accented syllable and general opinion

[salvador.dal1950]

Hello. Are there any rules regarding the identification of the accented syllable of a word?

English pronunciation can't be more difficult. I don't understand where to put the emphasis on a word, not least how to say it properly. I learnt -yesterday- that "look" and "food" are pronounced in a different way, even though they have the same spelling. What native speakers do when they encounter a new word? How they say it?

Thank you

 

[emsr2d2]

Hello. Are there any rules regarding the identification of the accented syllable of a word?

English pronunciation can't be more difficult. I don't understand where to put the emphasis on a word, not least how to say it properly. I learnt -yesterday- that "look" and "food" are pronounced in a different way, even though they have the same spelling. What native speakers do when they encounter a new word? How they say it?

Thank you

They don't have the same spelling. They happen to have the same double consonant. However, you are right that English pronunciation is, to say the least, a bit of a nightmare! In many cases, you just have to find the pronunciation in a good dictionary or on a site such as Forvo.

 

[konungursvia]

In general, Anglo-saxon nouns are stressed on the first syllable, Latin ones on the second-last.
Anglo-Saxon verbs are stressed most often on the second syllable, and English has generally adapted foreign verbs to fit this mould as well. Such rules will give you the right stress in over 50% of cases --- better than a monkey could do.

 

[5jj]

In general, Anglo-saxon nouns are stressed on the first syllable, Latin ones on the second-last.
Anglo-Saxon verbs are stressed most often on the second syllable, and English has generally adapted foreign verbs to fit this mould as well. Such rules will give you the right stress in over 50% of cases --- better than a monkey could do.

Fine, except that most people, even native speakers have no idea of whether a noun or verb is Anglo-Saxon or Latin in origin.

 

[konungursvia]

True, but a native Argentine can recognise which is which in most cases, and people who know French can often tell even more easily.