Download Rules for Stress and Accent Marks in Spanish

Rules for Stress and Accent
Marks in Spanish
The purpose of accents marks.
• Accent marks tell you which syllable or
vowel in a word to stress.
• Accent marks help distinguish meaning
when two words are the same.
The Rules of Stress
• When a word ends with a vowel, the
letter “n” or the letter “s” the second to
the last syllable of the word is stressed.
examen hablan discos
quiero
mantequilla estrella
The Rules of Stress
• When a word ends with a consonant
other than “n” or “s”, the last vowel or
syllable receives the stress.
animal feliz Madrid hablar
ciudad calor vivir
comer
The Rules of Stress
• When a word receives stress on a
vowel or syllable and does not follow
rules 1 and 2, then a written accent
mark is used to indicate which vowel or
syllable should be stressed.
lápiz jóvenes bolígrafo lámpara
semáforo música rápido difícil
The Rules of Stress
• Some words have an accent mark to
distinguish them from another word.
si = if
mí = my
té = tea
sí = yes
mi = me
te = to or for
you
tú = you
más = more
tu = your
mas = but
The Rules of Stress
• Question words always have a written
accent mark.
¿cuál? ¿qué? ¿dónde? ¿quién?
¿cómo? ¿cuánto?