Equal to a word or part of it.

I , ten , sofa [‘sәu-fә]

English syllables are formed by vowels and sonants. From sonants, [l], [n], sometimes [m] are almost always syllabic. They form syllables when separated from a syllable-forming vowel by a consonant, i.e. when they do not border on vowels.

[‘li-tl], [‘se:-tn], [‘ri-ðm]

Stress in English words

Word stress is the emphasis on one or two syllables in a word. Such syllables are perceived as louder and stronger than others. In English, stressed syllables stand out more strongly than in Russian, being pronounced more energetically and faster.

An English stressed syllable is usually indicated by a ‘ before the beginning of the stressed syllable to be transcribed. Some obsolete dictionaries indicate stress by underlining the syllable. (Transcription of English sounds)

‘ minutes[‘minit]

below

Like Russian, English stress can fall on different syllables: ‘ lazy, dic'station. But most often it falls on the penultimate syllable or tends to the beginning of the word. In polysyllabic (from 4 syllables) words for the purpose of rhythm (usually through one syllable) there is a balancing secondary stress pronounced at half strength.

| under'standing[ | andә'stændiŋ]

i |magi'nation

stress in a sentence

Prepositional or phrasal stress is the selection of some words in a syntagma from others. In English, semantic or significant words are usually stressed in a sentence: nouns, adjectives, semantic verbs, numerals, adverbs, pronouns (interrogative, demonstrative, reciprocating, absolute possessive), interjections. Functional words are usually unstressed: articles, prepositions, conjunctions, auxiliary and modal verbs, linking verbs, personal and possessive pronouns, particles. In Russian, functional words like personal and possessive pronouns are usually stressed.

'Yesterday I 'lost my 'keys - YesterdayIlostkeys

Saying center

The communicative center of the utterance usually coincides with the word(s) pronounced with the final tone. Often this is the last stressed word in the syntagma. The word or words as a communicative center express the most important information of the sentence, report something new.

Mr'Smith'walkstothe'officeevery \day(Important when Mr. Smith goes to work).

Mr'Smith\walkstothe |office |every |day(It is important how Mr. Smith gets to work).

English Joke

The witness was obviously a rustic and quite new to the ways of a court-room. So, the judge directed him:

"Speak to the jury, sir-the men sitting behind you on the benches."

The witness turned, bowed clumsily and said.

On this page you can learn about the rules for setting stresses in English language:

- two important rules for setting stress in English
- division of words into syllables
- designation of the stressed syllable in transcription
- stress on the first syllable
- stress on the last syllable
- rules of stress on the second syllable from the end
- rules of stress on the third syllable from the end
- stress rules in compound words

Pronunciation

In English, we don't pronounce every syllable with the same force. In each individual word, the stress falls only on one syllable. We pronounce this syllable louder and clearer, and all the rest quieter and less clear.

An example of setting an accent

Consider this phenomenon in the following example - take three words photograph, photographer and photographic. Do they sound the same? No. This is because we strike one particular syllable, and each time it is different. Thus, the schematic representation of each of the words we have taken is different.

This occurs in all two or more compound words: TEACHer, JaPAN, CHINa, aBOVE, converSAtion, INteresting, imPORtant, deMAND, etc.

The importance of correct stress

Unstressed syllables are weak, quiet and less distinct. Native speakers, perceiving someone's speech by ear, are guided by drums syllables, not unstressed ones. Thus, if you place the stress in words correctly, you will automatically improve both pronunciation and listening skills.

Stress rules in English

There are two extremely important rules for placing stress in English:

1. One word - one main stressed syllable.(In one word there can't be two main accents(meaning main stress). If you hear two accents, that's two words. In some words, the presence of a side stress (secondary stress) is possible, but it is much weaker than the main one and occurs only in long words.)
2. The stress always falls on the vowel.

To understand the rules of stress, you need to understand how words are divided into syllables. Each word consists of a certain number of syllables: one, two, three or more syllables.

word		number of syllables
	un-ex-ception-al

Please note that (with a few rare exceptions) each syllable contains at least one vowel letter(a, e, i, o or u) or vowel.

Accent notation

There are a number of rules regarding which syllable is stressed. When you learn a new word, you also need to remember where the stress falls in it. If you are not sure, you should consult a dictionary. All of them give a transcription, which indicates the phonetic spelling of the word. A stressed syllable is usually indicated by an apostrophe (‘) directly before or after stressed syllable. However, these rules are quite complex and may vary from dictionary to dictionary.

Rules

Let's go to the rules:

Stress on the first syllable

stress on the last syllable

In English, there are a large number of two-syllable words whose meaning changes with the change of stress. Yes, the word present, for example, consists of two syllables. If the stress falls on the first syllable, then it is a noun ("gift") or an adjective ("present"). But if the stress falls on the second syllable, this word becomes a verb (“offer”). This group includes the following words, whose meaning directly depends on where the stress falls: export, import, contract and object.

Stress on the second syllable from the end

There are a number of words in which native speakers have not agreed on where the stress is. For example, some say television while others say TELEvision.Another example of this double standard: CONtroversy and conTROversy.

One of the main components of the language is a lady with a terrible name Phonetics! She is responsible for all these rules of pronunciation and stress!

I spoke about the rules of pronunciation at my seminar, and now I propose to consider the rules for setting ACCENTS in English words!

SO - The declared 10 rules:

1 . Every word has an accent! In English - sometimes two! Stress is important not only for pronunciation, but also for WRITING a word. The stress in English is placed BEFORE the syllable!!!

desert- [‘dezət]

2. If a word has two stressed syllables, then they are divided into MAIN and secondary! Secondary stress is not so strong and is written below in the transcription before the syllable

conversation[ˌkɒnvəˈseɪʃən]

3 . If the word has a double consonant, then the stress usually falls on the syllable BEFORE them

beginning

4. Unstressed vowels usually give a neutral sound [ə] - "e". Especially if the syllable consists of only a vowel.

around[əˈraʊnd]

5. In two-syllable words, the first syllable is usually stressed.

secret[ˈsiːkrɪt]

6. If a two-syllable word consists of a prefix and a root, then the stress falls on the second syllable - i.e. root

7. Some two-syllable words that can act as both Nouns and Verbs

a) nouns will be stressed on the first syllable

b) for verbs - the second syllable will be stressed

noun object[ˈobdʒikt]

verb object[əbˈdʒekt]

8. In three-syllable words, the stress usually falls on the first syllable - if this syllable is root

metaphor[ˈmetəfə]

9. If there is a prefix in a three-syllable word, then the stress will fall on the second syllable - i.e. to root syllable

discover

10. And finally - the last rule - if there are four syllables in a word - then the stress falls on the second syllable (third from the end)

Stress is the emphasis on one of the syllables in a word. It can also fall on a whole word, phrase, word in a sentence to enhance the semantic load.

Accents. What for?

Each language has different stress rules. English is no exception. And each language is different from the other in the rules for setting accents. For example, in French, the stress always falls on the last syllable, while, for example, in Latin it is placed on the second or third from the end. AT Polish it falls on the penultimate syllable. This is all called fixed accent. But it is important to know that there are also non-fixed accents in words. A vivid example of this is our native Russian language, which has a number of peculiarities in the placement of stresses. Therefore, it is very difficult for foreigners to study. After all, our native language difficult in its grammar of setting stresses.

Let's return to accentology in Russian. Stress can fall on absolutely any syllable in a word. There is no special rule for placing accents in words in Russian, as, for example, in Latin. But there are some points that you can rely on when studying. Stress in Russian can distinguish one word from another, it can be the same in words with the same root, but at the same time it can differ. Russian is so complicated that even the native speakers themselves are not always aware of this or that word.

But the question arises: "Why is this stress needed at all?" Everything is extremely simple! After all, it allows a person to understand and distinguish words in a violent flow of speech.

As for the stress in the words of the English language, there are also a number of rules and features here. For competent placement of stress in English, you need to clearly understand the system of dividing words into syllables. It is important to note that in this regard, English is very similar to Russian, because they both have free stress. This can be quite difficult for a foreigner.

To make it easier for yourself when learning English, a person should clearly know:

• stress;
• type of syllable (closed or open).

As in Russian, English words have open and closed syllables, and identifying them is a fairly easy task. After all open syllables end in a vowel, and closed ones end in a consonant.

In general, there are two most important rules:

1. One word can contain only one main stress! Of course, you can meet more than one accent in English word. But it will always contain the main stress and only then the secondary ones, which are weaker than the first and are found in very long words.
2. The stress in English, like in any other language, falls on a vowel or a vowel sound! Of course, there are exceptions to the rule, but their number is very small.

It is important to note that in English some vocabular elements may be stressed more or less frequently. For example, such a part of a word as a prefix in a noun is stressed much more often than a prefix in a verb. There are also suffixes, which, as a rule, are stressed. We offer a list of them:

• -ate;
• -ete;
• -ite;
• -ute.

Stress rules in English

When mastering grammar, it should be remembered that this section is important in colloquial speech and less significant when working with texts. There are a number of rules for setting stress in English. By adhering to them, you will be able to put accents on words correctly. This is incredibly important when mastering foreign language. So the rules are:

1. In writing, the stress is placed on the third syllable from the end. Here is an example of a word: abIlity, university, socIology, etc.
2. In words of French origin, the stress will remain unchanged. For example, the words: hotEl, guitAr. These words retain their French accent.
3. The stress can be placed after prefixes. For example, a-lone, be-fore, o-mit, under-stand.

It is important to note that some suffixes can have a certain effect on the placement of stresses. For example, -ry has the property of shifting the stress on the fourth syllable from the end of the word. Bright to that examples are the words: ORdinary voCAbulary.

Or the suffix -ic usually contains the accent in front of it. For example, draMAtic symBOlic.

Stress in derivative words

In derived words, the stress may remain the same as in the original word, but at the same time it may change. For example, in the case of creating a noun from a verb or vice versa, the stress often remains unchanged. For example, the noun "deNIal" when converted to the verb "deNY" retains its original stress. But in derivative words, a situation is still possible when the stress shifts. For example, the noun "OBject", when converted to the verb "obJEct", shifts the stress to the second syllable from the end of the word.

Accent on first and second syllables

In English, the stress falls on the first syllable in the following cases:

• Almost all nouns and adjectives that have two syllables are stressed on the first.
• The emphasis on the second syllable is almost all verbs that include in total amount the same two.

word stress

Word stress in English is the emphasis on a syllable in a vocabulary. Long units can contain two stresses: main and secondary (it is also often called secondary).

When learning new words, it is important to remember the main accent. And you need to be aware that even in single-root words, stress can change. The perception of your speech by other people depends on how you learn this topic, because accentology helps to separate a set of letters into understandable phrases.

About phrasal stress

Phrasal stress in English is the pronunciation of individual words more emotionally than others, which are called unstressed.

As a rule, stressed words in English are:

• nouns;
• verbs (semantic);
• adjectives;
• demonstrative pronouns;
• interrogative pronouns;
• adverbs;
• numerals.

Usually unstressed are: personal pronouns, articles, conjunctions, auxiliary verbs, suggestions.

We can say that the phrasal accent consists in the same functions as the verbal one. It is divided into two types: centralized and decentralized.

The centralized view represents as the center a word or many words on which the speaker emphasizes. With a decentralized type, the speaker focuses on the whole sentence. This highlights not a specific word, but the entire phrase.

Degrees of phrasal accent in words

In English, it is customary to distinguish three degrees of phrasal stress, which include the following:

• The main thing. Gets the most emphasis.
• Minor. Gets less stress.
• Weak. Gets an even less strong accent.

As a rule, the more important the word, the stronger the speaker must emphasize it during oral speech.

About logical stress

But it is important to note that, if necessary, the speaker, of course, has the right to give an accent to any word, even if it is included in the list of unstressed ones.

First, it must be said that a huge role in English speech intonation plays. The function of intonation is to convey the tone of the phrase spoken by the speaker. This is the main difference between Russian and English. After all, Russian intonation is perceived as boring and flat. And English contains the rate of speech, logical pauses and, of course, the tone.

As already mentioned, logical stress in English is intentionally highlighted words for emotional coloring. In speech, there is an increase and decrease in intonation. It is important to note that there are also mixed ones to give oral speech a special brightness and richness.

Hi all!

I have not written for a long time, I was carried away by teaching, but I am correcting myself. Let's get straight to the point: let's talk about stress in English words.

Stress in English is such a thing in itself, just like in Russian. No one will say why the stress in this or that word falls precisely on the first syllable, or on the second, or on the last. Ask any native speaker why a word is pronounced the way it is. He'll just shrug his shoulders and say, "That's what we say." It would seem that for the importance, the emphasis is correctly placed or not. Worst case, you will be corrected.

However, we must remember that in English for some words and in stresses there are small traps. There are words when when you change the stress from one syllable to another, you get a different part of speech! And sometimes a different meaning of the word! And here they are unlikely to correct you, because how do you know what part of speech you are planning to use in a sentence - maybe a noun, or maybe a verb? Maybe with parts of speech you are all right, but you messed up with the word order in the sentence? You see how many questions your interlocutor can have if the word is stressed incorrectly.

And now let's get acquainted with the stresses in some common words, and their transformations from one part of speech to another.

Stress on the first syllable (noun)	stress on the second syllable
a ccent - accent, accent, main feature	acc e nt - underline, emphasize
c o nflict - conflict, contradiction	confl i ct - contradict
c o ntest - dispute, competition, competition	cont e st - argue, fight, defend
c o ntract - contract, treaty, agreement	contr a ct - shrink, conclude a contract
d e crease - decrease, decrease i ncrease - increase, growth, increase	decr ea se - decrease, decrease incr ea se - increase, increase
d e sert - desert	des e rt - leave, leave, desert
d i scount - discount	disc ou nt - reduce, make a discount
e xport - export, export i mport - import, import	exp o rt - export, take out imp o rt - import, import
i mpact - impact, impulse, impact	imp a ct - hit, collide
o bject - subject, thing, object, goal s u bject - topic, subject, subject	obj e ct - object, dislike subj e ct - to subject, to submit, to represent
pr e sent - a gift	press e nt - give, present
pr o gress - progress, achievements, development	program e ss - progress, make progress
pr o ject - project, plan, construction