LINKING FEATURES:

●​ Linking /r/
The /r/ is pronounced because it is followed by a vowel sound. EG: The car is mine /ðə kɑː​r​ɪz maɪn/
●​ Intrusive /r/
In words ending in /ə/ where the following word starts with a vowel. EG: /ˈtʃaɪnə​r​ən ˈɪndɪə/
-​ less frequently: after final /ɑ:, ɔ:/

ELISION:
VOWEL SOUNDS

/-tn/ /-tnC/ /-dnt/ /-ʃnC/

certain /ˈsɜ:tn/ importance /ɪmˈpɔːtns/ didn’t/ˈdɪdnt/ conscience /ˈkɒnʃns/
written /ˈrɪtn/ potent /ˈpəʊtnt/ student/ˈstju:dnt/ ancient /ˈeɪʃnt/
pattern /ˈpætn/ important /ɪmˈpɔ:tnt/ prudent /ˈpru:dnt/ sufficient /səˈfɪʃnt/

/-ʃn/ /-ʒn / /-kl / /-fl /

mansion /ˈmænʃn/ explosion /ɪkˈspləʊʒn/ classical /ˈklæsɪkl/ peaceful /ˈpiːsfl/
stain /ˈsteɪʃn/ occasion /əˈkeɪʒn/ musical /ˈmjuːzɪkl/ powerful /ˈpaʊəfl/
nation /ˈneɪʃn/ division /dɪˈvɪʒn/ local /ˈləʊkl/ watchful /ˈwɒtʃfl/

/-dl/ /-tl / /-ʃl/ /-zl /

medal /ˈmedl/ kettle /ˈketl/ commercial /kəˈmɜ:ʃl/ nasal /ˈneɪzl/
candle /ˈkændl/ cattle /ˈkætl/ special /ˈspeʃl/ appraisal /ˈəpreɪzl/
middle /ˈmɪdl/ little /ˈlɪtl/ official /ˈəfɪʃl/ phrasal /ˈfreɪzl/

/-pl / The vowel sounds that are affected by elision are mainly the weak centralized /ɪ, ʊ, ə/. There
chapel /ˈtʃæpl/ may be elision of a weak vowel sound in present-day English when it is preceded and
people /ˈpi:pl/ followed by consonants in non-prominent syllables. Elision takes place most frequently when
weak vowel sounds are followed by /l, r, n/. There may also be double vowel elision in the
same word. Exceptions: elision of vowel sounds does not normally occur in nouns ending in
–ful. Examples: fistful, mouthful.

CONSONANT SOUNDS

The alveolar plosives /t, d/ when medial in a cluster of three consonants are generally
elided.

The dental fricative /θ/ is generally elided from: asthma and isthmus.

The dental fricative /θ/ may sometimes be elided in: months, twelfths, fifths.
Inside
words The velar plosive /k/ can also be elided in: asked.

When /l/ is dark, it is liable to be elided when preceded by /ɔ:/

Word final alveolars /t,d/ are generally elided when preceded and followed by consonants.

The glottal fricative /h/ is elided in unaccented, non-initial his, her, himself, herself, have,
has, had.
At
word There is a tendency to retain the alveolar plosives /t,d/ before initial /h/.
boundary
There is a tendency to retain the alveolar plosive /t/ in /-lt/, /-nt/ combinations. Exc:
Disyllabic contracted negative forms.
ASSIMILATION:
Juxtapositional assimilation
Word-final alveolars /t, d, n, s, z/ tend to assimilate to the place of articulation of the following consonant but retaining
the original voicing. This usually happens at word boundary but it can also occur word-internally.

sound into before EXAMPLE

/t/ /p/ taugh​t​Paul​/tɔː​p​pɔːl/,​pu​t​back ​/pʊ​p​bæk/,​tha​t​man ​/ðæ​p​mæn/

/p, b,
/d/ /b/ m/ goo​d​man ​/gʊ​b​mæn/​, shoul​d​be ​/ˈʃʊ​b​bi/​, avoi​d​packing ​/əˈvɔɪ​b​ˈpækɪŋ/

/n/ /m/ o​n​Monday ​/ɒ​m​mʌndi/​, ca​n​be ​/kə​m​ˈbi:/​, o​n​probation ​/ɒ​m​prəˈbeɪʃn/

/t/ /k/ ge​t​caught ​/ge​k​kɔ:t/, ​ge​t​going ​/ˈge​k​ˈgəʊɪŋ/

/d/ /g/ /k, g/ staye​d​calm ​/steɪ​g​kɑ:m/, ​di​d​Grace ​/dɪ​g​ˈgreɪ/

/n/ /ŋ/ o​n​e case ​/wʌ​ŋ​keɪs/, i​n​Greece ​/ɪ​ŋ​ˈgri:s/

/s/ /ʃ/ /ʃ, tʃ, thi​s​​shop ​/ˈðɪ​ʃ​ˈʃɒp/, ​thi​s​chair ​/ˈðɪ​ʃ​ˈtʃeə /, ​les​s​generous​/ˈle​ʃ​ˈʤenərəs/

dʒ/
/z/ /ʒ/ tho​s​e sheep ​/ˈðəʊ​ʒ​ˈʃɪp/​, the​s​e chairs ​/ˈðiː​ʒ​ˈtʃeəz/​, i​s​George ​/ɪ​ʒ​ˈdʒɔːdʒ/

/s/ /ʃ/ in ca​s​e you need it. → /ɪŋ keɪ​ʃ​ju niːd ɪt/ → /ɪŋ keɪ​ʃ ʃ​u niːd ɪt/
/j/
/z/ /ʒ/ Ha​s​your letter come? → /hə​ʒ​jɔ: ˈletə kʌm/ → /hə​ʒ ʒ​ɔ: ˈletə kʌm/

Coalescent assimilation
Coalesce → combine to form one single segment. Frequently used in word boundaries but also in internal position in
some words. The options without it are considered “a more studied, conservative style of speech”. In other cases, it is
variable and depends on speech style. However, they are becoming more frequent in RP

sound + coal. Example

/t/ /j/ /tʃ/ pu​t y​ourself ​/ˈpʊ​tʃ​ɔːself/, ​mee​t y​ou ​/ˈmiː​tʃ​u/, ​le​t y​ou​​/ˈle​tʃ​u/

/d/ /dʒ/ Di​d y​ou ​/ˈdɪ​dʒ​u/​, Coul​d y​ou ​/ˈkʊ​dʒ​u/​, Woul​d y​ou ​/ˈwʊ​dʒ​u/

perpetual virtue modular gradual

Internal position situation creature individual schedule
intuition graduate dual soldier
question righteous

COMPRESSION:
●​ Is the reduction of a sequence of vowels: a diphthong becomes a monophthong (=pure vowel),
sometimes preceded by a semivowel.
●​ In RARE cases of syllables containing triphthongs, they’re reduced into diphthongs and even
monophthongs.
brilliant /ˈbrɪ.li.ənt/ → /ˈbrɪ.ljɪənt/ romantic /rəʊ.ˈmæn.tɪk/ →/rəˈmæn.tɪk/

influence /ˈɪn.flu.əns/ → /ˈɪn.flwəns/ diagram /ˈdaɪə.græm/ → /ˈdaə.græm/ → /ˈdɑ:.græm/

at word boundraries: the conversion of vowels into semivowels.

the other day /ði ˈʌðə ˈdeɪ/ → /ˈðjʌðə deɪ/ to any of us /tu ˈeni əv əs/ → /ˈtweni əv əs/

to other people /tu ˈʌðə ˈpiːpl/ → /ˈtwʌðə ˈpiːpl/

INTONATION:
2. The functions of intonation
In some languages, speakers use their pitch to carry linguistic information,the most common
ones are: attitudinal, grammatical and discours.
●​ intonation can contribute to our expression of attitudes and emotions. In other words,
intonation has an attitudinal function.
-​ Does he always have to come late?
●​ Intonation in this case the difference between a declarative mood question and a
declarative statement. In other words, intonation has a grammatical function, it can
contribute to identifying grammatical structures in speech.
●​ (v) How long have you lived in Paris?; for (vi) it could be Have you ever visited Paris?. These
examples illustrate the discourse function of intonation. In other words, intonation is
used as “a resource that indicates how different parts of the discourse relate to each
other”

3. Discourse Intonation
DI uses the term tone unit for this minimal unit of analysis and defines it as “the stretch of
language that carries the systematically-opposed features of intonation”

●​ Tonic segment: An obligatory segment in a tone unit delimited by the first and last
prominent syllables.
●​ Proclitic segment: This is the stretch before the beginning of the tonic segment. It does
not contain prominent syllables. This is an optional element.
●​ Onset: this is the first prominent syllable in a tone unit.
●​ Tonic: This is the last prominent syllable in the tone unit.
●​ Enclitic segment: This is the stretch that extends after the tonic segment. It does not
contain prominent syllables. This is an optional element.

//What a fa’bulous car you have//

TONE UNIT is a unit of organization in speech “that we recognize as having essentially an

equivalent function to that of sentences or clauses in writing”

It is there that the speaker makes choices at the level of the four subsystems intonation
consists of, according to this model: prominence, tone, key and termination.

Prominence: when we speak we can highlight syllables of certain words we consider important
in a specific context. Those are called prominent syllables, while the rest, non-prominent.
Prominence involves “variation on the dimension of pitch, loudness and time”. The last
prominent syllable of a tone unit, called the tonic syllable.
tone contributes to meaning transmission through major pitch movements that start on
the tonic syllable.
-​ proclaiming tones: falling, and rising falling
-​ referring: rising, and falling rising tones
-​ and the level tone.
in Standard British English are the falling and the falling-rising tones. These two tones
represent basic distinctions: the status of information, the social meanings of tones and the
roles and status of the speakers in a communicative situation.

key and termination, are linguistically significant pitch level choices (high, mid and low) at
certain points in the tone unit. While the former, key, is realized on the onset (the first
prominent syllable in a tone unit), the latter, on the tonic (the last prominent syllable in the
tone unit.

4. Prominence: recapitulation and consolidation

PROMINENCE: As a synonym of “importance”, this term refers to a resource at the speaker’s
disposal to indicate which words are relevant in a particular discourse context.
-​ prominences represent moment-by-moment speaker’s decisions as to what to point out
as relevant for the ongoing discourse
-​ non-prominences are syllables which are not highlighted by the speakers – they are
quieter, less clear, shorter and faster and they follow pitch movements, rather than
being the starting points for them

●​ After-tax income: is the net income after deducting all federal, state, and withholding
taxes
●​ divvy something ↔ up: to share something between several people
●​ peanut brittle: is a type of confection consisting of flat broken pieces of hard sugar
candy embedded with nuts such as pecans, almonds, or peanuts,[1] and which are
usually less than 1 cm thick.
●​ An action figure: is a poseable character model figure made most commonly of plastic,
●​ beret: a round cap with a tight band around the head and a soft loose top part
●​ A backorder: is an order for a good or service that cannot be filled at the current time
due to a lack of available supply.
●​ Epaulette: is a type of ornamental shoulder piece or decoration used as insignia of rank
by armed forces and other organizations.
●​ blunder: a careless or stupid mistake

5. Perceiving tones
This subsystem consists of five possible options: falling, and rising falling (also called
proclaiming tones); rising, and falling rising tones (also called referring); and the level tone
(also called neutral).
 -​ why:
-​ how:
-​ where:
-​ who:
-​ when:
-​ whose:
-​ here:
-​ there:
-​ well:
-​ now:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

......John .....Kate .....Bryan .....Mark .....Chris .....Paul .....Kim .....then ..... you .....me

Repetition of tones on polysyllabic words

↘︎beautiful​ fan↘︎tastic ​ guaran↘︎tee ​
↗︎usually​ ex↗︎ceptional​ under↗︎stand
↘︎↗︎hopefully​ to↘︎↗︎morrow​ engi↘︎↗︎neer​
↗︎↘︎horrible​ sur↗︎↘︎prising​ disa↗︎↘︎gree

1.​ - What's your favourite colour? ​ - Yellow.

2.​ - What's the weather like? ​ - Freezing.
3.​ - Would you like some help with those bags?​ - Please
4.​ - How many sisters do you have?​ - None
5.​ - Have you finished your homework?​ - Sure
6.​ - What time is it?​ - Late
7.​ - Did you make a mistake here?​ - Sorry
8.​ - Have you heard the news about the accident?​ - Yes
9.​ - Can you believe it!​ - No
10.​- When's Jane's birthday?​ - Today

INTONATION: New and shared information

●​ Speaker A's Knowledge: The part of the speaker's world that is not shared or already
negotiated with the interlocutor.
●​ Speaker B's Knowledge: The part of the speaker's world that is not shared or already
negotiated with the interlocutor.
●​ Common ground: Knowledge speakers think they share about the world, about other's
experiences, attitudes and feelings. It is not limited to a specific linguistic interaction, but the
"product of the interpenetrating biographies of the participants" (Brazil et al., 1980, p. 15)
 ●​ Proclaiming tones: The speaker understands there is information to be asserted, told,
instructed, or completed. The ones which end with a falling movement:
-​ Falling (↘ )
-​ Rising falling (↗↘ )

●​ Referring tones: The speaker is believed to be reminding about, confirming, or continuing

with some piece of information already shared in some way by the interlocutor(s). The ones
that finish with a rising movement:
-​ Rising (↗ )
-​ Falling rising (↘↗ )

●​ Level tone: (→) the one in which pitch remains relatively neutral. The speaker may not be in
a position to proclaim or refer and, consequently, chooses the level tone. It shows that the
speaker is not engaged with the hearer. Put differently, the speaker disengages from the
interaction to retrieve a word and, once it has been obtained, s/he gets back into the
interaction. It has been described as the ideal tone to “signal information that is routined or
established”.

●​ intonation choices always reflect the speaker’s decisions

Intonation: Questions
Wh- questions end with a falling movement and Yes-no questions end with a rising pitch
 finding-out interested in getting information they falling tone
questions. don’t know (rather than giving, they are
seeking new information.)

making-sure speakers wish to confirm information falling-rising or rising

questions they (presume they) know tones
●​ A falling-rising often sounds
more polite than a rising tone.
●​ the rising tone, may imply a
more dominant attitude, as if
showing (the desire for) some
kind of control of the situation.

social questions “ask questions in order to be friendly, referring tone (rising or

(phatic questions) rather than because the answer is of any falling-rising)
real importance or even interest”
●​ the tone choice that insinuates
togetherness

2. Finding out, making sure and socializing

finding-out questions: when speakers are interested in getting information that they don’t
actually know, they normally use the falling tone
making-sure questions: when speakers wish to confirm information they (presume they)
know, they usually use the falling-rising or rising tones. with which they attempt to confirm
information that is considered to be somehow present in the common ground speakers wish
to confirm information they (presume they) know, they usually use the falling-rising or rising
tones. sounds more polite than a rising tone
social questions: when speakers seem to “ask questions in order to be friendly, rather than
because the answer is of any real importance, or even interest”. They are also known as phatic
questions.

3. Other forms of elicitation

elicitations: utterance types whose purpose is to obtain (search for or prospect) from the
hearer some kind of verbal response or, if this is not possible or desirable, a non-verbal
equivalent.
Declarative-mood questions
●​ The questions themselves are interpreted as a way of eliciting a response but they do
not have the subject-verb inversion typically associated with interrogative utterances.
●​ They look like statements, even though they are interpreted as “questioning”.
●​ They seem to combine the presentation of some information and the intention to have
the hearer confirm it.
 ●​ Declarative-mood questions may take either referring or proclaiming tones.
-​ referring tone: present the apparent intentions of the hearer as if they were
negotiated common ground and a simultaneous request for confirmation.
-​ proclaiming tone: it can be interpreted as somehow recycling the information
passed so far and at the same time asking for greater precision.
●​ (The person wants to ask the question, and provide info and expand on the topic)
Question tags
●​ The tag is an important device used in conversation to get a reply or reaction from the
hearer
●​ may take either referring or proclaiming tones.
●​ With a referring tone, typically rising, the speaker seems to be asking a genuine
question
-​ // 'This is an A↘ merican car // ↗isn’t it //
●​ With a proclaiming tone, in contrast, “the speaker insists, assumes or expects that the
[hearer] will agree”
●​ the speaker is actually making a comment rather than a question.
-​ // 'Janet is a very ↘caring person // ↘isn’t she //
●​ Tags can be attached to utterances other than statements, as in exclamations.
-​ // How ↗↘difficult // ↘isn’t it //
●​ They can be added to imperative sentences. These tags usually have a rising tone and
are often used to soften a request or command
-​ // Take ↘ care of these // ↗would you //
Echo questions
●​ functions as “a request for repetition or clarification, or it may also express surprise or
amazement at what the other speaker has said”
●​ usually pronounced with a rising tone.
-​ A: // You’d 'better get ↘going // B: // I’d 'better get ↗going //

ROLES AND STATUS OF SPEAKERS

Discourse dominance
Depending on the social situation, the subject matter and the speakers’ objectives, among other
factors, sometimes speakers sound as ‘being in control’.
●​ The rising tone is called referring plus (r+) and the rising-falling tone is known as
proclaiming plus (p+).
-​ The + symbol adds into the discourse an idea of dominance or control as a factor that
may (need to) be used for oral communication to succeed.
●​ In terms of frequency the rise-fall is the least common of all the tones.
-​ the speaker is heard as proclaiming [a] fact
-​ the information is marked as doubly new
-​ the speaker is unlikely to expect a reply.
-​ It can be said to be in control of the discourse by somehow delimiting, avoiding, or
restraining the hearer’s eventual turn to speak.
Lists and enumerations
the tones more typically used are the referring ones, with a preference for rising.
-​ the list items may be said with a level tone. This tone is normally repeated on each of the
elements in a series when the speaker is not interested in them, or when such elements are
obvious, or are part of a routine.

Narratives
The most obvious effect of this is that the storyteller, once established in the dominant role, can
expect to be allowed to proceed uninterrupted to the end of the narrative.
-​ . The rising tone may be used to capture the audience's attention and enable them to follow
the story.

FINAL 2025:
Alumnos libres

Los/las estudiantes libres rinden un examen final con programa completo. Dicho
examen consiste en una sección escrita (teórico-práctica), y una sección oral. Ambas
secciones serán eliminatorias. La sección oral será la misma para todos los/las
estudiantes, ya sean libres o regulares.

NOTA: Es importante aclarar que, para el examen final de estudiantes libres, se

considerará el programa vigente al momento de rendir.

Evaluaciones orales, parciales y finales: consistirán en:

1. Lectura de textos conocidos y/o desconocidos con o sin transcripción entonacional.

2. Producción oral espontánea a partir de situaciones de naturaleza dialógica asignadas

por el profesor. Estas se encuentran relacionadas con los temas que se desarrollan en
Lengua Inglesa II.

Evaluaciones escritas parciales y finales: consistirán en:

1. Preguntas de opción múltiple acerca de los contenidos de la asignatura.

2. Transcripción fonémica que incluya los rasgos de simplificación fonológica cubiertos

en la asignatura.

3. Marcado de acentuación.

4. Marcado de entonación (prominencia y tonos)

5. Dictado para reconocimiento de entonación (prominencia y tonos).

6. Análisis e interpretación de elecciones entonacionales en contexto.