The Motive for Stress Assignment Rule in the Positional Function Theory
LIU ShaFukuoka University
The Positional Function Theory (Yamada 2010a, 2010b, 2012) consists of twosets of stress assignment rule, the primary stress assignment rule (hereafter, PSAR)
and the subsidiary stress assignment rule (hereafter, SSAR), where PSAR iscomposed of three “Positional Functions”1 and SSAR sixteen “PositionalFunctions.”2 This paper, based on British English data, presents motives for PSAR
and SSAR in terms of the parameters of English stress assignment and English data.
1. The Parameters of English Stress Assignment
The parameters of English stress assignment include weight-sensitivity, left foothead, right end stress, cycle, and so on.
1.1. Weight-Sensitivity
Weight-sensitivity means that stresses tend to fall on heavy syllables in English,
which is stated in the Positional Function Heaviness (H). This Positional Function is
not only part of PSAR but also SSAR. For example, for the primary stress assignment,
Heaviness (H) can be applied to the syllable “gen” in “agenda,” because “gen” is aheavy syllable; similarly, for the subsidiary stress assignment, Heaviness (H) can beapplied to heavy syllables “ex” and “pec” in “expectation.”
1.2. Left Foot Head
Left foot head means: (1) each foot encompasses two syllables; (2) the foot headis on the left syllable. In other words, in each foot, the stress is on the left syllable.
For PSAR, this parameter is stated in the Positional Function Bounded Binarity(BB). For example, in the word “Canada,” syllables “Ca” and “na” can form one foot(Cana). Thus, Bounded Binarity (BB) can be applied to the syllable “Ca,” which is thefoot head in the foot (Cana).
For SSAR, this parameter is stated in Positional Functions of Binarity (B), Edge
Exemption I (EEI), Edge Exemption II (EEII), Farness (F), Free Binarity (FB),
Rhythmic Adjustment (RA), Sole Stress Resistance (SSR), and Stress Reduction (SR).
Take the Positional Function Binarity (B) as an example. In simple terms, it states thatfor the foot (XY), Binarity (B) puts stress on the left syllable X, when X and Y meetcertain requirements respectively; as a result, the Positional Function Binarity (B) is inline with the left foot head parameter. For example, in the word “memorabilia,” “me”
and “mo” can form one foot “(memo)”; the Positional Function Binarity (B) can beapplied to the left syllable “me” in the foot “(memo).”1.3. Right End Stress
Right end stress means that primary stress in English tends to be on the right partof words, which is stated in the Positional Function Rhythmic Adjustment (RA) ofPSAR. For example, in the word “complaisant,” Rhythmic Adjustment (RA) can be1

The 3 Positional Functions of PSAR are “Bounded Binarity (BB),” “Heaviness (H),” and “Rhythmic Adjustment (RA).”The 16 Positional Functions of SSAR are “Alveolar Consonant Sequence (ACS),” “Bare Nucleus Avoidance (BNA),” “Binarity(B),” “Category Selection (CS),” “Double Stop (DS),” “Edge Exemption I (EEI),” “Edge Exemption II (EEII),” “Farness (F),”“Free Binarity (FB),” “Heaviness (H),” “Rhythm (R),” “Rhythmic Adjustment (RA),” “Sole Stress Resistance (SSR),” “StressReduction (SR),” “Trace (T),” and “Velar-Alveolar Sequence (VAS).”2

applied to the syllable “plai,” because “plai” is the rightmost of the relevant syllables.
1.4. Cycle
Cycle in phonology means that English preserves a phonological “trace” of thestress given on an earlier cycle, which is stated in the Positional Function Trace (T)3of SSAR. For example, Trace (T) can be applied to the syllable “ge” in“degeneration,” because of the trace from the primary stress on “ge” in the base form
“degénerate.”
2. English Data
Positional Functions of Alveolar Consonant Sequence (ACS), Bare Nucleus
Avoidance (BNA), Double Stop (DS), Rhythm (R), and Velar-Alveolar Sequence (VAS),
all of which belong to SSAR, are in line with English data.
Take the Positional Function Bare Nucleus Avoidance (BNA) as an example. This
paper examined all words starting with “a,” “e,” “i,” “o,” and “u” in dictionaries4 andfound out that 88% of words initiating with those letters do not bear subsidiary stresson initial short-vowel syllables when those syllables do not meet requirements for theapplication of intrinsic Positional Functions of Trace (T), Binarity (B), or Free
Binarity (FB). This tendency is stated in the Positional Function Bare Nucleus
Avoidance (BNA). For example, Bare Nucleus Avoidance (BNA) can be applied to thesyllable “e” in “elèctrícian,” because “e” is an initial short-vowel syllable and does
not meet the requirement for the application of Trace (T), Binarity (B), or Free
Binarity (FB).
3. Conclusion
In conclusion, this paper gives a presentation on the motive for the primary stressassignment rule and the subsidiary stress assignment rule and supports further thevalidity of the Positional Function Theory.
References
Halle, Morris and Jean-Roger Vergnaud (1990) An Essay on Stress, MIT Press,Cambridge, MA.
Jones, Daniel (2011) Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, Cambridge
University Press, Cambridge.
Roca, Iggy and Wyn Johnson (2000) A Course in Phonology, Blackwell, Malden,MA.
Wells, John (2000) Longman Pronunciation Dictionary, Pearson Education, Essex.
Yamada, Eiji (2010a) Subsidiary Stresses in English, Kaitakusha, Tokyo.
Yamada, Eiji (2010b) “Optionality in English Subsidiary Stress Assignment,” Studies
in English Literature (Regional Branches Combined Issue) 3, 543-556.
Yamada, Eiji (2012) “Main Stress Assignment in English Words,” paper presented inthe 30th Conference of the English Linguistics Society of Japan, held at Keio
University, November 11, 2012.

34For the original statement of all Positional Functions, refer to Subsidiary Stresses in English (Yamada 2010).
Here, dictionaries refer to Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary (2011) and Longman Pronunciation Dictionary (2000).