ENG003 SPEECH & ORAL COMMUNICATION
Introduction
Stress is the accent given to a syllable or word to give it more importance and to make it
stand out among other syllables or words. Because of the relative force or prominence
given to a syllable or word, the speaker gives accurate signals as to what ideas he wants
emphasized, thus contributing to bringing out meaning and emotional attitude in his
communication.
Stressed syllables and words are characterized by (a) force or intensity, (b)
higher pitch, and (c) longer duration.
Notice the stressed syllables in these words.
proFESsor
seMESter
comMITtee CATegory
Word Stress
Simple guidelines on word stress:
1. Most two-syllabled words are stressed on the first syllable.
Mother
Actual
Labor
2. Many compound nouns usually receive strong stress on the first component.
sweetheart
pocketbook
tablecloth
3. Compound verbs have strong stress on the second component.
get out
put off
look out
STRESS
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ENG003 SPEECH & ORAL COMMUNICATION
4. Pronouns ending in self have strong stress on the last syllable.
yourself
myself
ourselves
5. Numbers ending in ty receive strong stress on the first syllable to distinguish them
from words ending in teen which receive strong stress on the last syllable.
thirty
thirteen
forty
fourteen
6. Some words maybe used either as nouns or verbs. When used as nouns, these words
receive strong stress on the first syllable. When used as verbs, the stress is on the last
syllable.
Noun
Verb
suspect
suspect
insult
insult
subject
subject
7. A suffix added to a word does not affect the accent of the root word:
allow - allowance
beauty -
beautify
arrive - arrival
mercy - merciful
8. Words with suffixes tion, -sion, -ic, -ical, -ity are accented on the syllable before
the ending.
STRESS
conclude
conclusion
photograph
photographic
liable
liability
music
musical
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ENG003 SPEECH & ORAL COMMUNICATION
Sentence Stress
1. Stress words are considered CONTENT WORDS such as:
Nouns e.g. kitchen, Peter
(most) principle verbs e.g. visit, construct
Adjectives e.g. beautiful, interesting
Adverbs e.g. often, carefully
2. Non-stressed words are considered FUNCTION WORDS such as:
Determiners e.g. the, a, some, a few
Auxiliary verbs e.g. don't, am, can, were
Prepositions e.g. before, next to, opposite
Conjunctions e.g. but, while, as
Pronouns e.g. they, she, us
Drills on Stress Pattern of Words
A. Read the following words aloud giving extra emphasis on the syllable printed in
capital letters.
Adult
TEStimony
seMESter
abbREviate
ANcestor
CERemony
aPOStrophe
asSImilate
ALmost
CEmetery
comPOSer
toMORrow
ALlegory
ESsence
curRIculum
acCREdit
AWKward
DEtriment
soCIEty
progRESsive
ABsolute
PRACTticable
triBUnal
reLUCtant
AFfable
LUnacy
deTERmine
enDUrance
ALternate
LAmentable
aBOlish
inTERment
ACronym
Irresistable
rePLEnish
inCUMbent
ADmiral
SEnator
esTAblish
imPEdiment
ADjective
Orator
inTERpret
exORbitant
DEficit
LIterature
deVElop
apPREciate
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ENG003 SPEECH & ORAL COMMUNICATION
DOminant
TELevision
emBArrass
acCOUNTant
MENdicant RHEtoric
conTINue
comMITtee
TEStament
MISerable
conTRIbute
proFESsor
CAtegory
CATHolic
reMITtance
COLleague
B. In words ending in non-syllabic suffixes, like ette or ee, -eer, -esce, -esque, the
main stress is generally on the first vowel of the suffix.
BuccaNEER
caREER
interFERE
casSETTE
engiNEER
groTESQUE
DisaGREE
goaTEE
arREARS
EfferVESCE
chimpanZEE
sinCERE
LicenSEE
pictuRESQUE
JapaNESE
SilhouETTE
seVERE
araBESQUE
AppoinTEE
coaLESCE
lebaNESE
C. Compound words with main stress on the first word
AIRmail
BACKbone
CLASSmate
ACTION plan
BLACK list
DOORbell
AGE group
BIRTH control
EAVESdrop
AIRline
BACKground
FLIGHT nurse
ANYbody
BRAIN drain
NEWSpaper
D. Different stresses as Nouns and Verbs
NOUNS
STRESS
VERBS
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ENG003 SPEECH & ORAL COMMUNICATION
ABStract
absTRACT
ADdict
adDICT
COMpound
comPOUND
CONduct
conDUCT
CONtest
conTEST
CONtent
conTENT
CONvict
conVICT
EScort
esCORT
EXport
exPORT
IMport
imPORT
INsult
inSULT
OBject
obJECT
PREsent
preSENT
PROject
proJECT
REbel
reBEL
REcord
reCORD
PROtest
proTEST
SURvey
surVEY
E. Speaking Numbers on Telephone
Each digit should be spoken separately. Main stress is given on the last number of
each group.
369
three six NINE
197
one nine SEVEN
915 14 15
nine one five, one four, one FIVE
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ENG003 SPEECH & ORAL COMMUNICATION
0916 705 5005
zero nine one SIX, seven zero FIVE,
five zero zero FIVE
0724 845 66
zero seven two FOUR, eight four FIVE, double SIX
F. Prepositional Verbs
add UP
bear OUT
fall BACK
get OUT
bite OFF
pass ON
back OFF
bring FORTH
pick UP
check IN/OUT
break UP
pass AWAY
come aCROSS
come ABOUT
take OFF
come BACK
lay OFF
write OFF
CHALLENGER
A. Rewrite in CAPITAL LETTERS the syllable having main stress in each of the
following compounds words.
1. afternoon
______________________
2. backbone
______________________
3. dry-clean
______________________
4. full stop
______________________
5. make up
______________________
6. overcome
______________________
7. put up
______________________
8. Saturday
______________________
9. August
______________________
10. viewpoint
______________________
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ENG003 SPEECH & ORAL COMMUNICATION
11. drop out
______________________
12. give up
______________________
13. outline
______________________
14. however
______________________
15. showcase
______________________
16. September
______________________
17. weekend
______________________
18. write off
______________________
19. stop over
______________________
20. workshop
______________________
21. myself
______________________
22. testimony
______________________
23. professor
______________________
24. ceremony
______________________
25. thirteen
______________________
26. orator
______________________
27. abyss
______________________
28. deficit
______________________
29. determine
______________________
30. appreciate
______________________
B. Write down 'C' for content and 'F' for function.
1. arrive
2. to
3. just
4. swiftly
5. a
6. soft
7. next to
8. CPU
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ENG003 SPEECH & ORAL COMMUNICATION
9. open
10. had
11. in
12. association
13. in order to
14. courage
15. much
16. jumping
17. in front of
18. Miko
19. her
20. However
21. visit
22. pretty
23. and
24. stay
25. I
C. Underline the stressed words in the following sentences. After you have identified the
stressed words, practice reading the selection aloud.
1. The ice on the river melts quickly under the warm March sun.
2. Canada is a rich country, but still it has many poor people.
3. The package arrived in the morning, but the courier left before I could check the
contents.
4. Sir John A. Macdonald had a serious drinking problem; when sober, however, he could
be a formidable foe in the House of Commons.
5. Although my friend invited me to a party, I do not want to go.
6. Those beautiful small red-blue African birds, which we saw at the zoo last week,
actually fly around the world every year looking for a mate.
7. A black snake bit a young boy in the park yesterday.
8. These birds fly south in winter.
9. The lion roared and growled at the small foxes loudly.
10. The teacher explained the grammar rule to the students.
11. Ottawa is the capital of Canada, but Toronto is the capital of Ontario.
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ENG003 SPEECH & ORAL COMMUNICATION
12. Democracy is a noble goal; it is important, however, to protect the minority from the
tyranny of the majority.
13. I do not own a Porsche.
14. Call your father as soon as you arrive in Spain.
15. I ate the past and left the restaurant.
16. Unless my friend postpones her visit from Germany, I will not have time to study for
my exam.
17. Susanne wanted to be here, but she cannot come because her car is in the shop.
18. The basketball game was cancelled because it was raining.
19. The players stayed late for practice.
STRESS
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