Rules For Accentual Patterns 6t2m5u

Rules for accentual patterns: Accent or stress is the force of voice with which a syllable is pronounced. Accent denotes the pitch of voice and marks out syllable or syllables that receive greater stress than the rest in a word. Accent generally falls on the root syllable and not on the suffix or prefix and is known by the mark(`) placed either on vowel sound of the stressed syllable or at the stressed end of it. Accented syllable are also called heavy or stressed, and the unaccented are known as light or unstressed. Placing of accent on right syllable is very important in English. A great deal of correct pronunciation of words of English language depends upon the placing of right accent. Most Indian speakers of English have defective accents. That is why their English is not intelligible to foreign speakers. There are few rules of accent in English as there are few rules of grammer.

Accents of words should be learnt with the help of a pronouncing dictionary or by constantly listening to the native speakers of English. However, the broad guidelines are given here. (1) All parts of speech in a line are not equally important in value. (2) Nouns, verbs, demonstrative and interrogative pronouns, adjectives and adverbs being of greater value than other parts of speech, generally receive accents except for special reasons. (3) Words of two or three syllables have, ordinarily, only one accent (e.g. `ac-ci-dent). (4) Longer words, however, often contain two accented syllables (e.g. (5) Ex-,am-i-`na-tion). (6) Here the first stress receives lesser prominence than the second. (7) Hence the first is called the secondary stress and the second which receives more prominence, is called the primary stress. (3) Nouns of two syllables have generally the first syllable accented :`ho-nour, `ma-rri(a) ge, ri-ver ( exceptions are a-` dieu, a-`bode).

(4) Adjectives in all degrees of comparison have the accent on the first syllable:`gen-tle, `gen-tler, `g`en-tlest. (5) When a word of two syllables is used as both noun and adjectives, it is accented on the first syllable when a noun and on second when an adjective; `Au-gust(an)_ the month of August Au-`gust ( adj)_an August personality Exception:`patient( noun & adj. Both) (6) When a word of two syllables is used as both adjective and verb, it is accented on the first syllable when used an adjective and on the second, when used a verb. `Ab-sent( adj)_ an absent girl. Ab-`sent( v)_ she absented herself from the class. `Per-fect( adj)_a perfect scheme. Per-`fect( v)_ the scheme was perfected by experts. Exception:_ Ex_`act( adj & verb) (8) When a word of two syllables is used as both noun and verb, it is accented on the first syllable when a noun, and on the second when a verb:

Accent( n)_ the accents of Indians speaking English are defective. Ac-`cent( v)_ accent the following words. `Con-duct( n)_ his conduct is good Con-`duct( v)_ the case was well conducted. Exception_ sup-`port( nouns and verb). (8) Words with weak prefixes are accented on the root, e.g. a`cross, a`head, a`lone, become, be`neath. (9) The inflexional sufifixes -es-ing-ed, and derivational suffixes ,-age, -ance, -en,-ess,-fy –hood,-ice,-ice,-ish,ive,-less,-ly,-ment,-ness,-or,-ship,-ter,-ure,-ice,y and zen do not affect the accent,e.g. catch,`catches; begin ,be`ginning; ap`pear, ap`peared; `break, `b`reakage; ap`pear, ap`pearance;wide, `widen`;`bright`, brighter; `god,`goddess; `beauty, `beautiful; `class, `classify,`boy,boyhood;`coward,`cowardice;,`fool,`foolish ; `help,`helpless, `enclose,`enclosure; `mood,`moody; `city,`citizen. (10) Words ending in –ion have the primary accent on the penultimate syllable e.g. `appli`cation ,conver`sation,

de`termination, ex`amination,i`magi`nation,`qualifi`cation. (11) Words ending –ic, ical, icality, ious,-ial, ially, have the primary accent on the syllable preceding the suffix, e.g. apolo`getic, electrical, me`chanically, arti`ficial,in`dustrious, vic`torious. (12) Words ending in –ity have primary accent on the ante-penultimate syllable, the third syllable from the end ,e.g. possi`bility. (13) The suffixes –al and –ally affect the accentual pattern, e.g,`accident,acci-dental; `origin ; o`riginal. (14) In words of more than two syllables ending in –ate , the tonic`accent is placed on two syllables before the suffix, i.e., on the third syllable from the end ,e.g., `culti,vate, `edu-cate. (15) Words ending in –aire,-eer,-esce, escence,-esque,ique,-it is take the primary accent on their first syllable, e.g. pioneer , millio`naire, fund`mental, exis`tential,phy`sique,neu`ritis.