Spoken Language & Connected Speech
What are the two receptive language skills?
Answer: Reading and listening.
Explanation: Receptive skills involve responding to language, not producing it. Speaking and writing are productive.
Which subskillis it? : listening to a train announcement for the platform number?
Answer: Listening for specific information.
Explanation: You only need particular facts — time, platform, destination
What is connected speech? Name two features
Answer: Connected speech is spoken language where words join into a connected stream of sounds. Features include: speed of delivery, accent, word/sentence stress, linking sounds and words, contracted forms.
Explanation: Learners often struggle because they are not used to these features.
Which subskill: listening to a song for pleasure?
Answer: Extensive listening.
Explanation: Extensive listening means listening to longer texts for pleasure or practice, not for a detailed task.
Why is spoken language usually less organised than written language?
Answer: Because speakers do not have time to organise their thoughts and language beforehand.
Explanation: Spoken language contains hesitations, repetitions, topic changes, and incomplete sentences — not because it is “bad,” but because of how it is produced
Why is a live speaker often easier to understand than a recording?
Because live speakers use body language and context, and you can ask them to repeat or explain.
Explanation:
With a live speaker, you can see gestures and facial expressions. You can also say “Sorry, can you repeat that?” With a recording, you cannot interact, and there is no visual support — so it is often harder.
Which of the following are features of connected speech?
A. Linking sounds
B. Punctuation
C. Contracted forms
D. Capital letters
E. Word stress
Connected speech includes linking sounds, contracted forms, word stress, sentence stress, accent, and speed of delivery. Punctuation and capital letters are features of written language, not spoken.
Which of the following statements about listening subskills and tasks are correct?
A. A gist task requires learners to understand the main idea, not every word.
B. A specific information task is harder than a detail task because you need to understand the whole text.
C. Listening for detail means understanding every important point.
D. Inferring attitude is the same as listening for specific information.
E. Extensive listening is usually done for pleasure or practice, not for a detailed task.
A is correct: gist = general understanding.
B is wrong: specific information is often easier— you only need particular facts, not the whole text.
C is correct: detail = every important point.
D is wrong: inferring attitude = judging how the speaker feels; specific information = picking out facts.
E is correct: extensive = longer texts for pleasure/practice.
Which of the following are reasons spoken language is less organised than written language?
A. Speakers have time to plan
B. Spoken language disappears immediately
C. It contains hesitations and repetitions
D. It uses complex grammar
E. Listeners need simple real-time messages
Spoken language is produced in real time, so it disappears immediately, contains hesitations and repetitions, and must be simple enough for listeners to process on the spot. Speakers do nothave time to plan, and spoken language uses simple grammar, not complex grammar.
teacher says: “My learners always try to understand every word, so I give them transcripts to read as they listen.”
Which of the following statements about this practice are correct?
A. It turns listening into a reading task.
B. It helps learners develop real‑time listening strategies.
C. It prevents learners from dealing with connected speech.
D. It is recommended for all listening lessons.
E. It reduces learners’ tolerance of ambiguity
A is correct: reading while listening makes it a reading task, not listening.
B is wrong: real‑time listening strategies are developed by listening without a transcript.
C is correct: learners don’t practice processing connected speech if they read.
D is wrong: the text does not recommend this for all lessons; transcripts are best used afterlistening.
E is correct: always relying on a transcript reduces the ability to cope with not understanding every word.