LESSON 6: SYLLABLE STRUCTURE

LESSON 6: SYLLABLE STRUCTURE

Glossary:

beat : nhịp đánh cluster : tổ hợp âm, chuổi âm coda : (âm, phần) cuối component : thành phần, phần hợp thành constraint : sự kiềm chế core : cái cốt (lỏi) function : chức năng illustrate : minh hoạ internal : ở trong, bên trong linguist : nhà ngôn ngữ học nucleus : nhân, âm chính obligatory : bắt buộc onset : (âm) đầu optional : tuỳ ý, không bắt buộc peak : đỉnh (thường là  nguyên âm của âm tiết) phonotactic : (thuộc) phương thức kết âm, kết âm học resonant : (âm) vang, hưởng âm rhyme : vần sonorant : âm vang sonority : độ vang của âm, tính vang âm syllable : âm tiết syllable structure : cấu trúc âm tiết tree branch : nhánh hình cây tree diagram : sơ đồ hình cây vertical line : đường thẳng đứng

Syllables and their parts
A syllable is a unit of sound composed of a central peak of sonority (usually a vowel), and the consonants that cluster around this central peak. Words can be cut up into units called syllables. Humans seem to need syllables as a way of segmenting the stream of speech and giving it a rhythm of strong and weak beats, as we hear in music. Syllables don't serve any meaning-signalling function in language; they exist only to make speech easier for the brain to process. A word contains at least one syllable.
Most speakers of English have no trouble dividing a word up into its component syllables. Sometimes how a particular word is divided might vary from one individual to another, but a division is always easy and always possible. Here are some words divided into their component syllables (a period is used to mark the end of a syllable):
- tomato = to.ma.to
- window = win.dow
- supercalifragilisticexpialidocious = su.per.ca.li.fra.gi.lis.ti.cex.pi.a.li.do.cious (some people might put some of the periods in different places in this word).
Syllables have internal structure: they can be divided into parts. The parts are onset and rhyme; within the rhyme we find the nucleus and coda. Not all syllables have all parts; the smallest possible syllable contains a nucleus only. A syllable may or may not have an onset and a coda.
Onset: the beginning sounds of the syllable; the ones preceding the nucleus. These are always consonants in English. The nucleus is a vowel in most cases, although the consonants [ r ], [ l ], [ m ], [ n ], and the velar nasal (the 'ng' sound) can also be the nucleus of a syllable. In the following words, the onset is in bold; the rest underlined.
read
flop
strap
If a word contains more than one syllable, each syllable will have the usual syllable parts:
win.dow
to.ma.to
pre.pos.te.rous
fun.da.men.tal
Rhyme (or rime): the rest of the syllable, after the onset (the underlined portions of the words above). The rhyme can also be divided up:
Rhyme = nucleus + coda
The nucleus, as the term suggests, is the core or essential part of a syllable. A nucleus must be present in order for a syllable to be present. Syllable nuclei are most often highly 'sonorant' or resonant sounds, that can be relatively loud and carry a clear pitch level. In English and most other languages, most syllable nuclei are vowels. In English, in certain cases, the liquids [ l r ] and nasals [ m n ] and the velar nasal usually spelled 'ng' can also be syllable nuclei.

Parts Description Optionality Onset Initial segment of a syllable Optional Rhyme Core of a syllable, consisting of a nucleus and coda (see below) Obligatory – Nucleus Central segment of a syllable Obligatory – Coda Closing segment of a syllable Optional

The syllable structure analysis of the words 'read', 'flop', 'strap' and 'window' are as follows (IPA symbols are used to show the sounds in the word/syllable):
read = one syllable
Onset = [ r ]
Rhyme = [ id ] (within the rhyme:)
- Nucleus = [ i ]
- Coda = [ d ]
flop = one syllable
Onset = [ f l ]
Rhyme = [ a p ]
- Nucleus = [ a ]
- Coda = [ p ]
window = 2 syllables
First syllable: [wIn]
Onset = [ w ]
Rhyme = [ I n ]
- Nucleus = [ I ]
- Coda = [ n ]
Second syllable: [ d o ]
Onset = [ d ]
Rhyme = [ o ]
- Nucleus = [ o ]
- (This syllable has no coda)
Linguists often use tree diagrams to illustrate syllable structure.

'Flop', for example, would look like this (the word appears in IPA symbols, not English spelling). 'σ' = 'syllable'; 'O' = 'onset'; 'R' = 'rhyme'; 'N' = 'nucleus'; 'C' = 'coda'. The syllable node at the top of the tree branches into Onset and Rhyme; the Onset node branches because it contains two consonants, [ f ] and [ l ]. The Rhyme node branches because this syllable has both a nucleus and a coda.

Liquids and nasals as syllable nuclei
The English liquids [ ‹ l ] and the nasals [ m n ] can be the nuclei of syllables under certain conditions. [ l ] can be a nucleus as easily as a vowel. For example, the words 'table', 'little', both have [ l ] as the nucleus; in other words, there is no vowel in the pronunciation of these syllables.
When one of these sounds is a syllable nucleus, this is shown in transcription by putting a very short vertical line under the IPA symbol:
                    [ r l m n ]
                      ' '  '   '
In terms of consonants and vowels, the following words represent the following structures:

VC up an in CV my hoe so CCV pry grow free CCCV screw spray stray VCC old and ink VCCC Olds ants amps CVCCC test tenths lunged CVCCCC thirsts texts worlds CVC bed set cap CCVC bred dread stone CVCC bald sand hunt CCVCC brand trains swings CCCVC strut squat sprain CCCVCC struts squats sprained CCVCCC slurps prints flirts CCCVCCC scrimps sprints squelched

Phonotactic constraints
All languages except sign languages use sequences of phones to make words. No languages allow sounds to combine freely. That is, there are always constraints on what phones any particular phone can precede and follow. These constraints are called phonotactic constraints. The sum total of all the phonotactic constraints of a language is called its phonotactics.
o In any syllable-internal sequence of a nasal and a stop, the nasal and the stop must have the same place of articulation:

Actual Impossible Possible hand *hamd hant taunt *taumt taund punk *pumk pung

o In any 2-consonant onset, the second consonant must be a sonorant.

Actual Impossible please *ptease proud *psoud pure *pshure twin *tdin trust *tpust queen *ksean clean *cshean cream *cteam

o In any 3-consonant cluster in an onset, the first consonant must be [s]: splash, strong, spew .
o In any 3-consonant cluster in an onset, the second consonant must be a voiceless stop [p,t,k]: splash, strong, spew , extreme.

Initial consonant clusters in English containing a voiceless stop

Labial + sonorant Coronal + sonorant Velar + sonorant [pl]      please [pr]     proud [pw]   ____ [pj]      pure [spl]   splat [spr]   spring [spw]  ____ [spj]    spew [tl]     ____ [tr]     trade [tw]   twin [tj]     tune [stl]   ____ [str]   strip [stw] ____ [stj]   stew [kl]      clean [kr]      cream [kw]    queen [kj]      cute [skl]    sclerosis [skr]    scrap [skw]  squeak [skj]    skewer