stressed syllable in -ic words

Question

Hi, my lecturer told my group to find words ending with -ic, which also don't have stress on the penultimate syllable. He gave us two words: catholic and arabic. We are supposed to search for four more words (he told us that there are six exceptions to this penultimate syllable stressed rule).

Clive · Accepted Answer

How are you going to search?

CalifJim · Answer

Anonymouswords ending with ~~-ic, which also don't~~ -ic which don't also have stress on the penultimate syllable

turmeric, arsenic, bishopric, lunatic, choleric, heretic, politic, arithmetic, catholic, Arabic

'choleric' and 'arithmetic' also have the "normal" stress pattern for -ic words.

CJ

GPY · Answer

I doubt it is an "-ic" word that your lecturer was thinking of, but it brings to my mind the odd case of "biopic". This surely should be pronounced with the stress on the first syllable, but some people, weirdly to my ear, put the stress on the penultimate syllable, I suppose because the rule is so ingrained.

CalifJim · Answer

GPYsome people, weirdly to my ear, put the stress on the penultimate syllable

Surely it's just a misreading of the meaning. Maybe they think it's the non-existent "bioptic" (having two eyes). Or does the same person, knowing the meaning, consistently pronounce it wrong? That would be weird.

I know of a case of "rugrats" being read as "regrets", one of "miniseries" being read as "ministries", and one of "infrared" read as a two-syllable past tense (in-FRARD). These all seem to be cases of a failure to recognize the compound structure of the word.

CJ

GPY · Answer

CalifJimSurely it's just a misreading of the meaning. Maybe they think it's the non-existent "bioptic" (having two eyes). Or does the same person, knowing the meaning, consistently pronounce it wrong? That would be weird.

I have heard various people pronounce it incorrectly when it is clear from context that they know the meaning. I think they see it in writing, understand the meaning, but somehow do not realise how the word has been formed, or do not think that this matters where the pronunciation is concerned, or their instinct to stress the penultimate syllable takes over.

stressed syllable in -ic words

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