Exceptions To The Basic Rules
Consonant gemination does not happen when:
- a pause occurs on the boundary of word in question
- In particular, the initial gemination may be conditioned by syntax, determining the likelihood of pause. For example, in the phrase "La volpe ne aveva mangiato metà prima di addormentarsi" ("The fox had eaten half of it before falling asleep"), there is no gemination after metà if there is even a slight pause, as prima is part of the adjunct, a sentence element easily isolated phonologically from the main clause within the prosodic hierarchy of the phrase.
- the stressed final vowel is lengthened
- a sharp break or change in the pitch on the word boundary happens
There are other considerations, especially in various dialects, so that the initial gemination is in fact subject to complicated lexical, syntactic, and phonological/prosodic conditions.
Read more about this topic: Syntactic Gemination
Famous quotes containing the words exceptions, basic and/or rules:
“... people were so ridiculous with their illusions, carrying their fools’ caps unawares, thinking their own lies opaque while everybody else’s were transparent, making themselves exceptions to everything, as if when all the world looked yellow under a lamp they alone were rosy.”
—George Eliot [Mary Ann (or Marian)
“Southerners, whose ancestors a hundred years ago knew the horrors of a homeland devastated by war, are particularly determined that war shall never come to us again. All Americans understand the basic lessons of history: that we need to be resolute and able to protect ourselves, to prevent threats and domination by others.”
—Jimmy Carter (James Earl Carter, Jr.)
“Here was a place where nothing was crystallized. There were no traditions, no customs, no college songs .... There were no rules and regulations. All would have to be thought of, planned, built up, created—what a magnificent opportunity!”
—Mabel Smith Douglass (1877–1933)