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Describing consonants: the articulatory system, place and manner - American accent - connected speech and phonemic transcription stress

Q: What is the frequency of weak and contracted forms compared to strong forms?

Weak and contracted forms appear much more often than strong forms . Weak forms used when function words are unstressed . Strong forms used at the end of an intonation phrase .

Q: When are weak forms used versus strong forms?

Use weak forms when the word is unstressed . Use strong forms at the end of intonation phrases . Pronouns are an exception and retain weak forms.

Q: How do weak forms change before vowels?

Weak forms ending with /ə/ (e.g. to, for) can change before vowels . Example: to is pronounced /tə/ before vowels.

Q: How is the pronunciation of 'h' in weak forms variable?

Pronunciation of /h/ in weak forms like have or had can vary. Initial utterances always use /h/ forms. Other contexts may use either /h/ or /h/-less forms.

Q: What is the weak form of 'her' and how does it vary?

The weak form of her is either /ə/ or /ɜː/ . As a determiner, /ɜː/ is more common. As a pronoun, /ə/ becomes more common.

Q: When do prepositions and pronouns adopt weak or strong forms?

Prepositions combine with pronouns, using weak forms after stressed syllables. They adopt strong forms after unstressed syllables.

7 important questions on Describing consonants: the articulatory system, place and manner - American accent - connected speech and phonemic transcription stress

What is weak form and strong form in terms of stress?

The reduced, unstressed pronunciation is termed the weak form (abbreviated to WF), while the full pronunciation characteristic of stressed contexts is called the strong form (abbreviated to SF).