Learn how word boundaries affect sounds (assimilation, linking) and how to keep clarity.
In connected speech, boundaries can trigger linking, assimilation, elision, or intrusion.
Avoid inserting strong pauses everywhere; instead, use clear stress and phrasing.
Is meaning unclear at the boundary? If yes, slow slightly or add stress to the key word.
💡 Many boundary effects are optional. Clarity often comes from sentence stress rather than pronouncing every consonant. British vs US note: boundary processes exist in both varieties; the big differences are often /r/ behavior (rhotic vs non-rhotic) and some /t/ patterns (flap vs glottal).
✓green pen (careful) vs greem pen (possible assimilation)
The final /n/ may become /m/ before /p/ in fast speech (assimilation).
✓pick it up → /pɪkɪtʌp/
Consonant-to-vowel linking helps speech flow.
✓I asked them → /aɪ ɑːs(t) ðəm/
A /t/ may weaken or disappear in a cluster (elision).