The basic unit of the rhythmic organization of speech(rhythmic group)

A rhythmic unit (or group) is either one stressed syllable or a stressed syllable with a number of unstressed ones grouped around it.

The stressed syllable is the nucleus of the rhythmic unit. There are as many rhythmic units in an utterance as there are stressed syllables in it. The unstressed syllables are clitics. Those preceding the stressed syllable are called proclitics, and those following it - enclitics.

Depending on the position of the stressed syllable and the number of pro­clitics and enclitics in the rhythmic group there exist various accentual—and— rhythmic patterns of it. E.g. , etc. Besides a definite accentual—and—rhythmic pattern, the rhythmic group is characterized by a pitch pattern (or tonal contour) and duration pattern (temporal struc­ture). These prosodic characteristics make it possible to perceive the rhyth­mic unit as an actual discrete unit of prosody. The rhythmic unit may be singled out of an utterance also due to the meanings expressed by its prosodic features. According to D.Bolinger these may be the meanings of assertiveness, separateness, newness (when the pitch falls within the stressed syl­lable or within the enclitics or within both) as in the first rhythmic unit of the following utterance: ; the meaning of connectedness and incompleteness (when the pitch rises within the stressed syllable, or the pitch of the stressed syllable is higher than that of the proclitics) as in the second and the first rhythmic units of the utterance:

The rhythmic unit should, therefore, be considered a meaningful one, though this viewpoint is not unanimously accepted.

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