0
Mercyful_fate Posted 15 years ago
Speech & Pronunciation
Do you stress all content words equally
When you read a book or an article, do you stress all content words equally?
"Amidst all the dramatic headlines about the rebel advances in Libya, two things are clear. Firstly: that the rebel forces still have a very limited offensive punch. Libyan government units seem to have dissolved in front of them, rather than being defeated in battle. Secondly: the retreat of the Libyan government forces has been caused by the damage they have sustained from the air. We do not know how extensive the air attacks have been, but they clearly have dented the Libyan government forces' morale."
In an article like this, I feel lost, and I sound very choppy when I pronounce all of the content words equally-I record myself. Also, I don't know which content word gets the most emphasis, gets more stressed than others.
I heard many times, from native English speakers, that it is incorrect to stress last word in a sentence, so I avoid stressing last word unless I have a reason or there is a reason to do that.
This is the article link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/language/wordsinthenews/2011/03/110328_witn_libya_page.shtml
*** If American English sentence stress pattern differs from British English sentence stress pattern, please stick with the American English.
Thanks!
"Amidst all the dramatic headlines about the rebel advances in Libya, two things are clear. Firstly: that the rebel forces still have a very limited offensive punch. Libyan government units seem to have dissolved in front of them, rather than being defeated in battle. Secondly: the retreat of the Libyan government forces has been caused by the damage they have sustained from the air. We do not know how extensive the air attacks have been, but they clearly have dented the Libyan government forces' morale."
In an article like this, I feel lost, and I sound very choppy when I pronounce all of the content words equally-I record myself. Also, I don't know which content word gets the most emphasis, gets more stressed than others.
I heard many times, from native English speakers, that it is incorrect to stress last word in a sentence, so I avoid stressing last word unless I have a reason or there is a reason to do that.
This is the article link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/language/wordsinthenews/2011/03/110328_witn_libya_page.shtml
*** If American English sentence stress pattern differs from British English sentence stress pattern, please stick with the American English.
Thanks!
Top answer
-- No, not at all. Stress patterns are influenced by context, punctuation, repetition, intention. Its merely being a content word has relatively little influence on its emphasis.
- -- No, not at all.
- Stress patterns are influenced by context, punctuation, repetition, intention.
- Its merely being a content word has relatively little influence on its emphasis.
- -- Either you have misunderstood, or the native speakers were unaware of their own speech patterns.
- Not necessarily the last word, but the last significant word normally carries sentence stress, which is greater than other word stresses in the utterance.
Get the Weekly English Kit 📬
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.
3 Answers
0
When you read a book or an article, do you stress all content words equally?-- No, not at all. Stress patterns are influenced by context, punctuation, repetition, intention. Its merely being a content word has relatively little influence on its emphasis.
I heard many times, from native English speakers, that it is incorrect to stress last word in a sentence, so I avoid stressing
I heard many times, from native English speakers, that it is incorrect to stress last word in a sentence, so I avoid stressing
00
Mercyful_fateWhen you read a book or an article, do you stress all content words equally?No. There are many, many different ways to read an article aloud. Good actors can often say a line of five words in ten different ways.
Mercyful_fateI don't know which content word gets the most emphasis, gets more stressed than others.
00
I would suggest that it's very difficult in any language to sound like a native - your aim should be to speak with maximum clarity even if people can plainly tell that English is not your first language.
0
Related Questions