In the process of oral expression, Chinese people emphasize “correct pronunciation and clear articulation” and “pearls falling on a jade plate”. Therefore, when Chinese people speak, it resembles counting beans, with each bean falling one by one until it is clear. However, English is quite the opposite; it requires certain key words in a sentence to be emphasized while downplaying others that are not key, especially in American English, where it even connects two or more words together. It feels as if the first word is not finished before the next one follows, or it may omit a consonant from a word. As a result, many Chinese, who are used to speaking with a clear and distinct pronunciation, find English to be “too vague,” which leads to poor listening skills for many.
Conversely, if foreigners were to speak English according to the Chinese style of “one word at a time with clear articulation,” there would be no issues with oral expression or poor listening skills.
Thus, as Chinese learners of English, it is essential to adapt to the habits of the English language. Of course, to master such “English-style” oral expression, the fundamental focus must be on the connected speech and reduced speech in English.
Connected Speech
Rule 1: Consonant + Vowel
When two adjacent words in a sentence have the first word ending with a consonant and the second word starting with a vowel, they are pronounced as “consonant + vowel”.
Explanation: Do you remember some words in Chinese pinyin like xi’an (西安) and ku’ai (酷爱)? If you remove the separating sound, they become xian (先) and kuai (快). In English, almost all sentences are pronounced from start to finish. In simple terms: connected speech happens when two words meet and can be pronounced together; if they cannot, they must be separated.
For example: Take~it~easy
Phrase Practice (Read aloud):
1.far~away It’s not far~away from here.
2.in~an~hour I should be there in~an~hour.
3.later~on I’m going to see a movie later~on.
4.put~it~on Here’s your sweater. Put~it~on.
5.stand~up Stand~up and stretch for a while.
6.take~care~of I’ll always take~care~of you .
7.take~it~easy Take~it~easy! Everything is going to be fine.
8.take~off Please fasten your seat belt. we will take~off shortly.
9.there~are There~are forty students in my class.
10.work~out I work~out every day to keep fit.
Sentence Practice:
1.Come~on！Cheer~up！
2.Keep~it~up！
3.Never give~up！
4.I mean~it.
5.I’ve got~a lot~of work to do.
6.May I have~a cup~of milk?
7.What do you think~of~it？
Rule 2: Vowel + Vowel
When two adjacent words in a sentence have the first word ending with a vowel and the second word starting with a vowel, a slight [j] or [w] sound is added between the two vowels, pronounced as “vowel + [j] or [w] + vowel”.
[i:] or [eɪ] ending vowel + [j] + vowel
1、see us→see [j] us
Come and see~us again soon.
2、be over→be [j] over
It will be~over soon.
3、be able→be [j] able
Will you be~able to come tomorrow?
4、say it →say [j] it
Could you say~it again please?
5、pay Ann →pay [j] Ann
Please pay~Ann her salary.
Vowel ending with [u:] or [əʊ] + [w] + vowel
1、do it→do [w] it
Don’t do~it again.
2、go up→go [w] up
Let’s go~upstairs and have dinner.
3、show us→show [w] us
Can you show~us something else.
Note: The connection of vowel to vowel is a sound that naturally glides over. When your pronunciation approaches fluency, you will find that you can effectively achieve this without deliberately pronouncing [j] and [w], so practice relaxedly; imitation is the best teacher.
Rule 3: Omission of the [h] sound in connected speech
In connected speech, words starting with “h” have their [h] sound almost omitted. This is because the [h] sound is very special—it is just breath without friction, so it seems to be omitted when pronounced.
1、Does~he know?
2、What~happened？
3、Please give~him a hand！
The rules of English connected speech are explained entirely in English, with real classroom teaching.
How do you connect the phrase “What do you do for a living?”?
Watch the three-minute video and practice along.
Reduced Speech
The most obvious phonetic rule in English, besides connected speech, is reduced speech. When two plosive sounds are adjacent, the first plosive sound only creates an obstruction without exploding, which is called a loss of explosion; when a plosive sound is adjacent to another consonant, that plosive sound does not fully explode. The phenomena of loss of explosion and incomplete explosion in English phonetics are collectively referred to as “reduced speech.” Mastering reduced speech is key to mastering authentic English pronunciation!
Note: In reduced speech, the entire sound is not dropped; rather, the pronunciation is just touched upon, with mouth shapes without sound or slight sound.
Important Academic Terms—Plosive Sounds: [p] [b] [t] [d] [k] [g]
Plosive sound + plosive sound = loss of explosion
Tips:
When any two of the six plosive sounds meet, the first plosive sound stops, forming an obstruction without exploding; the second sound fully explodes; if the second plosive sound is at the end of the word, it must be softened.
When a word ends with a plosive sound and starts with the same plosive sound, only one sound is pronounced, and the first sound is prepared for pronunciation without being pronounced, directly pronouncing the second sound.
Loss of explosion within a word
1.active=a(c)tive [k]+[t]
Students are encouraged to be active in class.
2.blackboard=blac(k)board [k]+[b]
Our class has a large blackboard.
3.dictation=di(k)tation [k]+[t]
We’ll have dictation today.
4.football=foo(t)ball [t]+[b]
There is going to be a football match tonight. Shall we watch it together?
5.goodbye=goo(d)bye [d]+[b]
She waved me goodbye.
Loss of explosion in a sentence
All the phenomena of loss of explosion and incomplete explosion mentioned above occur within a word; in fact, in a sentence or phrase, the probability of adjacent words exhibiting loss of explosion and incomplete explosion is greater than that occurring within a word.
1.Stop talking！=Sto(p)-talking!
2.I don’t care.=I don'(t)-care.
3.I had a bad cold.=I had a ba(d)-cold.
Plosive sounds [t] and [d] + nasal consonants [m] and [n]
When plosive sounds [t] and [d] are followed by nasal consonants [m] and [n], [t] and [d] create an obstruction, and at the end of the word, they must explode through the nasal cavity; during pronunciation, the tip of the tongue is pressed against the alveolar ridge, slightly loosened, and then immediately pressed back. The airflow passes through the nasal cavity from the plosive sound to the nasal sound, while within the word, it is not fully exploded.
[t] and [d] + [m] and [n] at the end of the word
1.Britain [tn]
Britain is made up of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
2.certain [tn]
They are certain to agree.
3.frighten [tn]
The high prices frighten off many customers.
[t] and [d] + [m] and [n] within a word
1.admire=a(d)mire [d]=[m]
I really admire your enthusiasm.
2.admit=a(d)mit [d]+[m]
She admits to being strict with her children.
3.goodness=goo(d)ness [d]+[n]
Thank goodness!
[t] and [d] + [m] and [n] in a sentence
1.Good morning!=Goo(d)-morning!
2.Let me take a look.=Le(t)-me take a look.
3.I don’t know what to say.=I don'(t)-know what to say.
Plosive sounds [t] and [d] + lateral sounds [l]
When plosive sounds [t] and [d] are followed by lateral sounds [l], they must explode from both sides of the tongue, which often occurs at the end of the word. When plosive sounds [t] and [d] are followed by clear lateral sounds [l], this results in incomplete explosion.
[t] and [d] + [l] at the end of the word
1.battle [t]+[l]
Any soldiers were killed in the battle.
2.gentle [t]+[l]
His soap is very gentle on the hands.
3.little [t]+[l]
I’m a little tired.
4.settle [t]+[l]
The company has agreed to settle out of court.
5.title [t]+[l]
Give your name and title.
[t] and [d] + [l] within a word
1.heartless=hear(t)less [t]+[l]
The decision does seem a little heartless.
2.lately=la(te)ly [t]+[l]
Have you seen him lately?
3.badly=ba(d)ly [d]+[l]
Things have been going badly.
4.needless=nee(d)less [d]+[l]
Banning smoking would save needless deaths.
[t] and [d] + [l] in a sentence
1.Good luck!=Goo(d)-luck!
2.I would like to have one.=I woul(d) like to have one.
3.At last, we made it to his party.=A(t) last, we made it to his party.
Plosive sound + fricative sound/affricate sound = loss of explosion
When a plosive sound is immediately followed by a fricative sound or affricate sound, the plosive sound creates an obstruction but does not fully explode.
Fricative sounds: [f][v][θ][ð][s][z][ʃ][ʒ][h][r]
Affricate sounds: [ts]-[dz],[tr]-[dr],[tʃ]-[dʒ]
Loss of explosion within a word
1.advance=a(d)vance [d]+[v]
We live in an age of rapid technological advance.
2.bookshop=boo(k)shop [k]+[ʃ]
The bookshop opens at 7 o’clock in the morning.
3.helpful=hel(p)ful [p]+[f]
A: Sorry, I can’t be more helpful.
B: Thank you. You’ve been very helpful.
4.lecture=le(c)ture [k]+[tʃ]
Mr. Li is giving a lecture to first-year students.
5.object=o(b)ject [b]+[dʒ]
The object is to educate people about road safety.
Loss of explosion in a sentence
1.You look fantastic.=You loo(k)-fantastic.
2.I’ll get there by ten.=I’ll ge(t) there by ten.
3.Let’s have a good chat.=Let’s have a goo(d)-chat.
4.I haven’t read the book.=I haven'(t)-read the book.
5.Wish you a great success!=Wish you a grea(t)-success!
6.Put the book on the desk.=Pu(t)-the book on the desk.
7.She is one of my old friends.=She is one of my ol(d)-friends.
8.I’d like a room with a good view.=I’d like a room with a goo(d) view.
9.I am quite sure that you will win.=I am qui(te) sure that you will win.
10.Don’t judge people only by appearance.=Don'(t) judge people only by appearance.
Breaking Sentences
When sentences are long, it can be difficult to finish speaking them in one breath. At this point, you can divide the sentence into several segments based on semantic and grammatical relationships, with each segment forming a relatively independent meaning, known as a sense group. In other words, a sense group is a segment that can constitute a relatively independent meaning and is a component of the sentence.
There can be certain pauses between sense groups, consistent with the speaker’s thought process. However, there should be no pauses between the words in a sense group; reading through a sense group should feel like one long word. Remember: English is not spoken word by word.
Example 1:Repeating after tapes is very important to beginners.
Sense group: Repeating after tapes | is very important | to beginners.
Example 2:Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, happy, and wise.
Sense group: Early to bed | and early to rise | makes a man | healthy, happy, and wise.
Example 3:Liu Xiang, who’s a brilliant runner, represented China at the Olympic Games.
Sense group: Liu Xiang, | who’s a brilliant runner, | represented China | at the Olympic Games.
Example 4:But the most important argument for a broad education is that in studying the accumulated wisdom of the ages, we improve our moral sense.
Sense group: But | the most important argument | for a broad education | is that | in studying the accumulated wisdom of the ages, | we improve our moral sense.
The most important reason for broad education is that by studying the accumulated wisdom of the ages, our moral sense can be improved.
The pauses between sense groups depend on the speaker’s situation; it is not necessary to pause at all times. However, if there is a pause, it must be between sense groups; pausing randomly destroys the rhythm of the language.
Sentence Stress
There is a joke about sentence stress in English: A man went to the post office to buy a stamp and asked, “Must I stick it on myself?” Because “on” should not be stressed but was stressed, the original meaning of “Do I stick it on (the envelope) myself?” became “Do I have to stick the stamp on myself?” resulting in a misunderstanding. This shows that correctly handling sentence stress is absolutely crucial.
General Rules for Sentence Stress
In coherent speech, not all words can be equally important; some words are key while others are relatively less important. Generally, key words need to be stressed, which is called sentence stress, while other words do not need to be stressed. In other words: content words are stressed, function words are not stressed.
Words that generally need to be stressed (content words/key words):
Content verbs, nouns, adjectives, adverbs, numbers, question words, and exclamatory words, etc.
Words that generally do not need to be stressed (function words/non-key words):
Auxiliary verbs, modal verbs, articles, prepositions, conjunctions, possessive pronouns, relative pronouns, and relative adverbs, etc.
Additionally, personal pronouns, conjunctions, prepositions, and auxiliary verbs are generally not stressed, but in specific situations, they may need to be stressed. For instance, personal pronouns used as part of a compound subject or object need to be stressed, as do prepositions at the beginning of a sentence.
In listening exams, sentence stress can help candidates identify key words and grasp the main idea, correctly understanding the content they hear. Generally, when there is no need to particularly emphasize or contrast certain content, the sentence stress usually falls on the last content word that appears.
For example: The course was more difficult than she had expected, but she got a lot out of it.
Translation: This course was much more difficult than she had imagined, but she learned a lot from it.
In this sentence, as long as you hear the stressed words or phrases, it is not difficult to understand the meaning correctly.
(1) course, more difficult, expected;
(2) got, lot, out.
Logical Stress in Sentences
Sentence stress always reflects the speaker’s thoughts and the focus of the meaning they are expressing. Sometimes, for emphasis, almost any word in a sentence can have sentence stress, including some words that typically do not carry sentence stress. This type of stress, which is based on the speaker’s intention, is called logical stress.
For example:
Did you tell my wife?
Emphasizing “wife,” do you mean to tell my wife?
Emphasizing “my,” do you mean to tell my wife?
Emphasizing “you,” do you mean to tell my wife?
Practice video for sentence stress in speech
Intonation
Intonation is an important means for us to express various thoughts and emotions. The basic types of English intonation are falling intonation, rising intonation, and level intonation.
Falling intonation indicates that the speaker’s attitude is affirmative, the meaning is complete, and the grammatical structure is independent; rising intonation indicates that the speaker’s attitude is uncertain, the meaning is incomplete, and the grammatical structure is not independent; level intonation is generally used after direct quotations, expressing the specific content of what was said, with no changes in pitch. In sentences or sense groups with more complex meanings, the three basic intonation types are often combined to form rising-falling intonation or falling-rising intonation, making the intonation more complex.
American English is more down-to-earth than British English, and its intonation tends to be more natural, with less intentional rise and fall; British English has greater fluctuations in intonation. Different intonations can express different attitudes and implied meanings from the speaker. Using different intonations for the same sentence in English can produce entirely different meanings.
For instance: “yes,” if said with falling intonation, indicates that the speaker is very certain about the question being answered; if said with rising intonation, it indicates doubt about the question. Intonation has a strong emotional color, making language more expressive.
Falling Intonation
1. Used in declarative sentences:
For example: I have already seen that movie. ↘
Translation: I have already seen that movie.
2. Used in special interrogative sentences:
For example: What has happened to him?↘
Translation: What happened to him?
Note: Special interrogative sentences sometimes use rising intonation to ask someone to repeat what they just said.
For example:
A: I graduated from Lanzhou University and majored in mechanical engineering.↘
Translation: I graduated from Lanzhou University, majoring in mechanical engineering.
B: What was your major?↗
Translation: What was your major?
3. Used in imperative sentences:
For example: Go back to your seat! Now!↘
Translation: Go back to your seat! Now!
4. Used in exclamatory sentences:
For example: What a small world!↘
Translation: What a small world!
5. Used in the part after “or” in choice interrogative sentences:
For example: Do you want to drive↗ or walk?↘
Translation: Do you want to drive or walk?
Rising Intonation
1. Used in general interrogative sentences:
For example: Do you mind if I sit here?↗
Translation: Do you mind if I sit here?
Note: General interrogative sentences sometimes also use falling intonation to express impatience or a commanding tone.
For example: Are you satisfied?↘
Translation: Are you satisfied now?
2. Used when listing items:
For example: For each incomplete sentence, there are four choices marked A↗, B↗, C↗, and D↘.
Translation: For each incomplete sentence, there will be four choices, marked A, B, C, and D.
3. Used in declarative sentences, indicating translation, doubt, uncertainty, conjecture, or expectation.
For example: You really want to do it?↗
Translation: Do you really want to do this?
4. Used in the introductory phrase and adverbial clauses at the beginning of a sentence:
For example: After dinner↗, I read a magazine and made telephone calls.
Translation: After dinner, I read a magazine and made some phone calls.
5. Used in the first participle of a compound sentence, indicating that the sentence is not finished:
For example: My fever is gone↗, but I still have a cough.
Translation: My fever is gone, but I still have a cough.
6. Used in polite imperative sentences:
For example: Excuse me, sir↗. Can you help me↗?
Translation: Excuse me, sir. Can you help me?
7. Used in address terms:
For example: Mrs. Smith↗, this is Tom Jones↘.
Translation: Mrs. Smith, this is Tom Jones.
Level Intonation
Used after direct speech, indicating the specific content of what was said.
For example: “We are going to Florida,” she said brightly.
Translation: She said cheerfully, “We are going to Florida.”
Of course, the premise of all these pronunciation rules is that your pronunciation of each syllable must be standard!
Past Highlights
The “Daily Clear – Weekly Summary – Monthly Test” cyclical learning method of Hengshui Middle School!
Bilingual Speech | The best way to ruin a young person is to keep them in their comfort zone.
Incredible! A 14-year-old junior high school student enrolled in Tsinghua University, pursuing a combined bachelor’s and master’s degree!
The first lesson of the new semester | Let’s see how English masters learn English!
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