EXPLORING HOW PEOPLE USE
SOUNDS IN SPEECH
Understanding connected speech in
everyday conversations
The importance of Auditory Connections in
Speech
An analysis of natural speech patterns
among regular individuals
Connected Speech
• Sometimes, connecting one word to another is done by
adding sounds, deleting sounds, or changing sounds to
make articulation smoother. These changes are
completely normal but may make it challenging for
English language learners to recognize words that they
know in isolation.
Why does connected speech MATTER?
• Connected speech is also important because learners
find it interesting and fun. Language learning that is
fun has been shown to increase motivation
(Stoimcheva-Kolarska, 2020) and long-term retention
(Abourdan, 2009; Birsen, 2017).
• Connected speech feels like real speech to language
learners, and it is. More importantly, learning to hear
connected speech will make it easier to listen to the
speech of others. Knowing how English speakers
connect words together will make it possible to
understand others in situations where they seem to
be speaking fast, where several people are speaking
together, and in normal speech situations where it
Why does connected speech
happen?
• Native English speakers tend not to be aware of
producing connected speech (Hardcastle et al., 2010),
suggesting that CSPs are automatic and deeply
ingrained into our ways of speaking. Some researchers
have considered connected speech to be primarily a
function of the immediate phonemic environment
(Baumann, 1996), especially the effects of
coarticulation.
Representing Connected Speech
Historically, these variant spellings, which are
sometimes referred to as eye dialect (Picone,
2016), appeared almost exclusively in writing in
order to represent direct speech (Weber, 1986)
• some of → su‿muv
• run into → ru‿ninto
• show up → sho‿wup
• zoom in → zoo‿min
C‿V • fall apart → fa‿lapart
linking • rise up → ri‿zup
• check in → che‿kin
• give up → gi‿vup
• work out → wur‿kout
• look over → loo‿kover
https://iastate.pressbooks.pub/teachingpronunciation/chapter/chapter-10-connected-speech/#10.2
• drop by → draʔ‿by
• get by → geʔ‿by
• sit down → siʔ‿down
C‿C linking • take down → tayʔ‿down
• look forward to →
look‿forwarʔ‿to(/ta)
• wait for → wayʔ‿for(/fer)
V‿V linking (Glide Insertion)
• For front vowels, the link to the second vowel is made with a
brief [j], and for back vowels, the link is made with [w].
• see it → see‿y‿it
• he asked →
he‿y‿asked
• they all→they‿y‿all
Another way to show these links is through
respelling, using either <w> or <y> spellings.
• do it → do<w>it
• I am → I<y>am
• go on → go<w>awn
• he is → he<y>is
• see it → see<y>it
• coffee or tea → coffee<y>or tea
• two apples → two<w>apples
• be able → be<y>able
Types of Connected Speech
Processes
• There are five types of connected speech:
• Catenation (or linking),
• Intrusion,
• Elision,
• Assimilation
• Geminates
• H dropping
• Flapping
• Reduction
Catenation (or linking),
• Catenation happens when a consonant sound at
the end of one word gets attached to the first vowel
sound at the beginning of the following word.
• For example, when native speakers say “an apple”
you’ll usually hear them say, “anapple”. The “n” in
“an” gets joined with the “a” sound in “apple” and
it becomes almost like a single word. “tripover”
“hangout” “cleanup”
Intrusion
• Intrusion happens when an extra sound
squishes in between two words. The intruding
sound is often a “j”, “w”, or “r”.
For example, we often say:
• “he asked” more like “heyasked”
• “do it” more like “dewit”
• “there is” more like “therris”
Elision or Deletion
• Elision happens when the last sound of a
word disappears. This often happens with “t”
and “d” sounds.
For example:
• “next door” often gets shortened to
“nexdoor”
• “most common” often gets shortened to
“moscommon”
Assimilation
• Assimilation happens when sounds blend
together to make an entirely new sound.
Some examples include:
• “don’t you” getting blended into “don-chu”
• “meet you” getting blended into “mee-chu”
• “did you” getting blended into “di-djew”
Geminate
• Geminates are a doubled or long consonant
sound. In connected speech, when a first word
ends with the same consonant sound that the
next word begins with, we often put the
sounds together and elongate them.
For example:
• “single ladies” turns into “single-adies”
• “social life” turns into “social-ife”
h-dropping
• h-dropping also occurs in all forms of the
auxiliary verb to have (have, has, had). This
leads to have, has, and had being
pronounced as [əv], [əz] and [əd].
For example:
• should have → shou‿duv (should’ve)
• would have → wou‿duv (would’ve)
• could have → cou‿duv (could’ve)
• When /t/ or /d/ occurs
Flapping
between vowels, this often
results in a “flap” /ɾ/ in • a lot of → uh‿lo‿ɾuv
North American English, • but I → bu‿ɾeye
which is a sound produced • that it → tha‿ɾit
by briefly tapping your
• you hurt it → you‿hur‿ɾit
tongue on the small ridge
located just behind your • right away → ri‿ɾa‿way
upper front teeth on the • what if → wuh‿ɾif
roof of your mouth. • got to go → go‿ɾa‿go
• If the /t/ or /d/ is preceded • get over it →
by a sonorous consonant ge‿ɾoh‿vu‿rit
sound ( ? ), then a flap can
Reduction (Weak Forms)
• Reduction is everywhere in English because of the
effects of stress on pronunciation. Unstressed syllables
are also called reduced syllables, which include sounds
that are less distinct and clearly articulated.
How to improve your Connected Speech
• Shadowing and recording yourself
• Assignment for 01/05
• Record yourself in a video, listen to the
recoding and determine which process you
perform in your speaking. Tell where, why or
how. Upload the recording + your explanation
to the platform.
• https://forms.gle/XvHVDQsRCMRt1Nfc8
Directions: Listen to each phrase. Are the
words linked together? Answer Yes or No.
https://iastate.pressbooks.pub/teachingpronunciation/chapter/chapter-10-connected-speech/#10.2
Video about linking sounds
• Consonant – vowel linking
• Vowel – vowel linking
• https://youtu.be/iuh6_d_pBaE?si=1VxTFJgksa_X7N6T
• https://youtu.be/DORdusbMrrE?si=yl7i1Iu4g6ap8lMe
