Syllables and word stress. You've heard about syllables before. They're small units of sound, the rhythmic beats in a word. Some words have one syllable, like read, some have two, like pencil, some have three, like eraser, and some have many more, like oversimplification, with seven syllables. Each syllable has one vowel sound. Some may have more than one vowel letter, but just one vowel sound. For example, read has 2 vowel letters, E and A, but only 1 vowel sound, E. It's just 1 syllable, read A syllable can also have one or more consonant sounds. Stop has 3 consonant sounds. It has just 1 vowel sound. So it's 1 syllable, stop. Straps has 5 consonant sounds. But it also has just 1 vowel sound. It has lots of letters, but it's still just 1 syllable, straps. How many syllables do you hear in each of these words? Notebook, notebook. Notebook has 2 syllables, note, book. Conversation, conversation. Conversation has 4 syllables, con ver sa tion. Repeated, repeated. Repeated has 3 syllables, re pea ted. Strong, strong. Strong has just 1 syllable, strong. Even though it has lots of consonants, it only has one vowel sound In English, every word that has more than one syllable has one stressed syllable, one syllable that's stronger than the others. For example, the word international has five syllables, in ter na tion al. The 3rd syllable, na, is emphasized more then the others. International. The stressed syllable is different from the other syllables in a word. It can be longer, louder, higher in pitch, and its vowel is clearer. Try saying these words, making the stressed syllables longer, louder, higher, and clearer. Problem. Study. Possible. Furniture. Attend. Suggest. Remember. Fantastic. Understand. Conversation. Independence. Transportation. In longer words, we've said there's one strongly stressed syllable. But there may also be another syllable that has a little bit of stress. Like the first syllable in international. We say these syllables have weak stress, or secondary stress. Listen and say these words. Notice how the syllables in red are stressed a little, but not as much as the strongly stressed syllables. Conversation. Independence. Transportation. Refrigerator. Educational. Scientific. Information. Civilization. What happens to the other syllables in a word, the ones that are not stressed at all? Those unstressed syllables become shorter, Softer, lower, and less clear, so that the stressed syllables will stand out in comparison. Now say the same words you practiced earlier, this time thinking about making the unstressed syllables, shorter, softer and weaker. Problem. Study. Possible. Furniture. Attend. Suggest. Remember. Fantastic. Understand. Conversation. Independence. Transportation. Word stress is important. By making stressed syllables stronger and unstressed syllables weaker, we can make it easier for listeners to understand the words we're saying.