Shorthand Theory and Outlines (English Pitman System)
This domain tests whether you can explain and apply Pitman's consonant strokes, vowel signs, grammalogues, phraseography, and shortening rules without ambiguity.
Consonant and vowel logic
- Consonants are straight or curved strokes; light/heavy pairs distinguish sounds such as p/b, t/d, k/g, f/v, s/z, sh/zh.
- Vowels are dots for short sounds and dashes for long sounds, placed in first, second, or third position relative to the stroke.
- A vowel before the first stroke marks an initial vowel; after the last stroke it marks a final vowel; between strokes it sits between the consonants.
Shortening devices
- Grammalogues are fixed single signs for common words and must be memorised exactly.
- Phraseography joins outlines for frequent word groups.
- Circles and hooks: small circle = s/z; large circle = sw/ses; final -tion hook; -ing dot; halving adds -t/-d; doubling adds -ter/-der/-ther.
Worked example
Word: action. The outline is not k + sh + n. The k stroke is light and straight, and the -tion ending is shown by a large final shun hook attached to it. Reasoning: the hook absorbs the whole -shun syllable, so the outline stays compact and readable in context.
Traps
- Mixing light and heavy strokes changes the word.
- Placing a vowel in the wrong position changes the vowel sound.
- Using a phraseogram where the join would be ambiguous.
- Treating a grammalogue as a phonetic spelling rather than a fixed sign.
Key points are listed in the key_points field.