The Impact of phonetic Cues in Connected Speech

Abstract

The present study is an attempt to shed light on the term 'juncture' in the English Language. The study is theoretically and practically oriented. The problem lies in the fact that Iraq EFL college students may face difficulty in their recognition in continuous speech, the sequences of words uttered without conventional spaces between them. The listener in general and EFL college students in particular how they are understood what the speaker said for instance, I scream and ice cream?
 In this study, the researcher tries to explain how the phonetics cues which help the listeners to understand the difference between the utterances that they have the same phonetic transcription and how the phonetic cues signaling the boundaries between words in connected speech .? The hypotheses of the study (1)The EFL college students can recognize the two similar utterances in connect speech when they listened to them. (2) the EFL college students are not able to recognize the two similar utterances in connected speech. 
 The results show that the first hypothesis is refuted, that the Iraqi EFL College students do face difficulty in discrimination of two identical phonetic transcriptions. The second hypothesis is verified that EFL college students do not aware of how to use phonetics cues.
 In the light of the conclusions arrived at, several pedagogical recommendations and suggestions for teaching English as a foreign language have been made