lexical stress in english - phonosite.files.wordpress.com · some words also have secondary stress...
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Lexical stress in English
1) definitions and conventions
● Stress is present at two levels :
→ at sentence level
“I wanted to apologize again for my bad behaviour”, he said about the latest events.
- stress ALL lexical words
→ verbs, nouns, adjectives, adverbs
- stress ALL polysyllabic words
- do NOT stress monosyllabic grammatical words
(except if you want to emphasize something)
→ unstressed monosyllabic grammatical words may be reduced: to /tə/+C or /tu/+V, for /fə/, etc.
● Stress is present at two levels :
→ at word level
“I WANted to aPOlogize aGAIN for my bad beHAviour”, he said aBOUT the LAtest eVENTS.
stress mark: stress pattern: ˈwanted /10/ aˈgain /01/ aˈpologize /0100/
→ put the stress mark before the stressed syllable, not before the stressed vowel: aˈbout, not abˈout.
→ split words into syllables: Sepˈtember, not Seˈptember
(→ by convention: corˈrect, not coˈrrect)
A stressed vowel is typically:
- higher in pitch (higher frequency in Hz)
- louder (more intensity in decibels)
- sometimes longer (more duration in ms)
→ fully articulated (because more energy on it)
Do not forget the link between stress and vowels:
→ stressed vowels are ALWAYS full (never stress schwa...)
→ most of the time, unstressed vowels are reduced
→ wrong stress placement may completely change the pronunciation of a word (develop, message, climate, rebel...)
Some words also have secondary stress /2/:
- less prominent than primary stress /1/, but more than unstressed syllables
- full vowels too : ˌaccoˈlade /201/ = /ˌækəˈleɪd/
English melody has 4 rhythmic constraints in words:
- only 1 primary stress per word
- secondary stress (if any) is to the left of primary stress→ /2010/ = OK→ /1020/ = forbidden (see exceptions later)
- no adjacent stresses→ /2010/ = OK→ /0210/ = forbidden (see exceptions later)
- do not start with two unstressed syllables→ /010/, /20100/, /20010/, /20001000/ etc. = OK→ /0010/, /002010/, etc; = forbidden
Consequences:
● - 2 syllables = /10/ or /01/
- 3 syllables = /100/, /010/ or /201/
● - 4 syllables = /1000/, /0100/, /2010/ ….
but then /2001/ or /0201/ ?
→ if primary stress is at least on the 4th syllable:
→ secondary stress can only be on the 1st or 2nd syllable:
/ ? ? 0 0 0 0 1 0 /
2) Effects of endingson stress placement
Two types of word endings, four types of effects:
→ endings which have no effect on stress placement (add/remove = no difference) = stress-neutral suffixes
→ endings which place stress 1 syllable before themselves
→ endings which place stress 1 or 2 syllables before themselves, depending on some criteria
→ endings which carry stress on themselves
= stress-imposing endings
STRESS-NEUTRAL ENDINGS
● Examples with -LESS: ˈpower /10/ > ˈpowerless /100/ /lɪs/ or /ləs/ reˈgard /01/ > reˈgardless /010/ ˈcharacter /100/ > ˈcharacterless /1000/
● Even with several suffixes one after the other: ˈcharacter > ˈcharacterize > ˈcharacterizing > ˈcharacterizingly
● A few exceptions: adˈmire > ˈadmirable, reˈlate > ˈrelative, etc.
STRESSED ENDINGS
● Many words borrowed from French, where stress is final
● A few endings can be used to derive words: ˈrefuge > ˌrefuˈgee, ˈlemon > ˌlemoˈnade, ˈLebanon > ˌLebaˈnese, etc.
● /!\ Do not apply the rule to ˈfalsehood, ˈsunscreen, etc.
● /!\ <C'C'e> needs <e> !! creˈvasse, fiˈnesse ≠ ˈcompass, ˈkindness
● Some exceptions (ˈdecade, ˈcoffee, ˌmetaˈmorphosis...) and some variation with French words
Mistake in exceptions in the printed guide : replace lemonade with ˈrenegade
ENDINGS WHICH PLACE STRESS 1 SYLLABLE BEFORE
● -ish = in verbs only ! deˈmolish ≠ ˈyellow > ˈyellowish (neutral)
● Do not confuse -ible with -able (neutral)
● /!\ -igible has priority over -ible : ˈeligible, not *eˈligible
● Some exceptions in -ic (ˈCatholic, ˈpolitics...) + imˈpoverish
● Exceptions to -ic rule + -ise/-ism (neutral) = no longer exceptions: Caˈtholicism, poˈliticise...
ENDINGS WHICH PLACE STRESS 1 SYLLABLE BEFORE
● <i/e/u> + V must be in the ending, not in the middle of the word!
● Avoid saying that <i/e/u> + V places stress on the penultimate syllable: preˈtentious /-ʃəs/ /010/ but ilˈlustrious/-triəs/ /0100/ → say that it places stress on the preceding syllable.
● <-ue> does not work (<e> is mute); <-ee> = stressed ending.
● If <y> → <i> (ˈfrequencies, deˈniable), the rule does not apply.
● Some exceptions (iˈdea, ˈspiritual...).
WORDS IN -ATE
2 syllables 3 syllables or more
Verbs /01/: reˈlate, miˈgrate, creˈate, loˈcate...
Nouns /10/: ˈclimate, ˈsenate, ˈpirate, ˈcurate...
Adjective ˈprivate /10/(unfrequent adjectives /01/)
Always stress the antepenultimate: /-100/
ˈeducate, ˈultimate /100/
cerˈtificate, apˈpropriate /0100/
ˌauthenˈtificate /20100/ …
→ do NOT stress the ending!!
Pronunciation of the ending in ALL words:
→ /eɪt/ in verbs (reˈlate, ˈeducate)
→ /ət/ or /ɪt/ in nouns (ˈclimate, cerˈtificate) and adjectives (ˈprivate, ˈultimate)
If several categories (ˈmoderate) : pronounce accordingly
ADJECTIVES IN -AL, -AR, -OUS, -AN, -ANT, -ENT, -OID
consonant cluster no consonant cluster
auˈtumnal
eˈnormous
/010/
<CC> = /-10/
ˈcriminal
ˈcrapulous
/100/
<C> = /-100/
Also with <Cr> and <C'C'>:ˈludicrous, ˈexcellent
Including with <CCr>:maˈgistral, orˈchestral
ADJECTIVES IN -AL, -AR, -OUS, -AN, -ANT, -ENT, -OID
examples with 3-syllable adjectives:
Or longer: ˌfilaˈmentous /2010/, ˌperpenˈdicular /20100/...
<CC> /010/
auˈtumnalcoˈlumnareˈnormous
reˈluctantconˈsistentaˈrachnoid
<C> /100/
ˈcriminalˈglobularˈcrapulousˈpuritanˈhesitantˈcompetentˈparanoid
How to deal with multiple endings?
Start from the right and look for stress-imposing endings. Only go leftwards if endings on the right are stress-neutral!
The rightmost stress-imposing ending wins!
→ stress-imposing + neutral: reˈlationship
→ stress-imposing + stress-imposing: ˌspecificity
→ neutral + neutral: ˈpowerlessness
deˈfenselessness
Add /2/ if necessary only after placing /1/.
3) Secondary stress
Which words have secondary stress?
→ Words of 1 or 2 syllables do NOT have secondary stress
→ When /1/ is on the 3rd syllable, /2/ is on the 1st because of rhythmic contraints: /201/, /2010/, /20100/, /201000/...
(/001-/ and /021-/ are not allowed)
→ When /1/ is at least on the 4th syllable, /2/ is either on the 1st or on the 2nd:
→ use the derivational rule
THE DERIVATIONAL RULE
When the place of /2/ is not imposed by rhythmic contraints, use the derivational rule:
Primary stress in the deriving formbecomes
secondary stress in the derivative
0 1 0 0
0 1 00 2
carbonize
carbonization
1 0 0
2 0 0 1 0
accomodate
accomodation
The DR may coincide with rhythmic constraints:→ ˈpersonal /100/ > ˌpersoˈnality /20100/
Priority to rhythmic constraints if they contradict the DR: → ecˈcentric /010/ > ˌeccenˈtricity /20100/, not /02100/ → Jaˈpan /01/ > ˌJapaˈnese /201/, not /021/
With the DR, always pick the closest deriving form: → poˌliticiˈzation /020010/ comes from poˈliticize /0100/ not from ˈpolitics /100/
Do not invent deriving forms which do not exist: → ˌamplifiˈcation = from ˈamplify, not from amˈplificate
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