Cluster simplification

Consonant clusters in English can occur at the initial position, in the middle or at the end of the word. Kamtok words hardly have consonant clusters at final position. As a result, when Kamtok adopts English words, their final consonant clusters are usually simplified through the deletion of one or more consonants. The following examples illustrate final consonant deletion:

One rare example of consonant deletion at initial position is seen in the Kamtok word /trɔŋ​/ from English /strɔ:ŋ/ ‘strong’. A more common process in Kamtok is to reduce clusters at initial, and sometimes at final, position through vowel epenthesis, i.e. the insertion of a vowel between the two consonants forming the cluster as shown in the following examples: