SENTENCE STRESS

Pronunciation Practice
Introduction to sentence stress
• Individual words have a stress pattern, that is a pattern of
strong and weak syllables. Sentences also have a stress
pattern, and this is sentence stress. Sometimes a word and a
sentence have the same stress pattern. Listen.
Some typical stress patterns in English
short sentences and phrases
There is normally a space between stressed syllables in a
sentence. Unstressed syllables can be put in that space. The
space stays more or less the same length whether one or more
unstressed syllables are pushed into it. So for example, these
sentences take about the same length of time to say. Listen.
Stress patterns can help you hear the difference between
similar sentences. For example, verbs with the negative ending
–n’t are always stressed. This helps us to hear the difference
between can and can’t in the following two sentences, because
the two sentences have different stress patterns.
Exercise
Sentences with all the words stressed
In a sentence, we put stress on one syllable of all the most
important words. In some situations, emergencies for example,
all of the words are important. In this case, there is stress on
one syllable of all of the words (in some cases, the sentence
may have only one word).
Match each sentence with a sentence
from the box with the same rhythm.
Unstressed words
These are the kinds of words which are not normally stressed:
• Pronouns (your)
• The verb be (was)
• Auxiliary verbs (can); exception on negative form
• Articles (the)
• Conjunctions (and, or)
• Prepositions (to)
Unstressed words example
There may be more than one of these unstressed words
between two stressed words. In the sentences below, each
sentence has the same two stressed words with an increasing
number of unstressed words between. Listen. Notice that the
length of time between the two stressed words is about the
same, however many unstressed words are fitted between.
Give the stress patterns for these
sentences
When people speak English, they don’t speak
fast and non-stop. They speak in short
phrases, and they stop, or pause, between
the phrases
Listen to the story, reading at the same time,
and notice the pauses between the lines.
Listen to this version – the words are the
same, but there are more pauses
Listen again, and this time notice the
stress on the words in bold.
Mark the pauses
Mark the stresses
Mark the pauses
Mark the stresses