Saying consonant clusters quickly

Articulatory variation as a function of speech rate is investigated experimentally. Specifically, two strategies for increasing rate are considered: shortening the duration of each component of a sequence and increasing the relative overlap of these components. Reduction in the magnitude of the articulations is also reported. Four consonant sequences spanning word boundaries were produced by five talkers at a variety of rates, and electropalatographic data were collected. Consonant duration, displacement, and temporal overlap and latency between the consonants are evaluated with respect to speaking rate. The results evidence both mechanisms of faster speech-individual consonants shorten in duration and a relatively linear increase occurs in the overlap of the articulations. The consonant sequences, however, do not behave identically. A consonant's place, manner, and syllabic position are also found to affect the way in which speech rate is increased. (C) 1996 Academic Press Limited