Rachael-Anne Knight, 2003, University of Surrey - Roehampton
Understanding English Variation, Week 3
Understanding English Variation
Week 3 – Syllables and stress, Connected speech
processes
Aims: To understand the nature of syllables in English
To understand the differences between strong and weak syllables
To understand the differences between strong and weak forms
1 What is a syllable?
Most people agree that they can count the number of syllables a word or utterance
contains but would find it difficult to give a definition of a syllable.
1.1 A phonetic definition
In terms of how they are produced and sound syllables can be said to consist of a
centre that as little obstruction of airflow (usually a vowel) and a start and end that
have little of no obstruction to airflow and sound quieter than the centre.
1.1.1 Examples
 The minimum syllable consists of a vowel on it’s own such as in the words
‘are’ 
 Some syllables have a onset; another sound or sounds preceding the centre
‘me’ 
 Syllables may have a coda, sounds after the centre, but no onset ‘egg’ 
 Syllables may have an onset and a coda ‘horse’ 
1.1.2 Problems with the phonetic description of syllables
It can be difficult to decide where the boundaries of a syllable are using a phonetic
description. For example, where is the syllable boundary in the following words??
Extra
 
 
 
 
1.2 Phonological descriptions of the syllable
If we take a more phonological approach we may have more success in defining the
syllable. For this purpose we need to consider the possible combinations of English
phonemes that can occur. NB we are considering sounds NOT spellings
1.2.3 The syllable onset
 If a syllable starts with a vowel we say the syllable has a zero onset. Any
vowel can occur at the beginning of a syllable although  is rare.
Rachael-Anne Knight, 2003, University of Surrey - Roehampton
Understanding English Variation, Week 3
 If the syllable begins with a single consonant the consonant may be any
phoneme except  and  is very rare.
 If the syllable begins with more than one consonant we call this a consonant
cluster. There are two types
 Two consonant clusters
o S +p, t, k, f, m, n Examples are spin, stick, sphere, smell and snow. In
these type of clusters the s is call pre-initial consonant and the other
consonant is called the initial consonant.
o Consonant plus l, r, w, j Examples are plate, grin, slip, music etc. In
theses type of clusters the first consonant is the initial and the second is
the post-initial consonant.
 Three consonant clusters
Some syllables begin with three consonants, although the combinations are limited.
The three consonants are called the pre-initial, the initial and the post-initial. The preinitial consonant is always s, the initial consonant is always p, t or k and the postinitial consonant is always l, r, w or j. Examples are ‘splay’, ‘spray’, ‘spew’, ‘string’,
‘stew’, ‘sclerosis’, ‘screen’, ‘squeak’ and ‘skewer’.
1.2.4 The syllable coda
 If there are no consonants at the end of the syllable we say it has a zero coda
 A single consonant is called the final consonant. Any consonant except h, r, w
and j may be final
 Two consonant clusters
o Pre-final m. n, , l, s followed by a final consonant
o Consonant plus post-final s, z, t, d,  (these are often separate morphemes
e.g. ‘asks’
 Three consonant clusters
o Prefinal plus final plus post-final e.g helped, banks, bonds, twelfth
o Final plus post-final plus post final s, z, t, d,  e.g. fifths, next, lapsed
 Four consonant clusters
o Most are pre-final plus final plus post final plus post-final e.g. twelfths,
prompts
o Occasionally there is one final and three post final consonants e.g. sixths,
texts.
Rachael-Anne Knight, 2003, University of Surrey - Roehampton
Understanding English Variation, Week 3
2 Strong and Weak syllables
English has both weak and strong syllables. The most important distinction is that a
strong syllable can have its peak on any English vowel phoneme except , whilst a
weak syllable can only have its peak on , a close front unrounded vowel (like ), a
close back rounded vowel (like ), or a syllabic consonant. Weak syllables also tend
to be quieter and shorter than strong syllables.
Schwa ()
Any syllable containing schwa is a weak syllable. Schwa can take the place of many
other vowels that would be present if the syllable we strong (imagine saying the
following words with stress on the italicised part). These are  (attend), 
(particular),  (intimate),  (carrot),  (forget),  (violet),  (perhaps), 
(autumn).
Close front and close back vowels (   )
In weak syllables it is very difficult to tell whether a high front vowel should be
transcribed as  or  (think of the vowel at the end of ‘busy’). It is also difficult to
tell whether a close back vowel should be  or  (think of the vowel in ‘to’). In each
case the sound doesn’t seem to be either of the two phonemes. The solution adopted
by Roach and in this course is to use the symbol for the long vowel but without the
length mark e.g. [] and []
Syllabic consonant
The consonants l, m ,  and n can be syllables all on their own in English. In these
cases we call them syllabic consonants. We transcribe syllabic consonants with a
vertical line underneath.
l
Syllabic l occurs after another consonant and is found in words such as ‘bottle’
//
n
Syllabic n occurs word medially or finally in words such as threaten 
m and 
These can be syllabic but only when the processes of elision (loss of a sound) or
assimilation (sound change due to influence of neighbouring sounds) have applied.
We consider these processes in detail in the next section.
R
R can also be syllabic in rhotic accents, such as most American accents.
Weak forms
Strong forms are often found:
When they occur at the end of a word
When a word is contrasted with another word
When a word is stressed for emphasis
When a words is being quoted.
Rachael-Anne Knight, 2003, University of Surrey - Roehampton
Understanding English Variation, Week 3
Roach chapter 12 is devoted to the discussion of around 40 words which have both a
weak and a strong form in English. He describes how the usage and position of a
word can determine which form it takes.