Compound Nouns and Pronunciation
2020-05-29
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1In the film A League of Their Own, actor Tom Hanks plays the coach of an American baseball team.
2He oversees an all-female team called the Rockford Peaches.
3In one famous scene at a game, Hanks gets angry at one of the players.
4She begins to cry. He then says the following words:
5There's no crying...
6There's no crying in baseball.
7That movie line has also been in the news recently.
8In March, while visiting Australia, Hanks tested positive for the new coronavirus.
9A short time later, the actor wrote on Twitter: "Remember, despite all the current events, there is no crying in baseball."
10Today on Everyday Grammar, we will explore how this famous line can teach you about the link between grammar and pronunciation -- the ways in which words are spoken.
11The word compound suggests two words that, together, have one meaning.
12The two words have become a kind of phrase or expression that acts like a noun.
13Often, two nouns make up a compound.
14For example, the nouns book and shelf can be combined to make the compound noun bookshelf.
15Every student fears another kind of compound noun: a report card.
16In writing, compounds sometimes have a space between the two words; sometimes they do not.
17At times, a compound noun is based on an adjective and a noun.
18Hot dogs are a popular food sold at baseball games in the U.S.
19The word hot is an adjective and dog is a noun. Together, they make the compound noun, hot dog.
20You might be asking yourself what the link is between compounds and speaking.
21The idea is this: In speaking, Americans usually stress the first word in a compound.
22They say the first word louder or longer to show its importance.
23At times, stress could also mean saying something with a higher pitch in your voice.
24Listen to some of the words from earlier in our report:
25bookshelf
26report card
27hot dog
28However, when an adjective goes before a noun, and the two words do not make a compound, then the stress should go on the noun - the second word.
29So, if the adjective good goes before the noun job, then the stress goes on job.
30This is because good job is not a compound noun - it is just an adjective and a noun.
31Here are two examples:
32He did a good job.
33Good job!
34In the book Mastering the American Accent, Lisa Mojsin writes how stress helps show a difference in meaning between a compound noun and an adjective plus noun group that is not a compound.
35Here are two examples:
36I went to the White House.
37I went to the white house.
38The first statement uses a compound noun - White House, the official home of the U.S. president.
39The second statement uses an adjective and noun that do not make up a compound - white house.
40Did you hear how the stress was different in the two statements?
41Think back to the words Tom Hanks said at the beginning of our report.
42There's no crying...
43There's no crying in baseball.
44Did you hear how Hanks said baseball? Baseball is a compound noun made of the words base and ball.
45In baseball, the batter is supposed to run toward first base after he or she hits the ball.
46You could say that the batter's attention is on getting to the first base.
47Likewise, when you pronounce compound nouns, your attention should be placed on the first word, or first part of the word.
48The next time you are watching an American film, try to listen for how the actors put stress on different words.
49Try to listen for examples of compound nouns.
50Try using word stress in the way we talked about today.
51With time, your speaking will become clearer and more understandable to native speakers.
52And remember, there is no crying in baseball!
53I'm Ashley Thompson.
54And I'm John Russell.
1In the film A League of Their Own, actor Tom Hanks plays the coach of an American baseball team. He oversees an all-female team called the Rockford Peaches. 2In one famous scene at a game, Hanks gets angry at one of the players. She begins to cry. He then says the following words: 3There's no crying... 4There's no crying in baseball. 5That movie line has also been in the news recently. In March, while visiting Australia, Hanks tested positive for the new coronavirus. A short time later, the actor wrote on Twitter: "Remember, despite all the current events, there is no crying in baseball." 6Today on Everyday Grammar, we will explore how this famous line can teach you about the link between grammar and pronunciation -- the ways in which words are spoken. 7What are compounds? 8The word compound suggests two words that, together, have one meaning. The two words have become a kind of phrase or expression that acts like a noun. 9Often, two nouns make up a compound. For example, the nouns book and shelf can be combined to make the compound noun bookshelf. Every student fears another kind of compound noun: a report card. 10In writing, compounds sometimes have a space between the two words; sometimes they do not. 11At times, a compound noun is based on an adjective and a noun. Hot dogs are a popular food sold at baseball games in the U.S. The word hot is an adjective and dog is a noun. Together, they make the compound noun, hot dog. 12Compounds and pronunciation 13You might be asking yourself what the link is between compounds and speaking. 14The idea is this: In speaking, Americans usually stress the first word in a compound. They say the first word louder or longer to show its importance. At times, stress could also mean saying something with a higher pitch in your voice. 15Listen to some of the words from earlier in our report: 16bookshelf 17report card 18hot dog 19However, when an adjective goes before a noun, and the two words do not make a compound, then the stress should go on the noun - the second word. 20So, if the adjective good goes before the noun job, then the stress goes on job. This is because good job is not a compound noun - it is just an adjective and a noun. 21Here are two examples: 22He did a good job. 23Good job! 24In the book Mastering the American Accent, Lisa Mojsin writes how stress helps show a difference in meaning between a compound noun and an adjective plus noun group that is not a compound. 25Here are two examples: 26I went to the White House. 27I went to the white house. 28The first statement uses a compound noun - White House, the official home of the U.S. president. 29The second statement uses an adjective and noun that do not make up a compound - white house. 30Did you hear how the stress was different in the two statements? 31Pronunciation and films 32Think back to the words Tom Hanks said at the beginning of our report. 33There's no crying... 34There's no crying in baseball. 35Did you hear how Hanks said baseball? Baseball is a compound noun made of the words base and ball. 36In baseball, the batter is supposed to run toward first base after he or she hits the ball. You could say that the batter's attention is on getting to the first base. 37Likewise, when you pronounce compound nouns, your attention should be placed on the first word, or first part of the word. 38The next time you are watching an American film, try to listen for how the actors put stress on different words. Try to listen for examples of compound nouns. Try using word stress in the way we talked about today. 39With time, your speaking will become clearer and more understandable to native speakers. 40And remember, there is no crying in baseball! 41I'm Ashley Thompson. 42And I'm John Russell. 43John Russell wrote this story for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor. 44We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section. 45_________________________________________________________________ 46Words in This Story 47scene - n. the place where an event happens or happened 48despite - prep. without being affected by 49grammar - n. the system and structure of a language 50pitch - n. the highness or lowness of a sound 51batter - n. baseball - a player who is trying to hit the ball; a player who is batting 52likewise - adv. in the same way