Final Clusters and the

Spanish-Speaking Learner
D. R. POWELL

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National University of Tucuman, Argentina

R E A D E R S D E V O T E D TO the teaching of English to

Spanish-speaking students, who found my article on initial
clusters useful,1 may be interested in the following notes on
clusters in final position.
To a certain extent one is justified in saying that final clusters
are more important than initial clusters, because whereas the
latter only perform lexical functions, final clusters have gram-
matical functions as well.
In some ways final clusters constitute a greater problem than
initial clusters. For one thing they are more varied and numerous.
It is not an easy task to compile complete lists, and classification
(particularly for teaching purposes) offers its own problems.
Variant forms—a number of which involve the breaking up of the
cluster—are also more numerous.
From the point of view of the Spanish learner, on the other hand,
several difficulties present themselves, the main one being that
final clusters are non-existent in Spanish, except in a few foreign
words (such as box, sprint, tackle, twist, etc.) in which more often
than not the cluster is destroyed or distorted in various ways.
Some of the final clusters of English do exist in Spanish, but as
initial or medial clusters, and they are never identical in the
phonetic sense (that is, there may be clusters which in both
languages are spelt with the same letters, or even represented with
the same phonetic symbols, yet the corresponding realizations
differ to a greater or lesser degree). These differences may not be
of the sort liable to cause unintelligibility, but they will certainly
contribute to a general reduction of the degree of intelligibility.
It is up to the teacher to decide for himself what degree of
accuracy he is to require from his pupils, the aim of the course
and the use to which the pupils intend to put their knowledge of
English being the main factors to be borne in mind.
As with my article on initial clusters, the following general
approach, and the specific suggestions put forward for the teaching
of the various clusters, are intended mainly for adult learners.
When teaching children the approach will be different, since the
younger the learners the less necessary does it become to draw

''Initial Clusters and the Spanish-Speaking Learner', E.L.T., XVI, 2, Jan.-

March 1962, pp. 95-101.
18 D. R. Powell

their attention to pronunciation problems. And, even when it is

found necessary or convenient to do so, the method to be applied
will differ from the one set out below.
In an earlier issue of this journal L. A. Hill gives a list of 336
final clusters of English.1 His article should be read in conjunction

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with this one. It is unnecessary for me to offer another list here,
partly because Hill's list is reasonably complete, and also because,
final clusters being absent from Spanish, it is not possible to make
a comparison cluster by cluster, nor offer examples of their use in
English and Spanish words.
The following clusters might, however, be added to the above-
mentioned list:
With Two Consonants
/n3/ change (also pronounced /gt/ instinct (also pr. /rjkt/)
/nd 3 /) 2
With Three Consonants
/dst/ midst (also pr. /tst/) /pnl/ shrapnel
/ftn/ often (also pr. /fn/) /sns/ nuisance
/Ibd/ bulbed /tst/ blitzed
/nd6/ thousandth (also pr. /nt6/) 3 /zns/ presence
lounged (also pr. /nd3d/)2 /nts/ instincts (also pr. /gkts/)
With Four Consonants
/Ikts/ mulcts /nd0s/ thousandths (also pr.
/ntBs/ 3
/Itst/ waltzed (also pr. /Ist/) /stld/ pestled (also pr. /sld/)
/mznd/ crimsoned /znd9/ thousandth (also pr.
/zntB/)
/ndld/ handled /Qkts/ instincts (also pr. /gts/)
With Five Consonants
/znd9s/ thousandths (also pr. /zntBs/)
Other readers may have come across still further clusters which
could profitably be added to the list. As intimated in an earlier
ll
Final Ousters in English", E.L.T., XVII, 4, July 1963, pp. 167-72.
2
Where alveolar /d/ disappears after alveolar ,'n/. Cf. footnote 6 of L. A.
Hill's article. I have not come across written justification for including /Ij/
and /13d/ as English final clusters to be used as alternative forms of /ICI3/ and
/Id3d/, although it is tempting to include them in order to complete the
picture. It would appear to be a general tendency to eliminate the second of a
sequence of two alveolar consonants when the first is either /I/ or /n/: hands,
/h<cn(d)z/; builds, /bil(d)z/.
3
Tbe inclusion of /znd9/, /znt9/, /zndBs/ and /zntBs/ makes the listing of
/nd9/, /nt9/, /nd9>/ and /nt9s/ superfluous. /nd8/ and /nd9s/ are nevertheless
included here for the sake of completeness, since some of them already
appear in L. A. Hill's list.
Final Clutters and the Spanish-Speaking Learner 19

paragraph, it is virtually impossible to be perfectly certain of the

completeness of a list of final clusters. But some of the examples
found in works on linguistics, included for the sake of filling gaps,
would have no place in a list conceived for practical teaching
purposes.

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/d3/ and /tj/ may be regarded as single consonants—and that is
probably how most practising teachers treat them—in which case
they would not be included at all as clusters, jd^dj and /tft/ would
figure among two-consonant clusters rather than three-consonant
clusters, and so on. This, however, is a theoretical point rather
than a practical one. Provided the teacher is consistent in his
classification, he need not make an issue of it, and there would
certainly be no point in bothering the pupils with it.
Alternative pronunciations need not be taught, although their
existence may be pointed out to advantage. For instance, only one
pronunciation of width need be taught: /wid9/ or /wit9/, the former
bearing a greater resemblance to the spelling of the word (see next
paragraph). In this particular case the cluster /t0/ would still have
to be taught for such a word as eighth /eitG/. Obviously prior
knowledge and usage of one form or other by a pupil should be
taken into account. Whatever pronunciation the teacher may use,
he would hardly be justified in correcting a pupil who is already
familiar with an acceptable alternative pronunciation.
With the exception referred to in the next paragraph, it would
seem advisable, on the whole, to teach the form that presents
greater similarity to the ordinary orthography of the word, since,
whether we like it or not, students are strongly influenced by
spelling. Given the choice, the pupil will generally take the course
just suggested.
As L. A. Hill points out (see paragraph 3 of his article), some
clusters may be dissolved by the insertion of the 'neutral' vowel
(and also, in some cases, by /i/ and /e/). Furthermore, he suggests
(paragraph 9) that the foreign student may find it easier to avoid
the cluster by inserting the corresponding vowel sound. This is
obviously the case with Spanish-speaking learners. Yet, owing to
the general tendency of these students to insert an incorrect vowel
sound (usually the Spanish equivalent suggested by the spelling), I
find it more convenient to teach the cluster rather than the pro-
nunciation with the vowel.
Spanish lacks final consonant clusters. In fact, final consonants
are rather limited in number, though the frequency of occurrence
of a few of them seems to be fairly high. On the other hand, there
appears to be a general tendency to weaken and drop final con-
sonants. In certain cases this is acceptable practice even in educated
forms of the language. In others, however, it is regarded as regional
or uneducated. But as education—particularly beyond the primary
20 D . R. P o w e l l

school level—ceases to be the privilege of a few and becomes

available to the lower social levels-the problem is met with
increasingly in the classroom.1
Owing to this tendency, and to the fact that final consonants are
few in Spanish, most teachers find it necessary to emphasize the

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pronunciation of English final consonants and consonant clusters.
Some of them insist on this to such an extent that it affects their
way of speaking, methodological techniques becoming habitual in
their speech. The techniques referred to include lengthening,
exaggerated aspiration, full voicing (where devoicing would
normally be expected), addition of some shade or other of'/a/,
extra strong breath force, and even ejection.
Although it is necessary to insist on the correct production of
final consonants and consonant clusters, teachers should be
careful not to go to such extremes, at least as normal procedure.
After all, there are ways of making sure that the pupil pronounces
correctly without the teacher using unduly exaggerated pro-
nunciations himself.
A brief consideration of Spanish and English consonant sounds
will be useful. Indeed, by the time the student reaches the present
stage he should have been through all the English (and Spanish)
consonants individually. In any case, the notes in my article on
initial clusters* (supplemented when necessary by reference to the
books listed in footnote 5 of the same article3 might be helpful.

'For brief notes on final consonants in Spanish consult Manual de

Pronunciation Espanola by T. Navarro Tomas (Publicaciones de la Revista
de Filologia Espaflola, No. III). The following is a list of consonants used
finally in Spanish, the sections of the Manual with pertinent references to
some of them being indicated: 'b' (pr. [/?]), in words of foreign origin and
names: club, Jacob (ff. 81); 'c' (and 'k', both pr. /k/), in certain foreign
words, easily elided: cine, block, cok (ff. 125); 'a" (pr. [d]), a regular final
consonant in Spanish, generally weakened and often dropped altogether:
dad, verdad(ff. 102); V" (pr. /x/), in a few words; also subject to elision: reloj,
boj (ff. 131); 7', a regular final consonant: sol, drbol; 'iri (pr. /n/, though in
Hispano-American countries speakers appear to hesitate between /n/ and
/m/), in a number of words and names :jilbum, maximum (ff. 86, 110); V , a
regular final consonant: balcdn, caminan (ff. 110); 'r' (pr. [r], a regular final
consonant, often dropped in vulgar speech: traer, revdlver (ff. 115); V, a
regular final consonant, often dropped or pronounced [h]: alas, atrds (ff. 109);
't\ in foreign words and names: robot, Lot; 'z' (pr. /8/ or /s/), a regular final
consonant: cruz, atroz. Words such as bluff, stop, rouge, etc., introduce further
final consonants, but they are entirely foreign to Spanish practice, just as
much, in fact, as some of those listed above.
^'Initial Clusters and the Spanish-Speaking Learner', E.L.T., XVI, 2, Jan.-
March 1962, pp. 95-101.
3
For the pronunciation of Spanish the work referred to in the first foot-
note above might be added. For English a new and important addition is An
Introduction to the Pronunciation of English by A. C. Gimson, Edward
Arnold, London, 1962.
Final Clutters and the Spanish-Speaking Learner 21

The teacher will then have to analyse the consonants in the

context of each cluster or group of clusters. Apart from the fact
that the various consonants involved may be notably different
from the corresponding Spanish sounds (if the language happens
to possess them), there may be differences between the same

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consonant when used as part of a cluster and when used in other
contexts. Attention must be paid to these differences in order to
attain a fair degree of accuracy, as well as to simplify matters for
the pupil. •
The following should be borne in mind:
(a) Incomplete plosion: When two plosives come together in a
cluster, only the second is exploded fully. When this is pointed out
to the student he tends to leave out the first plosive altogether,
thereby making no difference between words like cut—cupped.
The method of production must be carefully explained. (Incom-
plete plosion also occurs in Spanish, though not in final position:
apto, acto, etc.). Examples: /bd/, /pt/.
(b) Nasal plosion: When a plosive sound precedes a nasal the
soft palate must be lowered while the organs involved in the
articulation of the plosive are still in contact. Most pupils find this
difficult at first. Examples: /dn/, /tn/.
(c) Lateral plosion: When an alveolar plosive consonant is
followed by /I/, one or both sides of the tongue must be lowered
while the tip of the tongue is still pressed against the teeth-ridge.
This is achieved successfully by most Spanish-speaking students in
medial position, since /tl/ exists medially in Spanish, but not
finally. Examples: /kl/, /dl/.
(d) Dental articulation of /t/ and /d/ when followed by /8/. This
may not be an obstacle with some (since Spanish /t/ and /d/ are
dental), but the student who is conscious of the fact that English /t/
and /d/ are usually alveolar and not dental as in Spanish will need
to be warned about the difference.
(e) Dark /I/ ([+]) is foreign to Spanish and must therefore be
taught. Many students will tend to hear, and consequently
pronounce, /ul/ or /u:l/ instead of [I]. Examples: /gl/, /si/.
(/) Clusters made up of a succession of fricative sounds prove
difficult for most learners and require careful practice. Examples:
/fe/, /fes/.
(g) The devoicing of final 'voiced' plosives and fricatives when
followed by a pause or a voiceless sound.
(A) The fact that typically aspirated sounds (voiceless plosives)
are less aspirated finally.
(/) The fact that consonants generally are weaker in final position
(i.e. produced with less breath force than when found in other
positions').
22 D. R. P o w e l l

(j) The fact that plosives may be unexploded in absolute final

position. One way to set about teachingfinalclusters is as follows:
(1) Begin with two-member clusters;
(2) In doing so, start by teaching clusters of type (b)—i.e. those
occurring across a morpheme boundary1—in the following order:

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(i) C +/s/ or /z/2 (the regular plural of nouns, the third person
singular of verbs in the present tense, the possessive case,
certain contracted forms);
(ii) C +/t/ or /d/ (the past tense and past participle of regular
verbs);
(3) Move on to less usual type (b) clusters, and add type (a)
sequences;
(4) Three-, four- andfive-memberclusters may be dealt with in
the same order.
Obviously the teacher will have to decide for himself which
clusters to include and which to leave out, and for this the main
consideration will be the frequency of occurrence in speech and, to
a certain extent, the amount of difficulty for his pupils. He need
not wait until the list of two-member sequences has been exhausted
before beginning with longer ones. Some of the longer clusters are
more useful than certain two-member ones. For instance, /In/ and
/0I/ are less likely to be required than /Idz/ and /gklz/.
It hardly needs to be mentioned that clusters are not to be
taught on their own, but in actual words, or at least with an initial
vowel sound. In choosing his words the teacher should aim at
finding the shortest possible words to begin with, with as few
strange or difficult sounds as possible, so that the learner may be
able to concentrate all his efforts on the cluster itself.
Finally, the stages suggested towards the end of my article on
initial clusters should be kept in view in dealing withfinalclusters.
Briefly they are as follows: (a) recognition; (b) production in
isolated words (whether meaningful or otherwise); (c) production
in controlled contexts (short phrases and sentences); (d) perform-
ance in actual speech.3

1
See L. A. Hill's article, paragraph 4. Some clusters belong to both types,
e.g. /ks/ box, books; /kt/ act, rocked.
S
C stands for any consonant sound capable of being combined with one of
the sounds indicated.
'Some useful lists of words (both meaningful and meaningless) and exercises
for practising some of the commoner clusters will be found in Drills and Tests
in English Sounds by L. A. Hill (Longmans, 1961). They will be found useful
also as a starting-point for devising further exercises.