An Aspect of Consonant Cluster Simplification in English

Abstract

The goal of this study was twofold: 1) to observe an aspect of consonant deletion in coda clusters of English and 2) provide an alternative analysis of consonant deletion. It is argued that a segment occurring between consonants is subject to deletion if it has a potential of being weakened or glottalized in a syllable coda. Unlike claims by some of previous studies, this study asserts that a word final /t/ or /d/ preceded by (a) consonant(s) does not undergo deletion unless it is followed by a consonant-initial suffix or a word. This type of argument boils down to segments with [-cont, -son] feature specifications as possible deletion targets in coda clusters. If two segments with peripheral and coronal places of articulation are surrounded by other consonants, the least marked coronal place of articulation is selected as the target deletion. This type of coda simplification can enhance syllable-wellformedness in two aspects: making a simpler coda and maximizing an onset cluster if Ons-Con is satisfied. At the end of this study, some implications for phonology were suggested.