Rythm- Sentence Stress

Rythm- Sentence Stress

English is a stress-timed language  and contrasts with many languages at this regard.

What is a stress-timed language?

a)     English speakers highlight the content words.They give particular emphasis to the most important items of information in any utterance; the essential elements of the message they wish to put across.

b)    Content words: nouns, adjectives, verbs  and, adverbs.

c)      Function words: a, the, at, to, of, from, him, her, his, it,  your, our, as, than, that

    Auxiliary verbs, articles,pronouns,  possessives, conjunctions

  

    English speakers, except for emphasis, pronounce function      words hastily, carelessly, and imprecisely.

      Function words have one strong, and several weak pronunciations.

In order to acquire the English rhythm is crucial to know when to use the strong and the weak forms.

          The weak forms are the most common. The inadequate use of  strong forms distorts rhythm and impairs communication.