Function Words - American English Pronunciation + Intonation/Word Stress

The video tutorial explains the concepts of stress and intonation in American English, focusing on how different words are stressed or unstressed in sentences. It covers the role of function words, auxiliary verbs, modal verbs, prepositions, pronouns, and conjunctions in determining pitch and stress. The tutorial emphasizes the importance of understanding these patterns for effective communication.

What is the primary purpose of varying pitch in speech?

• To make speech sound more musical

• To emphasize every word equally

• To help listeners understand the speaker better

• To confuse the listener

Which type of words are generally stressed in a sentence?

• Prepositions

• Auxiliary verbs

• Content words

• Function words

What role do auxiliary verbs play in English grammar?

• They are used to form questions

• They help form different tenses and voices

• They are used to end sentences

• They are always stressed in a sentence

Which of the following is an example of a modal auxiliary verb?

• With

• Might

• Is

• Has

In the sentence 'He came with his friends,' which word is a preposition?

• Friends

• With

• Came

• He

Which of the following is a function word?

• Run

• Quickly

• And

• Beautiful

What happens to function words in terms of pitch and stress?

• They are pronounced louder

• They are generally lower in pitch and unstressed

• They are always higher in pitch

• They are always emphasized