This advice-column-style blog for SLPs was authored by Pam Marshalla from 2006 to 2015, the archives of which can be explored here. Use the extensive keywords list found in the right-hand column (on mobile: at the bottom of the page) to browse specific topics, or use the search feature to locate specific words or phrases throughout the entire blog.
Epenthesis for Final C’s
By Pam Marshalla
Q: My daughter is 31 months old. She speaks in single words and uses single syllables. She leaves off the endings off words. I have been teaching final sounds to her, and now she says them, but she separates them from the rest of the word. For example, she says “uh—puh” for “up.” What should I do now?
Ooo- No worries. You are on the right track! If she is saying final consonants as a second syllable, THIS IS GOOD. She should be saying “cat” as “ca-tuh” and “cup” as “cuh-puh.” This is exactly what little kids do to learn to say a final sound– They turn CVC into CV-CV. The insertion of an additional schwa sound (“uh”) is called “epenthesis.” Most SLP’s consider it a problem. But I don’t. I consider it an asset.
Consider this: Little kids don’t say “mom” (CVC). They say “momma” (CV-CV) or “mommy” (CV-CV). They don’t say “dad” (CVC). They say “dada (CV-CV) or “daddy” (CV-CH). Also–
They don’t say “dog” (CVC). They say “doggie” (CV-CV).
They don’t say “cat” (CVC). They say “kitty” (CV-CV) or “titty” (CV-CV).
They don’t say “bird” (CVC). They say “buh-die” (CV-CV). (Think of the R in “bird” as part of the vowel.)
They don’t say “please” (CCVC). They say “puh-wee” (CV-CV).
We could list a hundred different example of this from normal development. Your child is doing the same thing, but she is just doing it with a wider variety of words than does the average child.
The developmental progression might be presented like this:
| 1 | 2 | 3 |
| CV | CV-CV | CVC |
| “Ca” | “Ca-tuh” | “Cat” |
| “Do” | “Do-guh” | “Dog” |
| “Ma” | “Ma-ma” | “Mom” |
| “Da” | “Da-da” | “Dad” |
| “Cah” | “Cah-ruh” | “Car” |
| “Ee” | “Ee-tuh” | “Eat” |
| “Uh” | “Uh-puh” | “Up” |
This is what I would do: Let her do it. Encourage her to do it. Teach her to do it. Teach her to say lots of words this way. This is what I do with all my clients because I consider the CV-CV to be a bridge between the CV and the CVC.
I know diminutization is a similar process-but what about a 2 year old who used to say “wagon”, but is now saying “wag-ie”, and turning “pumpkin” into “pun-kie”
Pam, I found this through a different search and hope you can help. I’m also an SLP, but recently completed testing on a 10 year old student referred for dysfluency. She’s not still learning to produce any of her sounds, and her schwa addition is quite frequent–but only in word-final position. It may occur up to 3-4 times in a single utterance (not as a part-word repetion, but as what appears to be true epenthesis. It is not seeming to help with the fluency either; there doesn’t seem to be greater flow when she uses it, and yet she doesn’t seem to be stuck on it either.
Have you seen this feature? Would you view it as an aspect of dysfluency or something else? Her phono. inventory is intact. Many thanks!
Gina
Gina-
Do you remember this case from several years ago? Do you recall how you proceeded? I am an SLP working in an elementary school and I have a 9 year old that has finished working on Rs but now all of the sudden he is adding uh after words in connected speech. He’s none years old and I’m wondering if I should work on this in therapy before exiting him. Do you remember from so many years ago?? Oh, I hope you do. 🙂
Veronic and Gina,
I also have a 9;6M who is also doing this. How did you address it? Could you point me in the direction of some resources to help? 🙂 thank you!
This really is really good post. Thank you for all the determination to offer these kinds of helpful tips here.
@ Joy – Two-year-olds SHOULD say adorable things like “wa-gie” for “wagon,” and “pun-kie” for “pumpkin.” It’s normal! Encourage it! Play with it! Have fun with it! He will outgrow it when he is ready.
Gina- I am sorry, but I never comment on fluency issues. I am just not knowledgable about that area. I only do arctic, phonology, and motor speech disorders.
I totally agree with this post for younger children. I have a client who is 11 and still adding a very noticeable “uh” to the end of all his phrases and sentences. At first I assumed it was just voiced final consonants, but it isn’t dependent on voicing. He might say something like “I went to the park-uh, and my brother-uh, went down the slide-uh, before me-uh.” He’s only able to eliminate the extra voicing with maximal support at the word level, and even then, only sometimes. I’m curious if anyone has encountered similar processes in older children, and if so, what cues were effective?
My 8 yr old daughter adds a schwa after final l’s (like in the word “school”). It makes the word sound odd. Should I try to remedy this, or just give it more time? I try to get her to slow down and exaggerate her sounds…other than that I don’t know much else to do.
I have two Elementary students this year who are using Epenthesis. For the first student it appears to be a phonological process. He has had many phonological processes addressed, and this appears to be one more.
For the second student, it seems more like a fluency disorder – possibly cluttering? He adds a schwa to the end of many final consonant sounds of words, just like the example above from Alycia (in the sentence with brother, park, slide). I’ve also wondered if he developed this as a strategy to buy himself more processing time for expressive language tasks. However, he’s not identified as a student with a language disorder. (We can’t test language skills in my district without an academic referral.)
Thank you for your input! Lorrie
Apparently you are younger than 50 years old, because the addition of the “UH” sound after any word is not only unacceptable, but unnecessary! It seems to be used by the same people who have arbitrarily reassigned syllables to words without any understanding of the longstanding construction of words! In other words young people aren’t receiving proper English lessons regarding basics like ROOT WORDS. The common misuse/mispronounciation of IMPORTANT (impor-tant instead of import-ant) or many other words that are currently being misused by ignorant individuals who haven’t received proper instruction while learning English! I began speaking @ 6 months old because my parents thoughtfully corrected my mistakes instead of laughing and mimicking me. By age 8 my standardized test scores for vocabulary ,spelling & reading comprehension was rated at the college level.
Language does evolve, but it is now devolving due to inadequate education in public schools! Apparently English is now an ELECTIVE course in elementary school in the United States 🇺🇸. I’ve met individuals from third world countries whose English is more correct than that of American nationals! Shame on our public schools!
When Mark and Donald Wahlberg were asked why they demonstrated NO BOSTON ACCENT despite being born and raised there they credited their mother for emphasizing the importance of proper diction as well as every aspect of the English language .
The comments I have read sound like uninformed parents allowing children to speak improperly instead of guiding them thoughtfully. Baby talk shouldn’t be encouraged or accepted. Adults should be positive role models, not passive witnesses who allow innocent children to create their own language out of ignorance. Who is in charge here? It’s no surprise that the United States is in political chaos when millions of citizens seem to lack a proper education!
People I’ve met who studied English for many years to prepare for immigration to or education in the US have expressed concern that Americans all speak like gangsters……What you got for me?. Americans can nolonger conjugate verbs properly…..and so the decline of proper English continues without notice. It’s no wonder children are misspeaking without parental help. Their parents are too busy looking at their mobile phones, but probably aren’t literate enough to teach them anyway! And syntax is now believed to be a government imposed surcharge for adult entertainment 🙄. SERIOUSLY? I’ve actually heard attorneys speaking like grade school dropouts recently! Shame on the United States for paying more attention to war and politics than to basic education.