accent
5
4.8
- noun
- /ˈæksɛnt/
:
tilde
- Senora Claro brushed her hair from her wrinkled face and showed him where to put the accent mark when he wrote out her first check.
- an accent mark
Examples
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Her shop specializes in paper accents for scrapbooking, card making, gift giving, and home decor.
Blog text (11) -
Tall Walker observes the woman closely, noting her "incongruous" dress, her age, economic status, regional accent, and her obvious interest in Indians.
Academic text (1998) -
Do you want me to use a Spanish accent?
-
- No, she needs a Southern accent.
-
This one had a Spanish accent.
-
I wonder what the Japanese equivalent of the French accent is.
Blog text (14) -
I can't place the accent.
-
To type an acute accent or an umlaut is a major operation.
Blog text (16) -
I once told him that I had just completed an essay on Cavafy, whose name I blithely mispronounced, wrongly putting accents on the first and final syllables.
Academic text (2007) -
You need to place an accent over the letter "é" to show the correct pronunciation in French.
Synonyms
1
5.8
A small sign above a syllable that shows which part to say more strongly
A mark placed above or below a letter to show which syllable is strong and how to say it
A small sign written on a letter to show how to say it or to change its meaning
A small mark that changes the sound of a letter
Compounds
- Specialized
A mark of two acute accents placed above a vowel to show a long rounded sound in Hungarian
A mark placed above or below a letter to show which syllable is strong and how to say it
A way of speaking that puts extra stress on certain words or tones to make a point
- Specialized
The pattern of strong and weak syllables in a word with more than one syllable
Surface Forms
Etymology
Accent comes from Latin accentus (from ad- 'to' + cantare 'to sing'), where it meant a tone added to words; later people used a small sign to show that tone. So, an accent mark is a sign that tells you how to 'say' a letter or vowel.