The Complex Language of Prairie Dogs

C. Summarize the lecture using the diagram.

D. Fill in the blanks with the key words to complete the summary below.

The professor says prairie dogs may have the most _____________ language in the animal world. Scientists recorded their barks and yips and analyzed them. They found that these dogs use nouns, verbs, and adjectives and _____________ between colors. Their language is not universal, and they use different _____________ in different areas. The dogs also make up new words. During a test they made up a word for an _____________ shape. They use their language to _____________ themselves.

Speaking 2: Word Stress

Word stress has a large effect on speech clarity. If stressed on an incorrect syllable, a word cannot be easily recognized by listeners. Therefore, the message may not be delivered successfully. Thus, it is essential for a speaker to stress the proper syllables in his or her speech.

A. Stress related to parts of words

In many cases, the syllable stressed in a word changes when the form of the word changes. For example, in words that end with the suffixes below, the primary stress usually comes before the suffix.

– Nouns that end with: –let, –ing, –ism, –ent, –ery, –ity, –tion, –sion

– Adjectives that end with: –ic, –ical, –able, –en

Many two-syllable nouns, when used as verbs, are stressed on the second syllable.

Example: record, permit, address, object, contract, suspect, present, convert, project, progress

1.  Listen to the audio recording. Circle the part of each word that receives the primary stress. How does the placement of stress differ between the words in each pair?

1. a. advertise	b. advertisement	6. a. pronounce	b. pronunciation
2. a. education	b. educational	7. a. refrigerate	b. refrigeration
3. a. curious	b. curiosity	8. a. marriage	b. marriageable
4. a. knowledge	b. knowledgeable	9. a. technology	b. technological
5. a. electric	b. electricity	10.a. division	b. divisible

 Now, listen and repeat.

2.  Listen and mark the primary stress in each word. How does the placement of stress differ between the words in each pair?

1. a. method	b. methodology	6. a. recommend	b. recommendation
2. a. economy	b. economic	7. a. capable	b. capability
3. a. academy	b. academic	8. a. prefer	b. preference
4. a. luxury	b. luxurious	9. a. photograph	b. photography
5. a. drama	b. dramatic	10. a. negotiate	b. negotiation

Listen again and repeat the words.

3. Read the following sentences and circle the syllable in the underlined words that receives the primary stress.

1. Do you have a campus parking permit for your bike?

2. I hope my professor can advise me on which course to take.

3. She has to present her project to the class tomorrow.

4. My friends and I are going to the protest downtown this afternoon.

5. Did you hear that Jane and her band will record an album this summer?

6. Unfortunately, my parents will not permit me to go skiing this weekend.

7. The police have arrested a suspect in the campus computer lab robbery.

8. In biology, we are studying how plants convert sunlight into energy.

 Listen and repeat the sentences.

B. Stress on phrasal verbs

Two-word verbs or phrasal verbs, which are made up of a verb and a preposition or adverb, are very common in English. In two-word verbs or phrasal verbs, it is normally the preposition or adverb that receives stress, not the verb.

Example: drop by, figure out

The meaning of a phrasal verb is distinct from the meaning of its constituent parts. Do not confuse these phrasal verbs with other verbs that are followed by a preposition without a changed meaning.

Phrasal verbs	Verb + Preposition
look for	look at
build up	listen to
hold up	point at
find out	depend on
think over	think of
check out	talk about
turn off	search for
hold on	respond to
stand for