2018-03-19 Pronunciation: thought groups

Greg Malivuk
[email protected]
http://www.pastebin.com/u/gmalivuk - notes from all classes
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Levels of pronunciation:
- individual sounds (/i/, /l/, /r/, etc.)
- syllables
- words
- phrases (“the red book”, “my English class”, “put up with him”)
- thought groups
- full sentences
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A clause (a group of words with a subject and verb) has one or more thought groups.
A thought group typically doesn’t cover more than one clause.
I talked to the man / who is giving the talk. - two clauses, two thought groups
He’s giving a talk / in the room next to mine. - one clause, two thought groups
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Handout p. 73 exercise 1A - Which one do you hear?
1 b
2 b
3 a
4 a
5 a
6 b
What are the differences in meaning?
1 a some vacations that are seven weeks long
  b seven vacations that are each one week long
2 a some exams that are three hours long
  b three exams that are each one hour long
3 a some stamps that cost 49 cents
  b forty stamps that cost 9 cents each
4 a My (nick)name is Ben.
  b I want Ben to call me.
5 a I want to know who is giving Julia a job.
  b I want Julia to tell me who is hiring.
  (Who’s hiring? Julia? = I want to know who’s hiring. Is it Julia?)
6 a Some slow men are working.
  b Slow down, because some men are working (on the road).
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p. 75 punctuation (and pronunciation) saves lives
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Let’s eat Grandma! = We are cannibals and I’m suggesting that we eat our grandmother.
Let’s eat, Grandma! = I’m inviting my grandmother to eat with us.
The difference in pronunciation is smaller if it’s a yes/no question:
Should we eat Grandma?
Should we eat, Grandma?
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p. 74 exercise 3A - From reading, do you know who is coming to dinner alone, and who is coming together?
- From the whole conversation, you can guess that Kate and Joe are coming together.
- You can’t tell among Jay, Lu, and Carlos.
Listen and decide who’s coming together.
What pronunciation clues tell you this?
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A woman without her man is lost.
A woman: without her, man is lost.
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I’m an English teacher, but I’m not an English teacher.
- I teach the English language, but I’m not a teacher from England.
- I am a teacher from England, but I don’t teach the English language.
	(The difference depends entirely on pronunciation.)
- Maria isn’t a Russian teacher but she is a Russian teacher.
- Maria isn’t an English teacher but she is an English teacher.
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p. 75 exercise 4A - Listen and answer the questions.
1 a
2 b
3 b
4 a
5 a
6 b
7 a
8 b
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I speak English, Spanish, and Russian.
I speak English, Spanish and Russian
- The serial comma (or Oxford comma) goes before “and” or “or” at the end of a list.
Many English speakers disagree on whether it should be used.
You should just make sure you’re consistent in how you use commas in your writing.
(Or ask your professor what style guide or manual you should use in that class.)
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We invited the buffalo, Washington, and Lincoln.
We invited the buffalo, Wachington and Lincoln.
- Punctuation might be ambiguous (are Washington and Lincoln in addition to the buffalo, or is one or both of those the name of the buffalo?), but pronunciation is always clear.