Re: USAGE: Schwa and syllabification

David Peterson wrote:

> Mark wrote:
>
> <<A genuine [@l] sounds different from [l=], but is a bit harder to
> pronounce IME.  The word "little" is phonemically /'lIt@l/, but the pair
> (schwa + sonorant) usually gets reduced to a syllabic sonorant in
> English, because it's easier to say.  When you pronounce [@l] at
> anything close to normal speed, your mouth gets into position for the l
> early on, while you've theoretically just begun pronouncing the schwa.
> At full speed they collapse into a simultaneous articulation, and you get
> [l=].>>
>
> This is an excellent explanation  I'd add to that the way you can tell
> if you do it or not is to examine what's going on in your mouth (I
> don't think you need a mirror).  You'll notice that when you pronounce
> the "tt" in "hitting", your tongue goes up and touches the alveolar
> ridge (just behind your teeth).  You should notice the same with the
> "l" in "palace".  If you truly have a schwa in between the "tt" and
> "l" in "little", then there will be a time in between your tongue
> hitting the alveolar ridge for "tt" (which is [4])
Actually, the 'tt' is [?] :p