Importance of Word Stress
Published on Nov 19, 2015
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Importance of Word Stress
by Dorina Balaj
Rules of Word Stress in English
• English is a stressed language.
• Word stress plays a very important role in English Speaking.
• It’s not just optional for English language but a very essential and important part of the language.
• In order to understand word stress, it helps to understand syllables.
Syllables
• A syllable is unit of sound made from a single vowel, or single vowel/consonant combination.
• Every word is made from syllables.
• Each word has one, two three or more syllables.
Syllables break our words up into sections which can be stressed, or unstressed. Which syllable is stressed, alters the pronunciation of the word.
Rules of Word Stress in English
There are two very simple rules about word stress:
1. One word has only one stress. (One word cannot have two stresses. If you hear two stresses, you hear two words. Two stresses cannot be one word. It is true that there can be a "secondary" stress in some words. But a secondary stress is much smaller than the main [primary] stress, and is only used in long words.)
2. We can only stress vowels, not consonants.
1. Stress on first syllable
Rule
Most 2-syllable
nouns
PRESent, EXport, CHIna, TAble
Most 2-syllable
adjectives
PRESent, SLENder, CLEVer, HAPpy
2. Stress on last syllable
Rule
Most 2-syllable
verbs
to preSENT, to exPORT,
to deCIDE
3. Stress on penultimate syllable
(penultimate = second from end)
Rule
Words ending in –ic
GRAPHic, geoGRAPHic, geoLOGic
Words ending in
-sion and -tion
teleVIsion, reveLAtion
Words ending in -cy, -ty, -phy and-gy
deMOcracy, dependaBility, phoTOgraphy
Words ending in
–al
CRItical, geoLOGical
5. Compound words
(words with two parts)
For compound nouns, the stress is on the first part
BLACKbird, GREENhouse
For compound adjectives, the stress is on the second part
bad-TEMpered,
old-FASHioned
For compound verbs, the stress is on the second part
to underSTAND,
to overFLOW
Rules of Word Stress in Romanian
• In Romanian language, the stress does not have a fixed place in the sense that is not necessarily determined by the phonetic structure of the word.
• Therefore you can not give, in Romanian language, rules of accentuation.
Photo by bortescristian
• As in Romanian accent is not fixed, it can occupy various positions within the word:
a) on the last syllable
b) on the penultimate syllable
c) on the antepenultimate syllable
d) the fourth or fifth syllable from the end of the word
Photo by Sorin Mutu
