Utterance final lengthening and focus induced lengthening in standard Chinese bi-syllabic words

Abstract

This paper examines the patterns of durational adjustment of bi-syllabic words in Standard Chinese when different constituents of the word are focused for correction. Results show that both focus-induced lengthening and utterance final lengthening exists in Chinese bi-syllabic words. The distribution of final lengthening is non-uniform. The final-lengthening pattern of target words is progressive, while the focus lengthening doesn’t have a certain pattern in lengthening, no progressive lengthening or any “edge effect’ appears in the distribution of lengthening pattern. However both final lengthening and focus lengthening are consistent with the content based view and the structural based view. In that, lengthening appears in all syllables if it is expandable regardless of the where the lengthening starts. And short syllable lengthened less than full syllables. The lack of final lengthening in words with second syllable being stressed and a full first syllable agrees with the structure based view that lengthening starts from the stressed syllable. In the focus-induced lengthening, the target words position has a obvious impact on the lengthening effect. With greater focus-induced lengthening on words in the medial position than it is in the final position.