CC2040 English for Academic Studies (Health Care)

Health Care Terminology II

Pronunciation: Syllable
and Stress; Unusual
Sounds, Soft and Hard
Sounds…

1 Based on William Tsang 2007

 Pronunciation of medical & health care terms

Most medical terms

follow the same pronunciation rules

for most English words.

2 Based on William Tsang 2007

 Pronunciation of medical & health care terms

The pronunciation of a word is

made up of parts called
‘syllables’.

3 Based on William Tsang 2007

 A syllable is…

- ‘… a part of a word that contains a

single vowel-sound and that is
pronounced as a unit’.

*Collins COBUILD English Language Dictionary, William Collins Sons &

Co. Ltd., 2004

4 Based on William Tsang 2007

 Syllable

‘Cell’ has one syllable.

‘Cellar’ has two syllables.
‘Cellular’ has three syllables.

5 Based on William Tsang 2007

 Each syllable is made up of …

a vowel-sound
or
a combination of a vowel-sound and a
consonant sound(s)

6 Based on William Tsang 2007

 A vowel is…

- ‘… a sound… in which your vocal cords vibrate,

your mouth is open, and your tongue does
not touch your teeth or the top of your
mouth… air can flow freely’*.

*Collins COBUILD English Language Dictionary, William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd.,
2004

7 Based on William Tsang 2007

 Vowel

For example:

The ‘a’ sound in ‘baby’

The ‘ow’ sound in ‘cow’

8 Based on William Tsang 2007

 A consonant is…

- ‘… a sound which you pronounce by

stopping the air flowing freely through
your mouth’*.

*Collins COBUILD English Language Dictionary, William Collins Sons &

Co. Ltd., 2004

9 Based on William Tsang 2007

 Consonant

For example:

The ‘b’ sound as in ‘baby’

The ‘t’ sound as in ‘take’

10 Based on William Tsang 2007

 Stress is…

… the emphasis you put on certain syllables of a word when

you pronounce it.

louder voice
longer duration
higher pitch

11 Based on William Tsang 2007

 Stressed Syllable

In ‘cellular’,

‘cell’ is the stressed syllable.

12 Based on William Tsang 2007

 Stress Syllable

Some words have more than one stressed

syllable.

In ‘tonsillectomy’, ‘ton’ and ‘lec’ are the

stressed syllables.

13 Based on William Tsang 2007

 Pronunciation of medical & health care terms

Study the

‘Uncommon Sounds’.

(See handout ‘Uncommon Sounds’)

14 Based on William Tsang 2007

 Pronunciation of medical & health care terms

Learn the differences

between the

soft and hard ‘c’, ‘ch’ and ‘g’.

(See handout ‘Soft and Hard Sounds’)

15 Based on William Tsang 2007

 Pronunciation of medical & health care terms

Say them aloud –

you will find it a big help.

http://www.merck.com/mmhe/resources/pronunciations/index/c.html
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/mplusdictionary.html
http://laits.utexas.edu/sites/medterms/pronunciation-of-medical-terms/

16 Based on William Tsang 2007