Stress and Rhythm - DLFeSCHOOL

Stress and Rhythm
Donna M. Brinton
Professor of TESOL
Soka University of America

Overview of today’s lecture
Characteristics of stressed syllables
The effect of affixation on lexical stress
Lexical stress in . . .
̶ Compounds
̶ Noun/verb pairs
̶ Phrasal verbs
̶ Numbers
Poetic meter and stress-timing
Teaching strategies

Stressed syllables
Stressed syllables are…
̶ Louder: in volume
̶ Longer: in duration
̶ Higher: in pitch
They contain full vowels,
not unstressed vowels.

Louder, longer, higher…
Compare:
about release contain
certain leisure chamber
astronaut sterilize terrify
remember banana religion
understand engineer introduce
revitalize gratuitous particular
salutation absolutely locomotive

Lexical stress
There are three levels of lexical stress:
LEXICAL
STRESS
primary secondary unstressed

Levels of lexical stress
Lightly stressed (secondary stress)
Unstressed (weak or no stress)
Strongly stressed (primary stress)
Japanese
/dæpniyz /

Stress and unstress
Polysyllabic words alternate stressed
and unstressed syllables.
̶ There is one primary stressed syllable.
̶ There may also be syllables containing
secondary stress.
Primary and secondary stressed
syllables contain full vowels.
All remaining syllables are unstressed
and contain unstressed vowels.

Marking stress
IPA marks primary versus secondary stress by
means of diacritics:
̶ A superscript / / indicates primary stress.
̶ A subscript / / indicates secondary stress.
/fowræfk/
/fowræfk/
Alternately, acute / / and grave / / accent
marks may be placed over the respective
primary and secondary stressed vowels.

Stress and meaning
Stress placement can affect meaning:
DESert a geographical
area with very
little rain
INvalid
a person who is ill
or disabled
MISery a state of extreme
unhappiness
OBject a thing that can be
seen and touched
deSSERT a sweet dish
served at the
end of a meal
inVALlid no longer
good; out of
date
MiSSOURi state in the
south of the
U.S.
obJECT to express
disapproval

A little desert?

British vs. American
Word stress sometimes differentiates
British from American English:
American British
perfume perfume
capillary capillary
chimpanzee chimpanzee
controversy controversy
laboratory laboratory

Overview of stress placement
The following influence where the
stress falls within a word:
̶ Historical origin of the word (e.g., Anglo
Saxon, Norman French, Classical, etc.)
̶ Affixation (addition of prefixes/suffixes)
̶ Compounding (new word formation)
̶ Grammatical category (e.g., noun, verb,
adjective, etc.)

A word’s origins
Many loan words in English retain the
stress of the language from which
they were borrowed, e.g.,
̶ French: masseuse, bizarre, baroque
̶ Persian: bazaar
̶ Arabic: giraffe
These words count as exceptions to
the general stress rules.
Stockwell & Minkova (2001)

The Anglo Saxon “root” rule
Words of Anglo Saxon origin are stressed on
the first syllable of the root:
never meadow Monday body
father become summer unpack
These tend to be common words (e.g., parts
of the body, the calendar, animals, domestic
life, basic verbs and adjectives, the
landscape, war and peace).

Overview: Suffixes and stress
The addition of a suffix in English causes
one of three things to occur:
1) Stress neutral suffixes: No change in stress
forgive forgiven
regret regretful
2) Stress demanding suffixes: Stress falls on
the suffix itself
absent absentee
auction auctioneer

Overview, cont’d.
3) Stress changing suffixes: Stress shifts to the
penultimate (next to the last) syllable
athlete athletic
telephone telephonic
athlete + -ic = athletic

Stress neutral suffixes
These do not change a word’s stress:
̶ Early English suffixes: -dom, -en, -er, -
ess, -ful, -hood, -ish, -less, -ly, -man,
-ness, -some, -ward(s), -wise
king kingdom; child childhood
̶ Non-native suffixes: -ist, -ize (with
minor exceptions)
active activist; union unionize
Stockwell & Minkova (2001)

Stress demanding suffixes
These demand or “steal” the stress:
̶ -aire, -ee, -eer, -elle, -esce,
-ese, -esque, -ette
acquire acquiesce
China Chinese
Stockwell & Minkova (2001)

“Stress changing” suffixes
These shift the stress to the left of the suffix:
̶ -ic (also: ical, -ics)
• gene genetic
• microscope microscopic
Exceptions: arithmetic, heretic, lunatic, politic,
rhetoric, arsenic, Catholic, choleric, Arabic
̶ -id, -ity
• stupid stupidity
• masculine masculinity
Stockwell & Minkova (2001)

Compounding
Compounding is a productive strategy in
English for creating new words.
Compounds function somewhat like
idioms, assuming a special meaning:
greenhouse whiteboard – a special surface structure teachers use used to to write grow onplants
They also assume a unique stress
pattern, with stress falling on the first
element of the compound:
greenhouse whiteboard
Jackson & Zé Amvela (2007)

Stress patterns with compounds
Noun + noun
bird cage
wagon train
Noun + verb
baby sit
web surf
knee jerk
Adjective + noun
green card
hot plate
Noun + adjective
air sick
sea sick
Verb + preposition
splashdown
countdown
touchdown
Adjective + noun + noun
back seat driver
waste paper basket
hot dog bun
blackbird nest
Jackson & Zé Amvela (2007)

Compounds vs. phrasal units
Compounds and phrasal units are
differentiated by their stress patterns.
The stress difference also signals a
difference in meaning:
̶ Adjective + noun compound
Don’t forget to turn off the hot plate.
[=small electric burner]
̶ Adjective modifying a noun
Careful, that’s a hot plate.
[=plate that is hot]

Juncture in compounds
Compounds also lack the open juncture
that signifies word boundaries:
̶ greenhouse vs. green house
̶ White House vs. white house
̶ shortstop vs. short stop
̶ head doctor vs. head doctor
̶ freeway vs. free way
̶ bluebook vs. blue book

Hip doctor
hip – 1960’s slang for fashionable; trendy
groovy – 1960’s slang for terrific; excellent

Stress and grammar
In certain pairings (~130 of them), stress
marks grammatical category:
Verb Noun Adjective
conduct conduct
survey survey
present present present
perfect perfect

Stress and grammar, cont’d.
Compare:
The teacher presented the present
perfect tense.
It’s a rebel’s responsibility to rebel
against authority.
If you don’t conduct yourself
appropriately, I’ll give you a failing
grade for conduct.

Phrasal verbs
Like compounds, phrasal verbs function
much like idioms, acquiring a special
meaning of their own.
Phrasal verbs consist of verb + particle
element(s). The particle receives stress.
̶ look out (= be careful; pay attention)
̶ turn on (= become excited or aroused)
̶ take off (= leave; depart)
̶ look down on (= lack respect for;
disregard)

Look out!
LOOKout =
a scenic
view
look OUT =
caution; pay
attention

Careful… vicious dog!
turn ON – sexually excite
TURN on – attack
doberman
pinscher

Stress and phrasal verb
Stress in phrasal verbs functions one of
three ways:
̶ Stressed verb + unstressed particle
He doesn’t approve of her friends.
̶ Stressed verb + stressed particle
I can’t figure out this problem.
̶ Stressed verb + stressed particle +
unstressed particle
He got away with murder.

Cardinals and ordinals
Cardinal and ordinal numbers are typically
stressed on the first syllable:
twenty, twentieth
However, when differentiating –teen
numbers from their double-digit
counterparts, speakers typically place the
stress on the second syllable:
fiftieth vs. fifteenth

Hyphenated numbers
Hyphenated numbers function as
compounds; they can be stressed on
either element.
Stress serves a disambiguating function.
Compare:
̶ You got seventy-five on your quiz, not
seventy-six.
̶ You got seventy-six on your quiz, not sixtysix.

Phrasal stress
The same combination of stress and
unstress that characterizes English words
also characterizes phrase-length
utterances:
ecoNOmics in the COMics…
natioNALity it’s a CHICKadee…
electrifiCAtion
she went to the
STAtion…

Da da DA da da DA da da DA
The alternation of
stressed/unstressed
syllables characterizes
English stress-timed
rhythm.
Poetry makes artistic
use of stress-timing by
employing regular
rhythmic patterns.
William Shakespeare

Poetic meter
· '
· · '
' ·
' · ·
Iambic - an unstressed syllable followed by
a stressed syllable
Anapestic - two unstressed syllables
followed by a stressed syllable
Trochaic - a stressed syllable followed by
an unstressed syllable
Dactylic - a stressed syllable followed by
two unstressed syllables

Poetic meter, cont’d.
Double, double toil and trouble;
Fire burn, and caldron bubble.
Fillet of a fenny snake,
In the caldron boil and bake;
Eye of newt, and toe of frog,
Wool of bat, and tongue of dog,
Adder's fork, and blind-worm's
sting,
Lizard's leg, and owlet's wing,—
For a charm of powerful
trouble,
Like a hell-broth boil and
bubble.
trochaic
' · ' · ' · ' ·

Stress and meaning
Try reading the following three phrases:
1. /In'Es´ns/
2. /'In´s´ns/
3. /In´'sEns/
Match the letters with the numbers:
a. in essence
b. in a sense
c. innocence
#1
#3
#2

Comparative stress patterns
Stress in English is more pronounced than
in other languages. Compare:
English French
orga ni ZA tion or ga ni sa TION
e co NO mic
e co no MIQUE
ge O gra phy ge o gra PHIE
de mo CRA tic
de mo cra TIQUE

Metronome drills
»Stresses in »English »tend to oc»cur at
»regular »intervals of »time. (») It is
»perfectly »possible to »tap on the »stresses
in »time with a »metronome. (»)
The »rhythm can »even be »said
to de»termine the »length of
the »pause between »phrases.
(») An »extra »tap can be »put
in the »silence, (») as »shown
by the »marks with»in the pa»rentheses. (»)
Prator (1951)

Teaching Strategies:
Lexical Stress

Options for stress practice
How many syllables?
recalcification
Same or different?
elephant – canary
Odd man out
six!
different!
Patricia – Regina – Jennifer – Alicia
Circle the stressed syllable
Georgia – Massachusetts – Nevada – Iowa

How many syllables?
1. abandon 6. preference 11. intelligible
2. offered 7. superstitious 12. individual
3. distribute 8. responsibility 13. interdisciplinary
4. protect 9. refrigerator 14. multiplication
5. television 10. characterize 15. misunderstand

How many syllables, cont’d.
1. abandon
(3)
2. offered
(2)
3. distribute
(3)
4. protect
(2)
5. television
(4)
6. democrat
(3)
7. superstitious
(4)
8. responsibility
(6)
9. refrigerator
(5)
10.characterize
(4)
11.intelligible
(5)
12.individualism
(7)
13.interdisciplinary
(7)
14.multiplication
(5)
15.misunderstanding
(5)

More stress practice: Analysis
Task: Match the patterns in column 1 with the
words in column 2.
Column 1
1. ta-ta-TI-ta
2. ta-TI-ta-ta
3. TI-ta-ta-ta
4. TI-ta-ta
5. ta-ta-TI-ta-ta
6. ta-TI-ta-ta-ta
a. reality
Column 2
b. mysteriously
c. stimulus
d. electricity
e. arbitration
f. permanently

My uncle has a hot dog…
hot DOG?
HOT dog?

Taboo: Noun compounds
dishwasher
sandpaper
passport
sunglasses
handbag
drugstore
You can put all your
If wood dirty plates is very and rough,
You glasses you need need here it this to and cross to
You Some
make they an wear women
international will them
it smooth. clean when carry
almost
automatically.
it’s border. very everything
You can buy bright aspirin
they own outside. around with
and toothpaste there.
them in this thing.

I’m going to the drugstore…
A: I’m going to the drugstore. I need to
buy some suntan lotion.
B: I’m going to the drugstore. I need to
buy some suntan lotion and some toilet
paper.
C: I’m going to the drugstore. I need to
buy some suntan lotion, some toilet
paper, and a notebook. Etc.

Minimal pair practice
It took 15 / 50 men to build the
monument.
She’s not a day over 13 / 30.
If you want me to buy a ticket, I’ll need
you to give me 18 / 80 dollars.
My accountant says my tax bracket is
14 / 40 per cent.
There are 16 / 60 steps to climb before
you reach the top.

Teaching Strategies:
Rhythm

Focused listening/reading practice
PATTERN WORDS PHRASES
toNIGHT It’s LIGHT.
reCEIVE Please LEAVE.
ChiNESE Try CHEESE.
volunTEER It’s a DEER.
sevenTEEN She’s the QUEEN.
underSTAND Where’s the BAND?
reACtion Where’s JACKson?
ALASka I’ll ASK her.
Brinton (2008)

Congruent pattern drills
1. I need a pound of butter.
2. I’d like to buy a sweater.
3. You didn’t close the window.
4. He ought to buy a laptop.
5. She doesn’t speak much English.

More congruent drills: Nursery rhymes
TWINkle, TWINkle LITTle STAR
(Let me help you find your keys.)
(Don’t forget the bread and milk.)
(Tell me why you don’t agree.)
HOW I WONder WHAT you ARE.
(Find a space and park your car.)
(Thanks a lot for all your help.)
(Don’t forget to leave a tip.)
Grant (2001)

Contrastive stress practice
We’re flying to Milan, not to Rome.
Reno is in Nevada, not California.
Jasper isn’t in Alberta; it’s in Manitoba.
We visited the Canadian side of Niagara
Falls; not the American side.
The capital of El Salvador is San
Salvador, not Managua.
The capital of California is Sacramento,
not San Francisco.

More contrastive stress practice
With a partner, correct the
underlined elements.
Monitor your partner’s use
of focus. Use these
expressions:
Are you sure? I thought…
I’m not sure that’s right…
I don’t think so…
Actually…
I always thought…
I was under the
impression…
I’m almost certain that…
1. Dante wrote Hamlet.
2. Smoking decreases
your risk of heart
disease.
3. The Taj Mahal is in
Thailand.
4. Ecology is the study of
personality.
5. Kyoto is the capital of
Japan.
6. Monet was a famous
Dutch painter.
Grant (2001)

Jazz chant: More bad luck
The bread was stale.
It was four days old.
The milk was sour.
The coffee was cold.
The butter was rancid.
Graham (1978)
The steak was tough.
The service was dreadful.
The waiter was rough.
His tip was small.
I’m sorry I went
to that place at all.

Humorous poetry
HI. How ARE you today?
by Jeff Moss
I’m FEELing very HORRible
And LOW and MEAN and MAD
And DREADful and dePLORable
And ROTTen, SICK, and SAD
And NASty and unBEARable
And HATEful, VILE, and BLUE
But THANKS a lot for ASKing
And please TELL me HOW are YOU?
Grant (2001)

Children’s rhymes
Three blind mice
Three blind mice
See how they run
See how they run
They all ran after the farmer’s wife
She cut off their tails with a carving knife
Did you ever see such a sight in your life
As three blind mice?

References
Celce-Murcia, M., Brinton, D. M., & Goodwin, J.
M. (In press). Teaching pronunciation (2 nd
ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Graham, C. (1978). Jazz chants. New York:
Oxford University Press.
Grant, L. (2001). Well said: Pronunciation for
clear communication (2 nd ed.). Boston: Heinle
& Heinle.
Jackson, H., & Zé Amvela, E. (2007). Words,
meaning and vocabulary: An introduction to
modern English lexicology (2 nd ed.). New
York: Cassell.

References
Prator, C. H. (1951). Manual of American
English pronunciation for adult foreign
students. New York: Holt, Rinehart, &
Winston.
Stockwell, R., & Minkova, D. (2001). English
words: History and structure. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press.