ELISION

ELISION - HEARD OF IT? DID YOU KNOW THAT USING ELISION COULD MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE TO YOUR PRONUNCIATION?

In some words, a written vowel letter does not always indicate a spoken vowel. For example, in ‘every’ standard British English speakers often elide the second ‘e’, so instead of being three syllables, it is only two syllables, sounding much more like ‘ev-ry’. The same is true for the ‘e’ in ‘lovely', which should sound more like ‘lov-ly’. This is called elision.

SO, WHAT'S ELISION?

'Elision is the omission of sounds, syllables or words in speech. This is done to make the language easier to say, and faster.'

EXAMPLES

• I gave her the book /aɪ 'ɡeɪvɚ ðə 'bʊk/

• What happened? / wə 'æpən/

• I gave her the book /aɪ 'ɡeɪvɚ ðə 'bʊk/

• Family /ˈfæmli/

• Chocolate /ˈtʃɒklət/

• I would like to travel a lot /aɪd 'laiktə 'trævəl ɘlot/

• There are few trees in the wood. /ðərɚ fju 'tri:z ɪnðə 'wʊd/ 

• I don't know what to say  /ai doʊn(t) noʊ wət tə seɪ/

• I must have asked it before /aɪ məst ɘv 'æskt ɪt bɪfɔ:r/

KINDS OF ELISION

There are 3 main kinds of Elision:

a) When the final syllable has /t, d/

Examples:

Conscripts   /’kɒnskrɪps/

The next day   /ðə ˈneks ˈdeɪ/

The last car     /ðə ˈlɑ:s ˈkɑ:/

Hold the dog!  /ˈhəʊl ðə ˈdɒg/

Send Frank a card. /sen ˈfræŋk ə ˈkɑ:d/

Facts  /fæks/

Helen’s machine stopped printing      /’hlənz mə’ʃi:n ‘stɒp ‘prɪntɪŋ/

b) The elision of /ə/

This can often occur. In connected speech /ə/ can easily disappear at word end when the sound comes at the start of a word, positioned between two stressed syllables, as in:

Go away is pronounced /’gəʊ_’weɪ/

Or when it is followed by a stressed syllable beginning with /r/ or /l/

Secretary /ˈsekrətri/     

Police       /pli:s/

Memory    /ˈmemri/

* Elision can also happen when the sound is produced in the middle or final combinations

Preferable is pronounced /’prefrəbļ/ 

Library is pronounced /’laɪbrɪ/

c) The loss of /h/

The sound /h/ is lost in pronominal weak forms. The elision occurs at the end of sentences with this sound.

For example, the /h/ of the two masculine pronouns is retained at the beginning of the sentence

He passed his exam is pronounced       /hɪ ‘pa:st ɪz ɪg’zæm/

Did you see him last night?                    / dɪd ju: si: ɪm lɑːs naɪt/

At Chile, Both of them, live happily        / ət ‘tʃɪli boʊθ əv əm lɪv ‘hæpɪli /

LINKS AND VIDEOS

What is ELISION in the English language?

Elision and Liaison