Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
The first syllable of a word is the initial syllable and the last syllable is the final syllable. In languages accented on one of the last three syllables, the last syllable is called the ultima , the next-to-last is called the penult , and the third syllable from the end is called the antepenult.
English allows clusters of up to three consonants in the syllable onset and up to four consonants in the syllable coda, [82] [83] giving a general syllable structure of (C) 3 V(C) 4, a potential example being strengths /strɛŋkθs/ (although this word has variant pronunciations with only 3 coda consonants, such as /strɛŋθs/).
Syllable structure tends to be highly influenced and motivated by the sonority scale, with the general rule that more sonorous elements are internal (i.e., close to the syllable nucleus) and less sonorant elements are external. For instance, the sequence /plant/ is permissible in many languages, while /lpatn/ is much less likely.
A syllable with a branching rime is a closed syllable, that is, one with a coda (one or more consonants at the end of the syllable); this type of syllable is abbreviated CVC. In some languages, both CVV and CVC syllables are heavy, while a syllable with a short vowel as the nucleus and no coda (a CV syllable) is a light syllable. In other ...
A good example for the SSP in English is the one-syllable word trust: The first consonant in the syllable onset is t, which is a stop, the lowest on the sonority scale; next is r, a liquid which is more sonorous, then we have the vowel u / ʌ / – the sonority peak; next, in the syllable coda, is s, a sibilant, and last is another stop, t.
All languages differ in syllable structure and cluster template. A loanword from Adyghe in the extinct Ubykh language, psta ('to well up'), violates Ubykh's limit of two initial consonants. The English words sphere /ˈsfɪər/ and sphinx /ˈsfɪŋks/, Greek loanwords, break the rule that two fricatives may not appear adjacently word-initially ...
Syllables have the following internal segmental structure: Onset (optional) Rhyme (obligatory, comprises nucleus and coda): Nucleus (obligatory) Coda (optional) Both onset and coda may be empty, forming a vowel-only syllable, or alternatively, the nucleus can be occupied by a syllabic consonant.
To determine stress, syllable weight of the penult must be determined. To determine syllable weight, words must be broken up into syllables. [58] In the following examples, syllable structure is represented using these symbols: C (a consonant), K (a stop), R (a liquid), and V (a short vowel), VV (a long vowel or diphthong).