GCEEnglish LanguageOral English2021

Which of the following correctly describes the process of assimilation in connected speech?

AA sound is completely omitted from a word
BAn extra sound is inserted between two consonants
CA sound changes to become more like a neighbouring soundCORRECT
DThe stress pattern of a word changes in a sentence
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Why the answer is C, and why the others tempt you.
Assimilation is a phonological process in which a sound takes on features of an adjacent sound to ease articulation in connected speech. For example, 'ten boys' may be pronounced 'tem boys' as the alveolar /n/ assimilates to the bilabial /m/ before /b/. Option A describes elision, option B describes epenthesis, and option D describes stress shift.
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