What is the importance of word stress

I’ve come across countless students who have a  decent understanding of English grammar, writing, and vocabulary.

However, many of these same students continue to struggle with speaking and have difficulty being understood by native English speakers.

What is the reason?

They have not taken the time to tackle word stress.  What exactly is the concept of word stress in English language, and why is it so important to master?

What Is Word Stress?

English is not a flat language, but one of stresses and varying intonations. And here’s how it works:

Each word in English is broken into a number of syllables.

Short words like dog, car, box and so on are one syllable words. Meaning each of these words only has one sound.  

Words such as pretty [pret-ty], quiet [qui-et] and export [ex-port] are broken up into two syllables.

Then there are words with three, four and even five or more syllables. Think of the words  important [im-por-tant], realistic [real-is-tic] and communication [com-mun-i-ca-tion].

Each syllable needs to be pronounced, but some syllables are stressed or emphasized on more than others, depending on the word.

Examples:

In the word ‘important’, the second syllable is stressed, so it is pronounced stronger and should read imPORtant.  

The syllables which are not stressed are called the weak or quiet ones.

This is not only a difficult concept to grasp for Asian speakers studying English, but generally for all English as a second language students.

Even if one understands that importance of word stress, knowing exactly where to emphasize stress is no easy task.

General Rules and Patterns for Word Stress

This video lesson provides an introduction into syllable and word stress rules:

English is a very inconsistent language when it comes to rules. Since it is littered with exceptions, you should always keep in mind that there are no definite rules to English, but general rules and patterns that can be followed.

First, only one syllable can be stressed in an English word regardless if it has two, three, or even four or more syllables.

Two-Syllable Words

In most two-syllable nouns and adjectives, the stress comes in the firs syllable of the word.

Rule: stress on first syllable	Example
Nouns	PRESent, TABle, DOCtor
Adjectives	GIant, UGly, WASTEful

For most two-syllable verbs,  the stress is in the second syllable.

Rule: stress on second syllable	Example
Verbs	exPORT, reGRET, proNOUNCE
Adjectives	GIant, UGly, WASTEful

Three- or More-Syllable Words

For words that have three or more syllables, understanding where to place the stress becomes a little more tricky, but there are some general patterns that can be followed.

The stress comes in the second to last syllable in any word that ends in -ic, -sion or -tion.

Rule: stress on second to last syllable	Example
Words ending in -ic	GRAPHic, geoGRAPHic, geoLOGic
Words ending in -sion and -tion	teleVIsion, reveLAtion

For any word ending in the suffixes -cy, -gy, -phy, -ty or -al, the stress comes in the THIRD syllable from the LAST.

Rule: stress on third to last syllable	Example
Words ending in -cy, -ty, -phy and -gy	deMOcracy, dependaBIlity, phoTOgraphy, geOLogy
Words ending in -al	CRItical, geoLOGical, histORical

Example: Here’s a tricky one!

• Photograph – PHOtograph (3 syllables, first one is stressed)
• Photography – phoTOgraphy (4 syllables, third to last one is stressed)
• Photographic – photoGRAPHic (4 syllables, second to last one is stressed)

Why Word Stress Is So Important

Why exactly is correct word stress so important when it comes to conversing in the English language?

Here are some reasons:

• Word stress heavily affects the sounds of the vowels in a word. Different word stress can make a word sound completely different.
• Native speakers rely on word stress to identify words. Thus, incorrect word stress patterns can lead to miscommunication between non-native speakers and native speakers.
• Knowing the stress pattern of words will help students to learn and remember the correct pronunciation of words.
• Knowing correct word stress will help students to improve their listening comprehension skills.
• Overall, the skill to stress words correctly will help ESL learners more to converse more confidently in English and enjoy it!

While some languages have little or limited stress – like Mandarin –, English is a heavily stress-based language.

Unfortunately, the majority of ESL teachers and students ignore the necessity to practice word stress.

Word stress is not something extra that students should study if they have time. It is an essential part of learning English because it is a major component of the English language.

If I had two dollars for every student I’ve met who was frustrated that his or her speaking skills weren’t improving despite significant gains in the areas of grammar, writing, and vocabulary, I would have a decent amount of savings.

If you are a student out there, then you need to be studying word stress.

If you are a teacher, then you should take time each week to practice it with your students.

How to Practice Word Stress

I wish I could tell something else, but besides the few rules students just have to memorize the correct stress for each word in English language.

They should listen to native speakers – watch movies, listen to podcasts, etc. –, and then repeat the words they’ve heard, imitating their pronunciation. Or they can use the read-aloud function in language learning apps.

Find activities to teach and practice pronunciation here.

In our previous post, we shared 12 great tips to help you improve your English pronunciation.  For tip number nine, Understanding Word Stress & Sentence Stress, we explained the importance of word stress rules for communicating effectively in English. In this post, we delve a little deeper into the subject.

What is Word Stress?

The stress placed on syllables within words is called word stress. In one word, we place emphasis on one syllable, while the other syllables are given less emphasis.

English words only have one stressed syllable. Whilst longer words can have a secondary stress, it is always a much lighter stress. It is also worth noting that we stress vowel sounds and not consonants.

In English we have variable stress where the position of the stress is unpredictable. This contrasts with some other languages – like Polish or Finnish – that have fixed stress where the stress on virtually any multi-syllable word falls on a particular syllable. Learn more here.

Where you place stress or emphasis within a word can affect the way in which it is pronounced and therefore its meaning. As a result, knowing which syllable within a word should be emphasised or stressed is very important for correct pronunciation. The reason for this is that placing stress on the wrong syllable within a word can completely change the meaning of a word.

Understanding The Importance of Word Stress

So, understanding the importance of word stress is vital if you want to improve your English pronunciation and speak English like a native English.

But if word stress is so important, exactly what are the rules that we need to follow?

As with so many aspects of the English language, there are many rules to learn. Then, to make things even more tricky, there are also many contradictions or exceptions to those rules. This can make learning English more challenging for some students.

To help you out, we have compiled some simple guidelines for learning the rules of word stress.  We don’t cover all aspects of English word stress rules but the points  we have mentioned will certainly get you started.

English Word Stress Rules

1. Word Stress For Two-Syllable Words

Two-Syllable Nouns

If the word is a two-syllable noun, we usually place the stress on the FIRST syllable.

Example: MONkey, TEAcher, DIStance, INsect, TAble,

Two-Syllable Adjectives

If the word is a two-syllable adjective,  as with two-syllable nouns, we usually place the stress on the FIRST syllable.

Examples: SIlent, BORing, LIttle, PURple, STUpid, CLEver, FRIEndly

Two Syllable Verbs

Conversely, if the word is a two-syllable verb we generally stress the SECOND syllable.

Examples: beGIN, surVIVE, aTTEND, coLLECT, preVENT

See more examples of verbs where the second syllable is stressed.

Two Syllable Prepositions

The SECOND syllable is also stressed if the word is a preposition.

Examples: aROUND, beFORE, beLOW, inSIDE, toWARDS (See more examples of prepositions with stress on second syllable)

2. Word Stress For Words That Are Both Nouns & Verbs

When a word can be both a noun and a verb, we stress the FIRST syllable for the noun and the SECOND syllable for the verb.

Examples:

1) The violent CONflict between the couple conFLICTS with their pacifistic beliefs.

2) The PREsents he preSENTS his wife never fail to disappoint her.

3) They will no doubt disCOUNT my suggestion for DIScounts on Chinese courses for the elderly.

Click here for some good examples with audio included:

As mentioned, there are always exceptions to the rules. That said, it’s fairly accurate to say that only around 20% of two-syllable words have their stress on the second syllable.

3. Word Stress For Words Ending in ‘er’ & ‘ly’.

If a word ends in either ‘er’ or ‘ly’, whether it’s a noun, an adjective or an adverb, the general rules is that the stress is placed on the first syllable.

Example:

ANgrily, PERfectly, SUddenly, HAppily,

FOReigner, GARdener, BARtender, MANager

BIgger, BEtter, FAtter

4. Words That Use The Suffix ade, ee, ese, ique, ette & oon

Stress the actual suffix of words (including the first consonant before the suffix) ending in -ade, -ee, -ese, -ique and -ette and -oon

Examples:

deCADE, inVADE,

ampuTEE, guaranTEE, aGREE,

ChiNESE, oBESE, legaLESE,

vinaigRETTE, kitcheNETTE, laundeRETTE,

anTIQUE, obLIQUE,

carTOON, baBOON

5. Simple Word Stress Rules For Suffixes

The rule changes for words with a number of other suffixes such as -ery, -ian, -ible, -able, i-al, -cian, -ic, -ish, -ics, -ion, -ious, -ia, and -ient. Instead of placing the emphasis on the actual suffix as illustrated in the examples above, we stress the syllable just before the suffix.

Examples:

-ery: CELery, SURgery, reCOVery
-ian: boHEMian, coMEdian, ciVILian, beauTICian
-ible: AUDible, adMISSible, SENSible
-able: aDAPTable, SUITable, CHANGEable
-ial: fiNANcial, artiFICial, oFFICial
-cian: maGIcian, opTIcian, beauTIcian
-ic: BAsic, draMAtic, characteRIStic
-ish: GARish, ENglish, unSELfish
-ics: dyNAMics, aeRObics, hypNOtics
-ion: VERsion, classifiCAtion, CAUtion
-ious: harMONious, PREvious, VARious, FURious
-ia: TRIVia, maLARia, multiMEdia
-ient: ANcient, NUtrient, suFICient
-osis: thromBOsis, psyCHOsis, osMOsis

A good way to remember some of the suffixes above is to use the rule for nearly all suffixes that start with an ‘i’ or a ‘u’. For example, the suffixes -ion, -ual, -uous, -ial, -ient, -ious, -iuor, ior, -ic, -ity.

Notice again  how we stress the syllable immediately before the suffix in the following examples:

diVERsion,

unUSual,

conTINuous,

amBIGuous,

FATuous,

SPAtial,

TRANSient,

LUSCious,

suPERior,

behaviour,

JUNior,

STOic,

linGUIStic,

photoGRAPHic

Note, some exceptions to this rule include words ending in -ism, -ist and -ize.

English Word Stress Videos




How Dictionaries Help With Word Stress

If you are unsure about where to place the stress in a word, you can always refer to an English dictionary.  All good dictionaries give the phonetic spelling of a word.

You can learn which syllable of a word is stressed by looking at the phonetic spelling. The stressed syllable is commonly shown with an apostrophe (‘) just before or just after the stressed syllable.

Unfortunately, dictionary creators never agreed on one system so you should refer to your dictionary’s (how to use this dictionary) notes to see which system they use.

Here’s an example from my dictionary that shows which syllable to stress by placing the apostrophe immediately BEFORE the stressed syllable:

photograph | ‘fəʊtəɡrɑːf

photographic | ˌfəʊtə’ɡrafɪk 

Using the system of capitalising the stressed syllable as in all of my examples above, these two dictionary examples look like this:

PHOtograph

photGRAPHic

Learn Word Stress With Practise & Experience

As previously mentioned, the list of rules above is by no means complete. However, it does explain where to place the primary emphasis on numerous English words.

If the thoughts of learning all these rules is overwhelming, do not be too discouraged.  Many English learners naturally assimilate to word stress rules simply by listening and practicing the language.

Probably the best way to learn is from experience.  Try to get a feel for the music of the language by listening carefully to spoken English.

Of course, if you would like some extra assistance with your English speaking skills, contact us to find out more about our English courses in Hong Kong.

Here’s a brief overview of our English courses. Click the image for more details.

Why is Word Stress Important?

You might think that as long as you can communicate with English speakers (and you are probably already able to do so), it is not necessary to know which syllable should be stressed. However, word stress is an important part of speech. Here are some reasons why:

• Native speakers rely on stress to process what they hear and use it to identify words.
• Word stress affects the sounds of the vowels in the word.
• Learners who know where to stress words are more confident in speaking and reading English.
• Miscommunication between non-native speakers and native speakers of English can be the result of incorrect word stress patterns by the non-native speakers.
• Knowing about word stress helps learners to identify words when listening.
• Knowing the stress pattern of words can help you remember the pronunciation of new words.
• Knowing stress rules will help you pronounce new words that you come across.
• Once you know which syllable to stress in a word, it will be much easier to apply vowel reductions.

Word stress is not used in all languages. Some languages, Japanese or French for example, pronounce each syllable with eq-ual em-pha-sis.

Other languages, English for example, use word stress and pro-NOUNCE DIF-fer-ent SYL-la-bles with more or less im-POR-tance.

Word stress is not an optional extra that you can add to the English language if you want. It is part of the language! Fluent English speakers use word stress to communicate rapidly and accurately, even in difficult conditions. If, for example, you do not hear a word clearly, you can still understand the word because of the position of the stress.

Think again about the two words photograph and photographer. Now imagine that you are speaking to somebody by telephone over a very bad line. You cannot hear clearly. In fact, you hear only the first two syllables of one of these words, photo… Which word is it, photograph or photographer?

Of course, with word stress you will know immediately which word it is because in reality you will hear either…

PHO-TO…

or

PHO-TO…

So without hearing the whole word, you probably know what the word is…

PHO-TO…GRAPH

or

PHO-TO…GRAPH-ER

It’s magic! (Of course, you also have the context of your conversation to help you.)

This is a simple example of how word stress helps us understand spoken English–especially rapid spoken English. There are many, many other examples, because we use word stress all the time, without thinking about it.