ACHARYA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

Soladevanahalli, Bengaluru – 560107

DEPARTMENT OF HUMANITIES

COMMUNICATIVE ENGLISH
(BENGK106)

Ms. Aparna Rajalakshmi

Department of HUMANITIES
Acharya Institute of Technology
Soladevanahalli, Bengaluru – 560107
2024-25
 I. COURSE OBJECTIVES

The course Communicative English (BENGK106) will enable the students,

• To know about Fundamentals of Communicative English and Communication
Skills in general.
• To train to identify the nuances of phonetics, intonation and enhance
pronunciation skills for better Communication skills.
• To impart basic English grammar and essentials of important language skills.
• To enhance with English vocabulary and language proficiency for better
communication skills.
• To learn about Techniques of Information Transfer through presentation.

II. COURSE OUTCOMES (COS)

At the end of the course Communicative English (BENGK106) the student will be
able to:
• CO1 Understand and apply the Fundamentals of Communication Skills in their
communication skills.
• CO2 Identify the nuances of phonetics, intonation and enhance pronunciation
skills.
• CO3 To impart basic English grammar and essentials of language skills as per
present requirement.
• CO4 Understand and use all types of English vocabulary and language
proficiency.
• CO5 Adopt the Techniques of Information Transfer through presentation.
 MODULE 2
INTRODUCTION TO PHONETICS

PHONETICS
Phonetics is the scientific study of speech sounds, including their production, transmission,
and perception.
IPA – International Phonetic Alphabets
The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) is a standardized system of phonetic symbols.
designed to represent the sounds of spoken languages universally.
RP- Received Pronunciation
Phonemes
Phonemes are the smallest units of sound in a language that distinguish one word from
another. There are 44 phonemes, which are divided into 24 consonants and 20 vowels.

PHONEMES (44)

CONSONANTS (24) VOWELS (20)

PURE VOWELS (12) DIPHTHONGS (8)

Consonant Example Vowel Example

/ʌ/ cup
/p/ pen
/a:/ car
/b/ Bat
/I/ Fit
/t/ Tap
/i:/ peak
/d/ Dog
/ʊ / put
/k/ Cat
/u:/ blue
/g/ Go
/e/ bed
/f/ Fan
/ɒ/ hot
/v/ Van
/ɔː/ all
/θ/ Thin
/ə/ about
/ð/ This
/ɜː/ bird
/s/ Sit
/æ/ cat
/z/ Zoo
/ʃ/ Ship
Diphthongs and Examples
/ʒ/ Measure
Diphthong Example
/h/ Hat
/eɪ/ say
/m/ Man
/aɪ/ buy
/n/ net
/ɔɪ/ boy
/ŋ/ sing
/aʊ/ now
/l/ light
/əʊ/ go
/r/ red
/ɪə/ near
/j/ yes
/eə/ air
/w/ win
/ʊə/ pure
/tʃ/ chat
/dʒ/ joy
 ACHARYA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
DEPARTMENT OF HUMANITIES

PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTION
Phonetic transcription is the representation of the pronunciation of a word using the phonemic symbols.
Eg: The phonetic transcription of some words are given below
1. man: /mæn/
2. home: /həʊm/
3. eye: /aɪ/
4. ice: /aɪs/
5. banana: /bəˈnɑːnə/
6. house: /haʊs/
7. apple: /ˈæpl/
8. cat: /kæt/
9. dog: /dɒg/
10. thought: /θɔːt/
11. coin: /kɔɪn/
12. pure: /pjʊə/
13. cure: /kjʊə/
14. sure: /ʃʊə/
15. ship: /ʃɪp/
16. school: /skuːl/
17. develop: /dɪˈveləp/
18. Monday: /ˈmʌndeɪ/
19. sun: /sʌn/
20. moon: /muːn/
21. food: /fuːd/
22. should: /ʃʊd/
23. June: /dʒuːn/
24. July: /dʒuːˈlaɪ/

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25. gym: /dʒɪm/

26. then: /ðen/
27. this: /ðɪs/
28. thee: /ðiː/
29. mother: /ˈmʌðə/
30. water: /ˈwɔːtə/
31. Daughter: /dɔːtə/
32. focus: /ˈfəʊkəs/
33. capacity: /kəˈpæsɪti/
34. chin: /tʃɪn/
35. chop: /tʃɒp/
36. goat: /ɡəʊt/
37. sit: /sɪt/
38. seen: /siːn/
39. computer: /kəmˈpjuːtə/
40. college: /ˈkɒlɪdʒ/

SILENT LETTERS
Silent letters are written but not pronounced.
common examples and rules:
1. Silent 'B'
• Rule: Often silent when it follows 'm' or precedes 't.'
• Examples:
o Comb (/kəʊm/)
o Climb (/klaɪm/)
o Debt (/dɛt/)
2. Silent 'C'
• Rule: Silent in words with 'sc' or 'cn.'
• Examples:

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o Scene (/siːn/)
o Muscle (/ˈmʌsəl/)
3. Silent 'D'
• Rule: Silent in certain words.
• Examples:
o Wednesday (/ˈwɛnzdeɪ/)
o Handkerchief (/ˈhæŋkərˌtʃɪf/)
4. Silent 'G'
• Rule: Silent before 'n' in certain words.
• Examples:
o Sign (/saɪn/)
o Foreign (/ˈfɔːrən/)
5. Silent 'H'
• Rule: Silent in some words of Greek or French origin.
• Examples:
o Hour (/aʊər/)
o Honest (/ˈɒnɪst/)
6. Silent 'K'
• Rule: Silent when it precedes 'n.'
• Examples:
o Know (/nəʊ/)
o Knife (/naɪf/)
7. Silent 'L'
• Rule: Silent in words like 'alk,' 'alm,' or 'ould.'
• Examples:
o Walk (/wɔːk/)
o Half (/hɑːf/)
8. Silent 'P'
• Rule: Silent in words of Greek origin starting with 'ps' or 'pn.'

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• Examples:
o Psychology (/saɪˈkɒlədʒi/)
o Pneumonia (/njuːˈməʊniə/)
9. Silent 'T'
• Rule: Silent in certain words, often French-derived.
• Examples:
o Castle (/ˈkɑːsəl/)
o Ballet (/ˈbæleɪ/)
10. Silent 'W'
• Rule: Silent before 'r' and in some other cases.
• Examples:
o Write (/raɪt/)
o Sword (/sɔːd/)

Non-Silent Letters
• Non-silent letters are always pronounced.
Eg: Cat, Dog, Pin

SYLLABLE
A syllable is a single, unbroken sound unit of a word. It typically contains one vowel sound and may
include surrounding consonants.
How to Identify Syllables?
• Every syllable has one vowel sound.
• Words are divided into syllables based on their vowel sounds, not just the letters.
Examples of Words by Syllables
1. 1 Syllable Words:
o Cat
o Dog
2. 2 Syllable Words:

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o Apple (Ap-ple)
o Tiger (Ti-ger)
o Happy (Hap-py)
3. 3 Syllable Words:
o Banana (Ba-na-na)
o Computer (Com-pu-ter)
o Family (Fam-i-ly)
4. 4 Syllable Words:
o Celebration (Cel-e-bra-tion)
o Discovery (Dis-cov-er-y)
An Easy Method to count the no. of syllables
Place your hand under your chin.
Every time your chin touches your hand while slowly pronouncing the word, that’s a syllable.

SYLLABLE STRUCTURE / LABELING

While labelling a syllable, the letter “C” represents a consonant sound and “V” represents a pure vowel or a
diphthong. First transcribe the word and write C in the place of each consonant sounds and V for each pure
vowel sound and diphthongs.
EYE - /aɪ/ → V
EYES - /aɪz/ → VC
SEE - /siː/ → CV
SEAT - /siːt/ → CVC
PLANT - /plænt/ → CCVC
COMPUTER - /kəmˈpjuːtər/ → CVC-CV-CVC
REDUCE - /rɪˈdjuːs/ → CV-CVC
THOUGHT - /θɔːt/ → CVC
ME - /miː/ → CV
DEVELOPMENT - /dɪˈvɛləpmənt/ → CV-CV-CVC-CVC

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SCHOOL - /skuːl/ → CCVC

CHIN - /tʃɪn/ → CVC
JUNE - /dʒuːn/ → CVC
MASK - /mɑːsk/ → CVCC
FROG - /frɒg/ → CCVC
SHIP - /ʃɪp/ → CVC
BEAUTIFUL - /ˈbjuːtɪfəl/ → CCV-CV-CVC

INTONATION
Intonation refers to the variation in pitch while speaking. It is the rise and fall of the voice that adds
meaning, emotion, and emphasis to spoken language.
Rising Intonation (↗):
• The pitch rises towards the end of the sentence.
• Commonly used in:
o Yes/No questions (e.g., "Are you coming?")
o Uncertainty or incomplete thoughts.
Falling Intonation (↘):
• The pitch falls at the end of the sentence.
• Commonly used in:
o Statements (e.g., "I live in India.")
o Commands (e.g., "Sit down.")
o Wh- questions (e.g., "What is your name?")
Rising-Falling Intonation (↗↘):
• The pitch rises and then falls.
• Used to convey:
o Surprise (e.g., "Really?")
o Choices or alternatives (e.g., "Do you want tea or coffee?")
Falling-Rising Intonation (↘↗):
• The pitch falls and then rises.

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• Used to:
o Express doubt or uncertainty (e.g., "I think it might rain.")
o Add politeness or soften statements.

WORD ACCENT
Word accent refers to the emphasis placed on a particular syllable within a word. In English, stressed
syllables are pronounced more prominently than others. The stress is marked using the symbol ''CONduct–
Here the first syllable is stressed.

STRESS SHIFT
Stress shift occurs when the stress in a word changes depending on its grammatical form, such as whether
it is used as a noun, verb, or adjective. This shift often occurs in multi-syllabic words.
Examples:
1. Noun-Verb Shift:
o 'REcord (noun) vs. re'CORD (verb)
o 'IMport (noun) vs. im'PORT (verb)
2. Word in a Sentence:
Stress can shift to emphasize meaning in connected speech:
o "I didn't say HE stole the money." (Emphasis on he)
o "I didn't say he STOLE the money." (Emphasis on stole)

COMMONLY MISSPELT WORDS

1. Accommodation
2. Definitely
3. Separate
4. Occasionally
5. Restaurant
6. Necessary
7. Privilege

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8. Embarrass
9. Recommend
10. Tomorrow
11. Environment
12. Occur
13. Judgment
14. Calendar
15. Conscience
16. Maintenance
17. Argument
18. Convenient
19. Believe
20. Humorous
21. Tomorrow
22. Receive
23. February
24. Experience
25. Exaggerate
STRONG AND WEAK FORMS OF WORDS
Weak Form:
A weak form of a word is the reduced or unstressed version of the word's pronunciation. It typically occurs
in connected speech when the word is not emphasized and contributes to the rhythm and fluency of the
language. Weak forms often involve vowel reduction to a schwa sound (/ə/) or other simplified
pronunciations.
Strong Form:
A strong form of a word is the full or stressed version of the word's pronunciation. It is used when the word
is emphasized for clarity, contrast, or importance, or when it occurs in isolation. Strong forms are typically
pronounced with clear and distinct vowel sounds.

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WORD STRONG FORM WEAK FORM

a /eɪ/ /ə/

An /æn/ /ən/

The /ðiː/ /ðə/

and /ænd/ /ənd/ or /n̩/

is /iz/ /z/ /s/

was /wɒz/ /wəz/

Were/ / wɜː(r)/ /wə(r)/

have /hæv/ /həv/ or /əv/

has /hæz/ /həz/ or /əz/

had /hæd/ /həd/ or /əd/

Can /kæn/ /kən/

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