30 Transcription Tricks: Magic Bag of
30 Transcription Tricks: Magic Bag of
30 TRANSCRIPTION
When Just
TRICKS EARS
Aren’t
Enough!
http://www.chiropracticanchorage.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Child_holding_ears.jpg
DOES WHAT YOU WROTE MAKE SENSE?
http://matthewlpowers.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/puzzled.jpg
IF NOT, YOU MAY NEED TO PULL SOME
OTHER TRICKS OUT OF YOUR BAG!
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/yLOUgA7RE1Y/maxresdefault.jpg
2. VOWELS MATTER!
¡ Your vowels must be CORRECT and PRECISE.
No sloppiness allowed –
train yourself every day!
i
u
ɪ ʊ
ə
ɛ ʌ ɔ
æ
ɑ
http://clas.mq.edu.au/speech/phonetics/phonetics/vowelartic/lip_posture.gif
http://www.rlacortongillingham.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/vowels.png
USE MERRIAM-WEBSTER AND
THE FREE DICTIONARY!
http://www.merriam-webster.com/images/downloadables/search_homepage_google1.jpg
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/raid
3. LEARN BASIC
PHONICS RULES FOR VOWELS
¡ S ilent “e”
and double
vowel letters:
diphthongs and
“long” vowels
¡ S ingle/double final
or double medial
consonant letters:
“short” vowels
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/de/68/67/de6867208da64c74b1f8ad087dceccb4.jpg
FIND A WORD WITH PHONICS RULES
You hear
['lɪrɪŋ]
quite clearly,
but don’t know this word.
What might it be?
FIND THE BASE WORD
¡ Take off the -ing ending
from ['lɪrɪŋ]. You get:
['lɪr]
¡ What rhymes with ['lɪr]?
USE RHYME TO FIND PHONIC SPELLINGS
¡ lear
¡ leer
¡ lere
CAPITALS, ARCHAISMS, DIALECT FORMS
¡ B ari
¡ Tokay
¡ D ebs
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/af/The_port_of_Bari,_Italy_(L._Massoptier).jpg
LEAR
“Lear” mostly appears in
dictionaries and on Google
with a CAPITAL LETTER, so
it’s not a good candidate (it’s
a company or personal
name)
LEER
¡ “ leer” in Merriam Webster:
¡ to look at someone in an evil or
unpleasantly sexual way
http://sunnyspeech.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/59.jpg
DO PRACTICE DICTATIONS
¡ They’re challenging! But stick with it and
eventually you’ll get better at it!
¡ http://homepage.ntu.edu.tw/~karchung/phonetics/dictations.htm
RECOGNITION CAN BE
ASYMMETRICAL 不對稱
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmSbXsFE3l8
7. LEARN REDUCED FORMS
OF FUNCTION WORDS: I
Content words:
¡ n ouns, verbs, adjectives, some
adverbs
¡ U sually STRESSED and CLEAR,
unless repeated
¡ U sually the easiest to
understand
http://wwp.greenwichmeantime.com/time-zone/usa/michigan/
LEARN REDUCED FORMS
OF FUNCTION WORDS: II
Function words:
¡ A rticles (the, a, an)
¡ C onjunctions (and, but, or, if, though)
¡ P repositions (to, at, on, under, about)
¡ P ronouns (I, me, you, he, him, she, her,
it, we)
¡ H elping verbs (am, is, were, have, has,
had, will, can, could)
¡ S ome adverbs (today, yesterday, now,
here, there)
LEARN REDUCED FORMS
OF FUNCTION WORDS: III
Usually:
¡ U nstressed
¡ Fast
¡ Reduced
¡ U nclear
¡ H arder to understand
LEARN REDUCED FORMS
OF FUNCTION WORDS: IV
http://images.sportsdirect.com/images/imgzoom/71/71302703_xxl.jpg
http://moparent.com/Websites/moparent/images/School_Bus_Hot_Wheels.jpg
10. LEARN BASIC INTONATION RULES:
RULE 1
http://il8.picdn.net/shutterstock/videos/1583701/thumb/5.jpg
INTONATION RULES:
RULE 2
2. This is a *park.
There are trees, flowers, and *birds in the park.
https://img0.etsystatic.com/051/1/7848968/il_570xN.660898972_fd5o.jpg
INTONATION RULES:
RULE 3
http://leandromd.blogspot.tw/2013/10/aprendendo-ingles-com-learning-english.html
YES-NO QUESTIONS
http://flylib.com/books/2/133/1/html/2/images/0321185765/graphics/11fig02.gif
WH- QUESTIONS
http://flylib.com/books/2/133/1/html/2/images/0321185765/graphics/11fig08.gif
PHRASING: LISTEN FOR BREAKS
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fcGWOIruXyc/VCamzliWmaI/AAAAAAAAAMA/xwBdVZJw8xo/s1600/punctuationmarks.png
TONIC STRESS
¡ T he last stressed syllable of a compound,
phrase or sentence receives
*TONIC STRESS.
http://images.slideplayer.com/14/4407676/slides/slide_29.jpg
END OF A SENTENCE:
TONIC STRESS + FALL
¡ …right?
A way to check and see
if our listeners are still
following our story.
¡ “Hey,…”
One way of starting a casual conversation out of the blue
with someone.
http://static.oprah.com/images/200303/omag/200303-omag-story-600x411.jpg
12. THE GRAMMAR
MUST BE CORRECT!
¡ U se your knowledge of grammar
to check what you’ve written –
it MUST be GRAMMATICAL!
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gpbeSy65Y50/ToE5QoNaL-I/AAAAAAAACB0/YUEgVqx-64s/s1600/aisle+bus.jpg
FORMAT FOR LINGGLE SEARCHES
WALK_THE AISLE
STINK PREP. N.
FORMAT FOR NETSPEAK SEARCHES
A ? OF LAND
15 . USE IMAGES
Trapper Keeper
Mobile home
Scooby-Doo
(cartoon)
http://images.mentalfloss.com/sites/default/files/styles/insert_main_wide_image/
public/lamborghini-trapper-keeper.jpg
http://aarcs.com/mobilehome1.jpg
http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/new_scoow_doow_7704.png
16. RECOGNIZE SELF-CORRECTIONS!
http://www.notbeinggoverned.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/tipped-scale-400x271-300x203.jpg
17. INCONSISTENT TENSES
IN STORY TELLING
http://image.slidesharecdn.com/verbsh2013-130902045017-phpapp02/95/verbs-h2013-37-638.jpg?cb=1378097476
18. LINKING CAN HELP YOU!
¡ You may be able to hear an unclear final
consonant of a word at the BEGINNING
of the NEXT word if it starts with a vowel
¡ t urn around?
or: turned around?
Listen for:
¡ Tur naround vs.
¡ Turn daround
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a6ae3010a004994f_GettyImages-487638642/i/Gigi-turned-around-show-off-her-design-sheer-details.jpg
19. COUNT THE SYLLABLES!
¡ The word you write MUST have the right number of
syllables – if it doesn’t, it must be a different word!
http://www.sparklebox.co.uk/blue/previews/7526-7550/_wp_generated/pp41b1cfa7_0f.jpg
HOW MANY SYLLABLES?
This trick is VERY useful!
¡ Present or past tense?
If the verb ends with “-t” or “-d,” it will have an extra
syllable in the regular “-ed” past tense,
e.g. start, started; dread, dreaded
¡ Singular or plural?
If a word (noun or verb) ends with a sibilant: /s, z, ʃ, ʒ,
tʃ, dʒ/ and has a final “es” to mark a plural or third-
person singular verb, or a possessive “’s”, it will have an
extra syllable, e.g. rose, roses; choice, choices
¡ E nglish?
http://safeguardseat.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Base-Seat.png
21. RIGHT-CLICK FOR POSSIBILITIES
b*: farm
¡ First match:
the target word
barn
O NE L OOK REVERSE DICTIONARY
http://www.thesaurus.com/
OR WORDNET
http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn
23. TRY BOY/GIRL BABY NAME PAGES
FOR UNFAMILIAR PERSONAL NAMES
http://www.babycenter.com/baby-names
24. LISTEN FOR REPETITION
https://soundcloud.com/criminalshow/episode-45-just-mercy
25. USE PARALLELISM AND RHYME
Also:
§ them = ’em e.g. “Tell ’em the answer!”
27. LEARN COMMON
DIALECT EQUIVALENTS
¡ Learn and get used to some of the main features of
Southern and Black US English and other major dialects
¡ Examples:
“I”: General American [aɪ] = Southern/Black US English [a]
“pen”: GA [ɛn] = S/BE [ɪn]
https://mrupert.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/accents.jpg
28. LOGIC, COHERENCE,
BACKGROUND
¡ Translate the story into Chinese in your head. Does everything
fit together and make sense? If anything is at all odd, follow
up on it – there may be a misunderstanding.
https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/37cb937a75ca9867bceb046172e56db5189f9576/0_0_5616_3370/master/5616.jpg?
w=620&q=55&auto=format&usm=12&fit=max&s=6ab7e38ace2e990763e9712e40f0cdb4
COMBINE THESE TRICKS!
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30. YOU’RE NOT FINISHED YET!!
http://mybrainllc.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/share-ideas.jpg
LINKS
!
Karen on Ivy League Analytical English
https://www.facebook .com/Karen-on-Ivy -League- Analytical-
English-234235001756/
Practice Dictations:
http://homepage.ntu.edu.tw/~karchung/phonetics/dictations.htm