ, ʒ or ʤ;

• the i is indistinct;

• the final vowel is minimalised (ə).

CIA (sh!) Rules and Examples

facialspatialAsia

stationtensionregion



Keep an eye open for the CIA group which has a number of different spellings including those with other initial letters including:

• tu (ʧ), su(ʃ, ʒ): 'nature, 'lesion, 'leisure;

• ni, nu: 'onion, 'tenure;

• ri: me'morial.

And, unfortunately, CIA spellings which do not indicate stress, e.g. associ'ation.

More CIA (sh!)



If the –ic or CIA rules do not apply then a word of Latin or Greek origin may be stessed on the third last, or antepenultimate syllable.

• 'ultimate = last

• pe'nultimate = second (nearly) last

• antepe'nultimate = third last

Third Last Syllable Rule and Examples



• 'photograph

• pho'tographer

but

• photo'graphic

In the last example the –ic rule prevails.

Conflict?

Documents

SuSe 2009© 2009, Lee Traynor, MA (Oxon) English for Science Pronouncing Polysyllables Long words, stress patterns and clues for saying the right thing