Index (Connected speech)
List of words with strong/weak forms
These words are mostly said in the weak form, except when stressed to emphasise something or highlight a contradiction. However, they cannot be weak when they are the last word in a sentence. This differs with pronouns, which are normally weak even when they are the last word in a sentence.
Various words
| Strong form | Weak form | ||
| and | /ænd/ | /ən/ | |
| but | /bʌt/ | /bət/ | |
| for | /fɔ:/ | /fə/ | |
| of | /ɒv/ | /əv/ | |
| from | /frɒm/ | /frəm/ | |
| some | /sʌm/ | /səm/ | |
| at | /æt/ | /ət/ | |
| as | /æz/ | /əz/ | |
| than | /ðæn/ | /ðən/ | |
| to | /tu:/ | /tə/ |
Auxiliary verbs
| Strong form | Weak form | ||
| has | /hæz/ | /həz/ | |
| have | /hæv/ | /həv/ | |
| had | /hæd/ | /həd/ | |
| can | /kæn/ | /kən/ | |
| do | /du:/ | /də/ | |
| does | /dʌz/ | /dəz/ | |
| could | /kʊd/ | /kəd/ | |
| would | /wʊd/ | /wəd/ | |
| should | /ʃʊd/ | /ʃəd/ | |
| shall | /ʃæl/ | /ʃəl/ | |
| must | /mʌst/ | /məst/ |
Strong or weak?
The verb ‘to be’
| Strong form | Weak form | ||
| am | /æm/ | /əm/ | |
| is | /ɪz/ | /əz/ | |
| are | /ɑ:/ | /ə/ | |
| was | /wɒz/ | /wəz/ | |
| were | /wɔ:/ | /wə/ |
Articles
| Strong form | Weak form | ||
| a | /eɪ/ | /ə/ | |
| an | /æn/ | /ən/ | |
| the | /ði:/ (before a vowel sound) | /ðə/ (before a consonant sound) |
“these words (in all of the lists above) cannot be weak when they are the last word in a sentence.”
Articles: The
The article the is strong (pronounced thee) when followed by a vowel sound, but weak when followed by a consonant sound. This is shown in the examples below:
| Weak | Strong | Contrasted |
| /ðə/ | /ði:/ | |
| Phonemic script | Audio | |
| 1. The apple and the banana. | /ði: ˈæp.əl ən ðə bə.ˈnɑ:.nə/ | |
| 2. The cat and the ape. | /ðə kæt ən ði: eɪp/ | |
| 3. The blood test and the xray. | /ðə blʌd test ən ði: eksreɪ/ |
Note that Sentence 3 shows that it is the sound, not the letter that is important. The letter X is a consonant, but the word xray starts with an e sound, so we say /ði: eksreɪ/.
Articles: a and an
The article a is nearly always said in its weak form. This article is only used before words starting with consonant sounds, because the article an is used before words starting with vowel sounds.
So when do we use the strong form of a? (Written as /eɪ/ in phonemic script).
The indefinite article a is only pronounced as /eɪ/ when used emphatically to contradict a previous statement or assumption. The strong form /eɪ/ indicates that there is only one of the noun which follows. For example:
Are there any taxis in this town?
Yes, there is a taxi, but it’s the only one.
I’ve heard that there are some good restaurants here.
Well, there is a good restaurant, but the rest are rather bad.
In both examples here, the strong form /eɪ/ has been used to stress that there is only one taxi and only one good restaurant.
Pronouns with weak forms
| Strong form | Weak form(s) | ||
| you | /ju:/ | /jə/ | |
| your | /jɔ:/ | /jə/ | |
| he | /hi:/ | /i:/ | |
| he’s | /hi:z/ | /hɪz/ or /ɪz/ | |
| his | /hɪz/ | /ɪz/ | |
| her | /hɜ:/ | /hə/ or /ə/ | |
| it | /ɪt/ | /ət/ | |
| its / it’s | /ɪts/ | /əts/ | |
| him | /hɪm/ | /ɪm/ | |
| us | /ʌs/ | /əs/ | |
| them | /ðem/ | /ðəm/ or /əm/ |
The weak forms of pronouns are used very frequently in English. Pronouns are a little different to other words which have weak forms. Most function words cannot be weak if they are the last word in a sentence. However, pronouns can be weak in any position in a sentence.
“Pronouns can be pronounced in the weak form, even when they are the last word in a sentence”.