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Stressed Syllable Finder

The strong syllable, the secondary stress and the pronunciation of any word.

  • 3 syllables
  • stressed syllable pho
  • 10 letters
Stressed syllable
The 1st syllable is stressed: PHO-to-graph. Lighter (secondary) stress on graph.
Stress position
The stress falls on the third syllable from the end (1st of 3), as in BEAU-ti-ful and pho-TOG-ra-phy. Words ending in -ity and -ical work this way.
Syllables
pho-to-graph: 3 syllables, one for each vowel sound you say.
Line break
At the end of a line you can break it as pho-tograph, photo-graph.

What is word stress?

In every English word of two or more syllables, one syllable is stressed: said a little louder, longer and higher. BA-by, ho-TEL, ba-NA-na. The other syllables are weaker, and their vowels often shrink to the quick “uh” sound /ə/ (the schwa): a-BOUT, ba-NA-na. Getting the stress right matters more for being understood than getting every sound perfect.

Long words can also have a secondary stress, a lighter beat: in in-for-MA-tion, in is lighter and MA is the strongest. Dictionaries mark the primary stress with ˈ and the secondary with ˌ, right before the syllable.

Patterns that help

  • Two-syllable nouns and adjectives usually stress the first syllable: TA-ble, HAP-py, MON-key.
  • Two-syllable verbs usually stress the second: be-GIN, de-CIDE, en-JOY.
  • -tion, -sion, -ic, -ical, -ity put the stress just before them: in-for-MA-tion, e-co-NOM-ic, u-ni-VER-si-ty.
  • -eer, -ese, -oon take the stress themselves: en-gi-NEER, vol-un-TEER, Jap-a-NESE, af-ter-NOON.
  • Compound nouns stress the first part: BLACK-board, FOOT-ball, BIRTH-day.

Same word, moving stress

Adding a suffix can move the stress: PHO-to-graph, pho-TOG-ra-pher, pho-to-GRAPH-ic. Some words change meaning with the stress: a REC-ord (noun) but to re-CORD (verb); a PRES-ent, to pre-SENT. The finder uses the first pronunciation in its dictionary: the verb reading for record and the noun or adjective reading for present. It cannot choose a meaning from a sentence.

Frequently asked questions

How do I find the stressed syllable in a word?

Say the word as if you were calling it across a room: the syllable you stretch is the stressed one. Or type the word above: the finder marks the stressed syllable and shows the IPA pronunciation.

What do ˈ and ˌ mean in the pronunciation?

They are stress marks. ˈ comes right before the syllable with the main stress and ˌ before a syllable with lighter, secondary stress: /ˌɪn.fɚˈmeɪ.ʃən/ (information).

Do one-syllable words have stress?

A one-syllable word is stressed when you say it on its own. In a sentence, small grammar words like a, the, of and to are usually unstressed and squeezed.

Is word stress the same in British and American English?

Mostly, but not always: garage, adult and address can differ. The finder follows American English (the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).