Syllabic (consonants)

Question

Syllabic sounds are sounds which function as syllable nuclei. Vowels are syllabic and so are syllabic consonants such as l in bottle and candle or the nasal n in cotton and m in bettom.

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apple, pickle, eagle.

As I understand, l in apple is syllabic because it sounds [aep/ul(something like this)] <= l functions as syllable nuclei.

Q1) Actually, I don't understand 'syllabic' clearly. I don't think I explain it with apple well. Can anyone contribute to this concept with those examples?

Q2) I think I can understand a little why l in 'apple' and 'pickle' is syllabic, but I completly do not understand why l in 'eagle' can be syllabic.

Tinyteflteacher · Accepted Answer

Hi there.

I had a quick investigation with the help of Crystal's Encyclopedia of the English language, and it seems to make sense, but I'm not sure if my response here will tell you anything you don't already know.

A syllable = (onset +) nucleus (+ coda)

A vowel is a nucleus, and consonants can be used as an onset or a coda.

For example

just a nucleus: a

nucleus + coda: at

onset + nucleus + coda: pat

Some consonants (for example the 'l' sound in words like eagle and pickle, or the 'n' sound in even) are considered to work as a nucleus instead of a vowel. So the second syllable of apple and eagle would be just /l/ (a syllabic consonant as a nucleus), not 'ul' (this would be a vowel as the syllabic nuclei), as long as you are speaking quickly.

Most dictionaries give both transcriptions though, which would suggest that different people pronounce it differently - so maybe with your accent you always sound the schwa! In which case it'll be really difficult for you to hear it (I've just spent 20 mins trying to convince my husband there's no schwa when I say it, and he still won't believe me).

TTT

CalifJim · Answer

tinyteflteacherI've just spent 20 mins trying to convince my husband there's no schwa when I say it, and he still won't believe me

I have to confess that, to my knowledge, I myself have never heard, nor ever produced, syllabic L, so I probably wouldn't believe you either. In words like "bottle", however, I hear much less vowel than in "table" between the preceding consonant and the L. This only happens for me with the "ttle" ending. Maybe that's what people mean by syllabic L.

It seems to me that people who argue that there's a syllabic L in "eagle" also claim there's a syllabic R in "eager". I'm never sure in these cases what exactly it is that I'm supposed to be listening for!

I have heard, in French, an L-ending after a consonant with no intervening vowel (table, aigle, rouble, angle), but never in English. But that may be irrelevant because I don't think that would be considered syllabic L anyway.

CJ

CalifJim · Answer

moon7296Q2) I think I can understand a little why l in 'apple' and 'pickle' is syllabic, but I completly do not understand why l in 'eagle' can be syllabic.

Hmm. That's quite an unusual problem you have there. Maybe you perceive the combination differently when there's a voiced consonant before the "syllabic L".

In my own pronunciation I have syllabic N in "cotton", something close to syllabic L in "bottle", but no syllabic L in "candle" nor syllabic M in "bottom".

moon7296Actually, I don't understand 'syllabic' clearly.

I don't either. I don't think I'm hearing what others claim to hear. At times I'm inclined to believe that everyone else must have wax in their ears!

CJ

Moon7296 · Answer

AH!!! THANK YOU VERY MUCH TTT & CJ!!

Now, I understand 'syllabic' much better!

CJ you said, you make apply syllabic L in cotton and not in candle and bottom[m].

Then, cotton will sound [co.n], not[cot.tn].

n which is a consonant functions as a syllable nucleus.

The point is people pronounce those words differently.

British people tend to pronounce cotton as [cot.tn], don't they?//

Ok. I found if I say there's a syllabic L in apple, it sounds very weird to me.

I got everypoint clear now.

Thanks a lot

Anonymous · Answer

How about 'legal'?

CalifJim · Answer

AnonymousHow about 'legal'?

What about it? It's just like "eagle".

CJ

Fivejedjon · Answer

The reason that some people produce a syllabic /l/, or /n/ in, for example, bottle, and button but not in bottom or eagle is that the tongue does not leave the alveolar ridge in the first two words. The /l/ is released laterally and the /n/ nasally.
In the second two words, however, the /t/ or /g/ stop has to released before the lips (for /m/) or tongue (for/l/) take the position of the final sound. This means that most speakers produce a schwa, albeit short, during the transition.

Muhammad Fareed · Answer

Why °kingdom° with no syllabic m like handsom and movement )no n=

Syllabic (consonants)

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