Anexo 2

Activity guide and evaluation rubric – Unit 2
Task 4 – Suprasegmentals
WORKSHOP 2_ COLLABORATIVE EXERCISES

Karol Rodríguez Nivia
1. Answer the following questions and use APA citation and

references to reinforce your ideas:
 What is a phoneme?
The Cambridge dictionary defines “phoneme” as one of
the smallest units of speech that make one word different from
another word (Dictionary Cambridge, 2024)1. It means: a
phoneme is a basic unit of sound that distinguishes one word from
another in a particular language. It's the smallest unit of sound
that can change meaning in a given language. For example, in
English, the phonemes /b/ and /p/ are distinct because they
change the meaning of words like "bat" and "pat." Phonemes are
essential for language comprehension and production, as they
allow speakers to differentiate between words.
 What is rhythm in English language pronunciation?

Rhythm in English language pronunciation refers to the pattern of
stressed and unstressed syllables in speech. It involves the natural
flow and cadence of spoken language.
English rhythm is often described in terms of stress-timed or
syllable-timed patterns, it means in stress-timed languages like
English, stressed syllables occur at regular intervals, creating a
rhythmic pattern. For example, in the phrase "I want to go to the
store," the rhythm follows a pattern of stressed and unstressed
syllables: "I WANT to GO to the STORE."
The English sentence exhibits an isochronous rhythm, meaning it
tends to follow a regular timing pattern where stressed and
unstressed syllables occur in approximately equal proportions of
time. This implies that regardless of the number of unstressed
syllables, the time taken to move from one stressed point to
1
Dictionary Cambridge (2024) phoneme.https://dictionary.cambridge.org/es/diccionario/ingles-
espanol/phoneme?q=phoneme
another remains consistent. The assumption is that unstressed
syllables are pronounced with roughly equal duration, whether
there are two unstressed syllables to one stressed syllable or one-
to-one. This rhythmical pattern holds true for languages like
Russian and Arabic as well. However, this rhythmic regularity has
been challenged by Cruttenden (1994:227), who suggests that the
occurrence of full vowels might better predict rhythm in English.
He introduces the concept of a borrowing rule, where reduced
vowels borrow time from immediately preceding syllables
containing full vowels, indicating that full vowels require more time
to pronounce than reduced vowels (Iyabode, O. D., 2011., Pp.
65,66)2.
 What is intonation in English language pronunciation?

Intonation in English refers to the pitch variations in speech,
distinguishing it from tone in African languages, which tends to be
lexicon-specific. Unlike tone, intonation extends beyond individual
words to affect syntactic structures, conveying emotions or
attitudes in speech. It aids in segmenting sentences or discourses
into smaller units known as intonational phrases and signals
primary and secondary accents within words and longer utterances
(Iyabode, O. D.,2011., Pp.69).3 It encompasses the rise and fall of
pitch within an utterance and helps convey meaning, emotion, and
emphasis in sentences. Intonation patterns can indicate sentence
types (such as questions or statements), convey emotions (such
as excitement or sarcasm), and signal emphasis or contrast. For
example, rising intonation at the end of a sentence often indicates
a question, as in "Are you coming?" Whereas falling intonation
typically signifies a statement or completion of a thought, as in
"I'm going to the store."
 What is stress in English language pronunciation?

Stress in language refers to the degree of force used in articulating
syllables, occurring beyond individual sounds and thus termed a
supra-segmental element. This force involves exertion on
articulatory organs, resulting in perceived loudness. While some
2
Iyabode, O. D. (2011). Chapter Seven: Rhythm. In Introductory Phonetics and Phonology of English. (pp.
65-67). Cambridge Scholars
3
Iyabode, O. D. (2011). Chapter Eight: Intonation. in Introductory Phonetics and Phonology of
English. (pp. 69-76). Cambridge Scholars
argue stress is primarily an acoustic quality, others note its
articulatory implications. Stressed syllables are characterized by
increased loudness and longer duration, often with vowel quality
closer to their real nuclei. English is considered a stress-timed
language, meaning its rhythmical pattern follows the stress
placement in words, alternating between weak and strong
stresses. This intermittent stressed/unstressed syllable pattern
contributes to English's classification as a stress-timed language
(Iyabode, O. D.,2011., pp.51)4.
To say it in another words, stress in English language
pronunciation refers to the emphasis placed on certain syllables or
words within a sentence. Stressed syllables are pronounced with
greater force, length, and pitch prominence compared to
unstressed syllables. Stress plays a crucial role in conveying
meaning and can change the interpretation of a sentence. For
example, in the word "elephant," the stress is on the first syllable:
"EL-e-phant."
 What is the difference between syllable stress and word

stress in sentences?
Stress in language refers to the degree of force used in articulating

syllables, occurring beyond individual sounds and thus termed a
supra-segmental element. This force involves exertion on
articulatory organs, resulting in perceived loudness. While some
argue stress is primarily an acoustic quality, others note its
articulatory implications. Stressed syllables are characterized by
increased loudness and longer duration, often with vowel quality
closer to their real nuclei. English is considered a stress-timed
language, meaning its rhythmical pattern follows the stress
placement in words, alternating between weak and strong
stresses. This intermittent stressed/unstressed syllable pattern
contributes to English's classification as a stress-timed language
(Iyabode, O. D.,2011., pp.51,52)5.
4
Iyabode, O. D. (2011). Chapter Six: The English Stress. In Introductory Phonetics and Phonology of
5
Iyabode, O. D. (2011). Chapter Six: The English Stress. In Introductory Phonetics and Phonology of
2. Take a look at the following list of words.
Basically, stress words are considered CONTENT or FUNCTION words.
Write in front of each word: Content or Function, according to
the meaning of stress in English language pronunciation.
-The first one is done for you.
1. Words 2. Content or function?

a) The Function
b) America Content
c) She Function
d) Drive Content
e) Beautiful Content
f) Where Content
g) On Function
h) Visit Content
i) Carefully Content
j) Don’t Function
k) opposite Function
l) Peter Content
m) kitchen Content
n) but Function
o) they Function
p) often Content
q) read Content
r) is Function
3. Mark in bold what you think is the stress syllable on the

following words, the first is done for you.
a. daredevil Daredevil
b. deactivate Deactivate
c. deputation Deputation
d. Deputy Deputy
e. deregulation Deregulation
f. derelict Derelict
g. dermatitis Dermatitis
h. derogatory Derogatory
i. desecrate Desecrate
j. discrimination Discrimination
k. dishonest Dishonest
l. dishwater Dishwater
4. Write the words corresponding to the following phonetic
transcriptions:
/ðæn/ Than /ˈkeɪk/ Cake /ˈfeɪθ/ Faith /ˈhuː/ Who
/ˈθruː/ Thru /ˈkluː/ Clue /ˈeɪt/ Ate /ˈfəʊldər/ Folder
/ˈteɪbəl/ Table /ˈfaɪl/ File /ˈfɑːsən/ Fasten /ˈtæŋ/ Thang
5. Write only the IPA symbol of the first sound in each of the
following words.
Philosophy /f/ knowledge /n/ her /h/

use /j/ Chemist /k/ honorable /ɒ/
caught /k/ through /θ/ clown /k/
6. Using only the IPA symbols, provide 2 examples for each

type of place of articulation. The first one is done for you.
Bilabial /p/ /b/

Alveolar /t/ /d/
Labio-dental /f/ /v/
Palatal /j/
Inter-dental /θ/ /ð/
Glottal /h/ /ʔ/
7. Using only the IPA symbols, provide 1 example for each

type of manner of articulation. The first one is done for you.
Plosives /k/
Fricatives /s/
Affricates /dʒ/
Approximants /j/
Nasals /m/
Laterals /l/
8. Transcribe from IPA to English text the following sentences.
/ˈaɪ heɪt ˈiːtɪŋ suːp/ I hate eating soup

/ ˈlaɪf ˈɪz ˈbɛtə wɛn ju ˈhæv kæts/
r
Life is better when you have cats
/ bɜːdz ˈɔːlweɪz ˈiːt wɜːmz/ Birds always eat worms
/kʌm wɪθ mi tu ˈsiː ði stɑrz / Come with me to see the starts
9. Write only the phonetic symbol for the first sound in each
word. The first one is done for you to follow.
Judge /ʤ/
Easy /i:/
Pneumonia /n/
Contact /k/
Phone /f/
Civic /s/
Usually /j/
University /j/
Hospital /h/
10. Write only the phonetic symbol for the final sound in each
word. The first one is done for you to follow.
Beds /z/
Bets /s/
Nest /st/
Bathes / ðz/
Belts /ts/
Twelfth / θ/
Fifths /ðs /
Next /st/
Lapsed /t/
WORKSHOP 3_ PRONUNCIATION PRACTICE
For this step 2, you must record a video pronouncing two sentences
and one short paragraph, taking into account syllabic stress and word
stress in sentences.
1. Check the following sentence. Mark the syllabic stress of each

word and record yourself pronouncing the sentence.
The airplane taxied down the runway before taking off.
The airplane taxied down the runaway before taking off
2. Check the following sentence. Mark the word stress in the

sentence and record yourself pronouncing the sentence.
The airplane circled around the airport, waiting patiently to
receive permission to land.
The airplane circled around the airport, waiting patiently to
receive permission to land.
3. Check the following paragraph and apply what you have

learned about syllabic stress and word stress in sentences.
Record yourself pronouncing the paragraph.
The Moon is a barren, rocky world without air and water. It has
a dark lava plain on its surface. The Moon is filled with craters.
It has no light of its own. It gets its light from the Sun. The
Moon keeps changing its shape as it moves around the Earth.
Video link: https://youtu.be/JwQy-x4_WBQ

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Activity guide and evaluation rubric – Unit 2

WORKSHOP 2_ COLLABORATIVE EXERCISES

1. Answer the following questions and use APA citation and

 What is rhythm in English language pronunciation?

 What is intonation in English language pronunciation?

 What is stress in English language pronunciation?

 What is the difference between syllable stress and word

Stress in language refers to the degree of force used in articulating

-The first one is done for you.

1. Words 2. Content or function?

3. Mark in bold what you think is the stress syllable on the

Philosophy /f/ knowledge /n/ her /h/

6. Using only the IPA symbols, provide 2 examples for each

Bilabial /p/ /b/

7. Using only the IPA symbols, provide 1 example for each

8. Transcribe from IPA to English text the following sentences.

/ˈaɪ heɪt ˈiːtɪŋ suːp/ I hate eating soup

1. Check the following sentence. Mark the syllabic stress of each

2. Check the following sentence. Mark the word stress in the

3. Check the following paragraph and apply what you have

Video link: https://youtu.be/JwQy-x4_WBQ

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