earticle

영어

This study focuses on syncope, consonant deletion and consonant insertion and provides an Optimality Theoretic account. One constraint ranking explains syncope while the other two constraint rankings account for consonant deletion and insertion. The variation in syncope and consonant insertion can be explicated by reranking the relevant low ranking constraints. The study reveals a more refined sonority scale with respect to a flapped consonant for English phonology. The result of the analysis shows that the two separate processes, a segmental deletion and insertion, share a functional aspect together: they are in part triggered by easy of articulation.*This paper was supported by research funds of Chonbuk National University. I am grateful to three anonymous AELLK reviewers for their insightful comments. I alone am responsible for shortcomings in this paper. Easy of articulation can be replaced by “less efforts” in speech production. The ranking difference in phonological processes affects the pronunciation of non-native speakers so they should be aware of ranking difference if they want to improve their pronunciation.