Knowledge of Grammar, Knowledge of Usage: Syntactic Probabilities Affect Pronunciation Variation

Language ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 80 (4) ◽  
pp. 748-775 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susanne Gahl ◽  
Susan Marie Garnsey
Keyword(s):  
Pronunciation Variation ◽  
Grammar Knowledge

Grammar and variation in the classroom

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vít Dovalil ◽  
Adriana Hanulíková
Keyword(s):  
Language Use ◽  
Linguistic Competence ◽  
Classroom Setting ◽  
Social Forces ◽  
Teacher Interviews ◽  
Important Place ◽  
Successful Communication ◽  
Reference Corpus ◽  
Grammar Knowledge ◽  
Model Texts

Abstract Grammar is the structural foundation of successful communication, language use, and literacy development. Grammar is therefore sometimes viewed as the heart of language with an important place in language teaching. In a classroom setting, regulation of grammar knowledge through teachers is strongly influenced by teachers’ linguistic competence and beliefs. In this paper, we will first show the diversity in this knowledge by means of teacher interviews and speeded grammatical-acceptability data from pupils and students. We will then sketch a socio- and psycholinguistic perspective on several selected morphosyntactic variables in German. These will be discussed with reference to social forces that determine what is standard in a language (language norm authorities, language experts, model texts, and codifiers). Finally, we will draw a roadmap for teachers, language practitioners and editors looking for a qualified solution to grammatical cases of doubt in contemporary German and provide practical examples by drawing upon the German reference corpus.

Context and paradigms

2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 313-338 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clara Cohen
Keyword(s):  
Current Work ◽  
Yield Reduction ◽  
Exemplar Model ◽  
Word Form ◽  
Pronunciation Variation ◽  
Growing Body ◽  
Word Forms ◽  
Verbal Agreement

A small but growing body of research on English and Dutch has found that pronunciation of affixes in a word form is sensitive to paradigmatic probability – i.e., the probability of using that form over other words in the same morphological paradigm. Yet it remains unclear (a) how paradigmatic probability is best measured; (b) whether an increase in paradigmatic probability leads to phonetic enhancement or reduction; and (c) by what mechanism paradigmatic probability can affect pronunciation. The current work examines pronunciation variation of Russian verbal agreement suffixes. I show that there are two distinct patterns of variation, corresponding to two different measures of paradigmatic probability. One measure, pairwise paradigmatic probability, is associated with a pronunciation pattern that resembles phonetic enhancement. The second measure, lexeme paradigmatic probability, can show enhancement effects, but can also yield reduction effects more similar to those of contextual probability. I propose that these two patterns can be explained in an exemplar model of lexical storage. Reduction effects are the consequence of faster retrieval and encoding of an articulatory target, while effects that resemble enhancement result when the pronunciation target of both members of a pair of competing word forms is shifted towards the more frequent of two.

Phonetic variation in consonants in infant-directed and adult-directed speech: the case of regressive place assimilation in word-final alveolar stops

2013 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 155-175 ◽  
Author(s):  
LAURA C. DILLEY ◽  
AMANDA L. MILLETT ◽  
J. DEVIN MCAULEY ◽  
TONYA R. BERGESON
Keyword(s):  
Stop Consonants ◽  
Age Group ◽  
Statistical Distributions ◽  
Phonetic Variation ◽  
Pronunciation Variation ◽  
Place Of Articulation ◽  
Place Assimilation ◽  
Perceptual Evidence

ABSTRACTPronunciation variation is under-studied in infant-directed speech, particularly for consonants. Regressive place assimilation involves a word-final alveolar stop taking the place of articulation of a following word-initial consonant. We investigated pronunciation variation in word-final alveolar stop consonants in storybooks read by forty-eight mothers in adult-directed or infant-directed style to infants aged approximately 0;3, 0;9, 1;1, or 1;8. We focused on phonological environments where regressive place assimilation could occur, i.e., when the stop preceded a word-initial labial or velar consonant. Spectrogram, waveform, and perceptual evidence was used to classify tokens into four pronunciation categories: canonical, assimilated, glottalized, or deleted. Results showed a reliable tendency for canonical variants to occur in infant-directed speech more often than in adult-directed speech. However, the otherwise very similar distributions of variants across addressee and age group suggested that infants largely experience statistical distributions of non-canonical consonantal pronunciation variants that mirror those experienced by adults.

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