ADJUSTMENTS RELATED TO C-V, V-C LINKING

♦ Linking/r/

Some accents of English are described as rhotic, which means that when the letter r appears in the written word after a vowel (as in car or carve), the /r/ phoneme is used in the pronunciation of the word. Examples are most dialects of American English, Irish English and certain British regional accents. Other accents are non-rhotic, and do not pronounce the /r/. RP is non-rhotic. When, however, there is a written r at the end of a word and it occurs between two vowel sounds, speakers with non-rhotic accents often use the phoneme /r/ to link the preceding vowel to a following one:

When there is a written r or re at the end of a word (car, bar, here, there, are) and it occurs between two vowel sounds, speakers often use the phoneme /r/ to link the preceding vowel to a following one:

Her_English is excellent. (/r/ is pronounced)

Her_German is absolutely awful, though! (/r/ is not pronounced)

My brother_lives in London. (/r/ is not pronounced)

My brother_always phones at the wrong time. (/r/ is pronounced)

Intrusive /r/: A sound may be introduced between words or syllables to help them run together more smoothly. The chief example of this in English is the pronunciation of word-final /r/ in RP. RP speakers pronounce the /r/ in such words as clear and mother only when there is a following vowel: we find /klıəkwest∫ən/ in clear questionbut /klıərα:nsə/ in clear answer. This is usually called linking r.

Similarly, RP speakers regularly link adja­cent vowels with an /r/ even when there is no r in the spelling, as in India(r) and Pak­istanor media(r) interest. This intrusive rcan attract ferocious criticism from conser­vative RP speakers, when they notice it, on the grounds that there is nothing in the spelling to justify its use. It is espe­cially disliked after an open back vowel, as in law(r) and order, flaw(r) in the argument, or draw(r)ing. {It is hardly ever noticed after a schwa vowel, as in the other examples above, and even the most tub-thumping critic will be heard using an intrusive r in such cases.) The BBC is one of several institu­tions which have become so sensitive about public reaction to the usage that it warns its presenters of the risks of liaising with Laura Norder.

In Robert Burchfield's The Spoken Word: A BBC Guide (1981), there is a clear recom­mendation about r liaison: In the formal presentation of the news or of other scripted speech: Avoid the intrusive r.

Some presenters evidently took this advice very seriously, as is seen in this extract from a radio script, where the reader has spotted a case in advance, and has marked his copy of the script so that he does not forget about it

PRESENTER:

One of the questions we’ll be dealing with in today’s programme is the future of martial law in Poland. The issue facing the Poles is complex, and to help us debate…

♦ Linking consonant to vowel

Think of the words joined together like this: Putitaway.