Word Stress

What is the biggest cause of unintelligibility (not understanding someone)?

Mistakes in word stress are the most common cause of misunderstandings in English.

What is word stress?

Words are made of syllables.  One or more syllables in words are given more prominence.

Stressing the wrong syllable in a word can make the word very difficult to understand.  Here are some examples:

“The HOtel provide glass boTTLES.”

By placing the stress on the wrong syllables, the sentence becomes confusing and difficult to understand.

The correct word stress is as follows.

Bottle = BOttle

Hotel = hoTEL

“The hoTEL provide glass BOttles.”

Unfortunately there are no fixed rules for which syllables are stressed in words.  However being aware of word stress in the first place will make you a better learner.

When learning a new item of vocabulary, record the word stress.  All dictionaries will mark the stress on a word.  Practice saying the word aloud if it is a high frequency item (common when speaking), focussing on the correct stress.

Mini-Test

Which syllable is stressed in the following words? (the answers are below).

restaurant

online

internet

balcony

elevator

reception

manager

dessert

hospitality

luxury

The answers:

RESTaurant

onLINE

INternet

BALcony

ELEvator

reCEPtion

MANager

deSSERT

hospiTALity

LUxury

Awareness of word stress will help you become a more effective communicator and listener!