Hyphenation ofsous-traitances

Analysis of "sous-traitances"

1. Pronunciation Considerations:

The word "sous-traitances" presents challenges due to the liaison possibilities and the presence of nasal vowels. The pronunciation will vary slightly depending on the context and speed of speech.

2. Syllable Division:

Following French syllabification rules, which prioritize vowel sounds and avoid breaking consonant clusters unless they are complex, the division is as follows (using only the original letters):

3. Morphemic Analysis:

• Prefix: sous- (Latin sub- meaning "under, below"). Function: adverbial/prepositional prefix.
• Root: trait- (from traiter, Latin tractare meaning "to treat, to handle"). Function: verb stem.
• Suffix: -ance (Latin -antia forming abstract nouns denoting action or state). Function: noun-forming suffix.
• Suffix: -s (French plural marker). Function: grammatical marker.

4. Stress Identification:

French generally has stress on the final syllable of a word or a phrase. In this case, the stress falls on "-ces".

5. Phonetic Transcription:

/su.tʁɛ.tɑ̃s/

6. Syllable Breakdown & Rule Application:

• sou-: /su/ - Open syllable. Rule: Vowel followed by consonant. No exceptions.
• s-: /s/ - Syllable starting with a consonant. Rule: Consonant followed by vowel. Exception: Liaison is possible with the following vowel.
• trai-: /tʁɛ/ - Open syllable. Rule: Diphthong followed by consonant. No exceptions.
• tan-: /tɑ̃/ - Closed syllable with a nasal vowel. Rule: Vowel followed by consonant. Nasalization affects the vowel quality.
• ces: /s/ - Closed syllable. Rule: Consonant followed by vowel. No exceptions.

7. Edge Case Review:

The liaison between "sous" and "trait" is a potential edge case. However, for syllabification, we focus on the inherent structure of the word, not the potential for liaison in connected speech.

8. Grammatical Role:

"Sous-traitances" is a feminine plural noun. Syllabification remains consistent regardless of grammatical function.

9. Definition & Semantics:

• Definition: Subcontracting, outsourcing.
• Translation: Subcontracting, outsourcing.
• Grammatical Category: Noun (feminine, plural)
• Synonyms: externalisation, délocalisation
• Antonyms: internalisation, production propre
• Examples:
  • "L'entreprise a recours à la sous-traitance pour réduire ses coûts." (The company uses subcontracting to reduce its costs.)
  • "Les sous-traitances sont souvent utilisées dans le secteur de l'informatique." (Subcontracting is often used in the IT sector.)

10. Alternative Pronunciations/Regional Variations:

Pronunciation is relatively standard. However, some speakers might slightly reduce the vowel in "sous" in rapid speech. This doesn't affect the syllabification.

11. Phonological Comparison:

• "sous-traitement": sou-s-trai-te-ment. Similar structure, stress on the final syllable.
• "sous-estimation": sou-s-es-ti-ma-tion. Similar prefix, stress on the final syllable.
• "con-tractions": con-trac-tions. Similar syllable structure with consonant clusters, stress on the final syllable.

The consistency in stress placement and syllable division across these words demonstrates the regular application of French phonological rules. The presence of prefixes and suffixes is also consistent.