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Word StressWord stress is definitely the key to understanding spoken English and it is used so naturally by native speakers of the English language that they are not even aware they are doing it. When non native speakers talk to English natives without the use of word stress they are likely to encounter two problems: 1. The listener will find it difficult to understand the fast speaking native. 2. The native speakers may find it difficult to understand the non native speakers.
It is important to look at two features of English language to be able understand word stress and these are syllables and silent letters. English words consist of 1, 2, 3 or more syllables. A syllable is a word or part of a word with only one vowel sound. Here are some examples: -the word book has 1 syllable
Quite often, silent letters make it a little difficult to work out how many syllables there are in a word. For example the word When you first see this word you may think there are 4 syllables: in – ter – res – ting.But there are only three because the first e is a silent letter making the pronunciation in – tres - ting
There are many silent letters in English words and this is because of the fact that English is not a phonetic language. That is why it is often very difficult to work out how many syllables a word has. There are only 2 ways to be absolutely sure and here they are: - Listen extremely carefully to the word being spoken
Okay, let's take a look at word stress. In all English words one of its syllables has more importance than the others and therefore it is stressed. How do we know it is stressed, I hear you asking? Well, there are 5 features of a stressed syllable: The two important rules about stress are: First, a word has only one stress. If you hear two stressed syllables then you know you have heard two words. Second, the stressed sound is always on a vowel. Use this helpful tool to learn by colours by clicking on the word and then click for the word answer when you will see words with the same color have the same stress. Recommended AdviceMake sure to highlight the stressed syllable with a colored marker when you learn additional vocabulary. When you are practising new words to yourself, it's ok to exaggerate the stressed parts until you learn how to put the stress in the right place naturally.
Many words and sounds of the English language create problems in pronunciation for learners. There is a list of
words and sounds with video and audio links which you can use to help you understand some of these problematic areas. When you are listening to the English language whether on the radio or on a film try to hear the stress in each word. Once you have heard it, you will be able to recognise it and use it yourself.
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