Echo questions. Echo What? ESL British English Pronunciation

Hi. Echo questions, or echoes.

Let's start this by looking at exactly

what an echo is.

Imagine: I'm in Spain, and I'm standing

in front of a poster that says:

"Welcome to sunny Spain"

and it's pouring with rain.

I'd look at the poster, I'd look at my

friend and say, "Welcome to sunny Spain."

Okay, I'm being ironic about what the

poster says and the weather.

That is an echo.

Okay? I could make it more ironic

by making it a question.

"Welcome to sunny Spain?"

Okay, there is more irony.

Okay, this is another; this is now

an echo question.

Now, we can form this in

various other ways by changing parts

of the sentence for question words.

"So I could say, "What to sunny Spain?"

"Welcome to sunny where?"

"Welcome to what Spain?"

Okay, in each of these I'm emphasizing

the irony of what it's saying

and the fact that it's raining, okay?

Umm this is an example of echoes,

yes it suggests surprise.

It's questioning the use of those words

or that specific word.

Okay? So, irony, surprise.

Is that really true?

Can that be real?

Okay, can they really be using that?

Now we often use echo questions, as well

to ask people to repeat

something they've said.

I don't know, for example:

"My friend comes from Jakarta."

"He comes from where?"

Okay. "Please repeat where he came from;

he comes from where?"

"He comes from where?" Okay.

"I didn't hear what you said;

please repeat it."

I can do the same, as well

to express surprise.

"My friend comes from Jakarta."

"He comes from where?!"

Okay, but that's stronger

than the please repeat.

Please repeat: "He comes from where?"

Okay, in this example it's easy because

the echo has a distinct structure.

It's an affirmative structure.

Now the problem really starts

with echo questions when we have

an echo question that has the same form

as a real question. So, again,

"My friend comes from Jakarta."

I'm in a group of people and I'm asking,

"Where does he come from?"

"Where does he come from?"

That's a real question, okay?

"Where does he come from?"

My voice is rising.

Now, if my friend says,

"My friend comes from Jakarta."

I could be- I could say,

"Where does he come from?"

"Where does he come from?"

"I didn't hear you;

where does he come from?"

"Could you repeat where?"

"Could you repeat the where?"

Okay, umm, I could also

express surprise or questioning:

"Where does he come from?"

"Where does he come from?"

Okay, notice the questioning

of where, yeah?

So that's surprise or

asking someone to repeat.

Now that's with object questions.

We can also have the same problem

with subject questions.

Okay, for example:

"Seaholm comes from Ireland."

Okay, Seaholm is an Irish name, okay?

So imagine I'm asking a crowd of people.

Okay, the question is:

"Who comes from Ireland?" Okay,

"Who comes from Ireland?"

So the group of people, uh,

"Who comes from Ireland?"

"Who comes from Ireland?" Okay,

"Is there anyone here

who comes from Ireland?"

Okay, "Seaholm comes from Ireland."

"I didn't hear you;

who comes from Ireland?"

"Who comes from Ireland?"

I'm questioning: "I didn't hear you;

could you say that again?"

"Yeah, Seaholm comes from Ireland."

"Who comes from Ireland?"

And then I could express surprise that

it was Seaholm because I know her,

but it's unusual.

"Who comes from Ireland?"

Okay, here again, the "Who is from there?"

So, there you go.

There's no easy solution to this.

Umm, but remember,

an echo can echo anything.

It can echo what somebody

might be thinking.

Somebody's standing there

looking really cool.

"I'm cool?" you might say,

and there you are adding irony to it.

So, thanks for watching.

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"Feel free to what?"

"Comment." Thanks a lot, bye.