There is also a group of accentuation oppositions where compound nouns are opposed to free word combinations, e. g. a 'blackboard - класна дошка; a 'black 'board - чорна дошка; a 'dancing-girl - танщвниця; a 'dancing 'girl - дiвчина, яка танцюе.
Compounds = EARLY STRESS
Phrases = LATE STRESS
a 'darkroom = a room for developing photographs a 'moving van = a van which carries furniture when one moves house a 'blackbird = a kind of bird: Turdus merula an 'English teacher = a teacher of English
a c dark 'room = a room which is dark because there is little light in it a c moving 'van = a van that is in motion a c black 'bird = any bird that is black an c English 'teacher = a teacher who is English
There are also often differences between the stressing of compounds in RP and General American, e. g.:
RP
GenAm
'season oticket
oseason 'ticket
oAdam’s 'apple
'Adam's oapple
oopeanut'butter
'peanut obutter
ovocal 'cords
'vocal ocords
It is not a serious problem, but is one that foreign learners should be aware of. A well-known example is 'controversy', which is pronounced by some speakers as ['kontrev3:si] and by others as [kan'trovasi]; it would be quite wrong to say that one version was correct and one incorrect. Other examples of different possibilities are 'ice cream' (either [oais 'kri:m] or ['ais kri:m)], 'kilometre' (either [ki'lnmita] or ['kilamkta] and 'formidable' ['fo:midabl] or [fo:'midabl]. Word-class pairs. One aspect of word stress is best treated as a separate issue. There are several dozen pairs of two- syllable words with identical spelling which differ from each other in stress placement, apparently according to word class (noun, verb or adjective). All appear to consist of prefix + stem. We shall treat them as a special type of word and give them the following rule: if a pair of prefix-plus-stem words exists, both members of which are spelt identically, one of which is a verb and the other of which is either a noun or an adjective, then the stress is placed on the second syllable of the verb but on the first syllable of the noun or adjective. Some common examples are given below (V = verb, A = adjective,
W
N = noun):
abstract
['^bstrakt] (A)
[sb'strakt] (V);
conduct
['kundvkt] (N)
['ksn'dAkt] (V);
contract
['kuntrakt] (N)
[kon'trakt] (V);
contrast
['kuntra:st] (n)
[kon'tra:st] (v);
desert
['dezot] (N)
[di'z3:t] (V);
escort
['esko:t] (N)
[i'sko:t] (V);
export
['ekspo:t] (N)
[ik'spo:t] (V);
import
['impo:t] (N)
[im'po:t] (V);
insult
['insvlt] (N)
[in'svlt] (V);
object
['ubd3ekt] (N)
[ob'd3ekt] (V);
perfect
['p3:fikt] (A)
[po'fekt] (V);
permit
['p3:mit] (n)
[po'mit] (V);
present
['preznt] (N, A)
[pri'zent] (V);
produce
['prDdju:s] (N)
[pro'dju:s] (V);
protest
['prootest] (N)
[pro'test] (V);
rebel
['rebl] (N)
[ri'bel] (V);
record
['reko:d] (N, A)
[ri'ko:d] (V);
subject
['svbd3ekt] (N)
[sob'd3ekt] (V).
e shall turn now to the functional aspect of word stress. Word stress in a language performs three functions. Word stress constitutes a word, it organizes the syllables of a word into a language unit having a definite accentual structure, that is a pattern of relationship among the syllables; a word does not exist without the word stress. Thus the word stress performs the constitutive function. Sound continuum
becomes a phrase when it is divided into units organized by word stress into words.
Word stress enables a person to identify a succession of syllables as a definite accentual pattern of a word. This function of word stress is known as identificatory (or recognitive). Correct accentuation helps the listener to make the process of communication easier, whereas the distorted accentual pattern of words, misplaced word stresses prevent normal understanding.
Word stress alone is capable of differentiating the meaning of words or their forms, thus performing its distinctive function. The accentual patterns of words or the degrees of word stress and their positions form oppositions. There are about 135 pairs of
words of identical orthography in English which could occur either as nouns (with stress on the penultimate syllable) or as verbs (with stress on the final syllable), the location of word stress alone being the differentiating factor. THE LIST OF REFERENCES Collins Beverly, Inger M. Mees. Practical Phonetics and Phonology : A Resource Book for Students. Second Edition. New York : Routledge, 2008. 305 p.
Cruttenden Alan. Gimson's Pronunciation of English. Seventh edition. Routlege, 2013. 362 p.
Giegerich Heinz. English Phonology : An Introduction. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 1992. 333 p.
Jenkins Jennifer. The Phonology of English as an International Language. Oxford : Oxford University Press, 2000. 258 p.
Kreidler Charles W. The Pronunciation of English. A Course Book. Second edition. Blackwell Publishing, 2004. 313 p.
Ladefoged Peter, Johnson Keith. A Course in Phonetics. Seventh edition. Cengage Learning, 2014. 352 p.
McMahon April. An Introduction to English Phonology. Edinburg University Press, 2002. 159 p.
Morley J. Pronunciation Pedagogy and Theory: New Views, New Dimensions. Alexandria, VA : TESOL, 1994. 156 p.
Roach Peter. English Phonetics and Phonology. A Practical course. Fourth edition. Cambridge Universuty Press, 2009. 231 p.
Vrabel Т. T. Lectures in Theoretical Phonetics of the English Language and Method-Guides for Seminars. Ungvar : PoliPrint, 2009. 176 p.
Авраменко Б. В. Теоретична фонетика сучасно! англшсько! мови : навчальний поабник. Одеса : видавець Букаев Вадим Вшторович, 2019. 93 с.
Дворжецька М. П. Фонетика англшсько! мови : фоностилютика i риторика мовленнево! комушкацп. Вшниця : Нова книга, 2005. 208 с.
Паращук В. Ю. Теоретична фонетка англшсько! мови : навчальний поабник для студенев факультет шоземних мов. Вшниця : Нова книга, 2009. 232 с.
QUESTIONS Which points of view can we study stress from?
What makes a syllable prominent?
What is primary stress?
What is secondary stress?
What information do we need to decide on stress placement?
Describe the stress placement in two-syllable words.
Describe the stress placement in three-syllable words.
Describe the stress placement in complex words.
8. What are the suffixes carrying primary stress themselves? What are the suffixes that do not affect stress placement?
What are the suffixes that influence stress in the stem?
