Phase 1 · Lesson 04 · A0

Spanish Accent Marks and Word Stress

Find the beat inside a Spanish word. Two ending clues predict the usual stress, and a written accent mark tells you exactly when the word takes another route.

Learn the two routes View the course
  • 18-minute lesson
  • English guidance
  • Audio + spelling practice

What you'll be able to do

Find the stressed syllable and read it aloud.

By the end, you can use a word's final letter or its written accent mark to identify the stressed syllable in familiar Spanish words, then pronounce that syllable clearly without losing the other vowels.

TodaySpoken stress, two default ending rules, and the acute accent mark over a vowel.LaterDiphthongs, hiatuses, question words, and meaning contrasts such as tu/tú.Not todayMemorizing every exception or mastering sentence-level rhythm.

Interactive check

Bring back your sound foundations

Retrieve one vowel habit from lesson 2 and one consonant clue from lesson 3 before you add word stress.

01What should happen to the vowels while you listen for word stress?
02When you divide hotel into syllables, what sound does H add?

Show answer key
  1. Keep them clear and steady — Yes. Bring back lesson 2: every vowel stays audible and clear, even when one syllable carries the stress.
  2. No sound: ho-tel — Correct. Retrieve lesson 3: H is silent, so hotel has the two spoken syllables ho-tel.

Activity 2 · Hear the difference

Stress is the syllable that stands out.

A multisyllable Spanish word has one main stressed syllable. It can sound a little longer, clearer, or more prominent than its neighbors. Say casaas CA-sa: both vowels remain clear, but CA carries the beat.

  1. 01

    Say the word normally once.

  2. 02

    Tap once for each syllable: CA · sa.

  3. 03

    Repeat it and notice which tap feels strongest.

Next-to-last stress

CAsa

casa
Last-syllable stress

hoTEL

hotel

Capital letters show the spoken beat only in this lesson. Normal Spanish writes casa and hotel in lowercase.

Activity 3 · Predict from spelling

Two ending routes predict most unmarked words.

First check for a written accent. If there is none, look at the last letter. The ending sends you to either the next-to-last syllable or the last syllable.

1

Does a vowel carry ´?

Yes

Stress that marked vowel.

te-LÉ-fo-no
No

Check the final letter.

Vowel / N / S?
Yes

Next-to-last

CA-sa
No

Last

ho-TEL
01

Vowel, N, or S

Stress the next-to-last syllable when there is no written accent mark.

CA-sa

casa · house

JO-ven

joven · young person

LU-nes

lunes · Monday
02

Another consonant

Stress the last syllable when there is no written accent mark.

ho-TEL

hotel · hotel

doc-TOR

doctor · doctor

es-pa-ÑOL

español · Spanish
03

A vowel with ´

Stress the vowel carrying the written accent mark, whatever the ending.

ca-FÉ

café · coffee / café

jar-DÍN

jardín · garden

te-LÉ-fo-no

teléfono · telephone

Interactive check

Use the ending, then let the accent mark win

Choose the stressed syllable or the clue that determines it. Each explanation names the route.

01Which syllable is stressed in casa?
02Which syllable is stressed in doctor?
03The ending of lápiz predicts final stress. What changes that prediction?
04Which reading follows the written accent in teléfono?

Show answer key
  1. CA-sa — Casa ends in a vowel and has no written accent, so the next-to-last syllable carries the stress: CA-sa.
  2. doc-TOR — Doctor ends in R, a consonant other than N or S, so the last syllable carries the stress: doc-TOR.
  3. The mark over Á — The written accent is a direct instruction: stress LÁ even though the final Z would otherwise predict final stress.
  4. te-LÉ-fo-no — The accent sits over É, so that syllable carries the stress: te-LÉ-fo-no.

Activity 4 · Read the written signal

The accent mark is a direct stress instruction.

In Spanish, every word has spoken stress, but only some words show it in writing. The acute mark ´ over a vowel is called a tildeor written accent. Stress that vowel's syllable—even when the ending predicts something else.

caféEnds in a vowel, but the mark makes the last syllable stressed.

lápizEnds in Z, but the mark makes the next-to-last syllable stressed.

músicaThe mark identifies the third-from-last syllable; words with this pattern always show it.

Write it out

Restore the accent in telefono

The intended reading is te-LÉ-fo-no. Type the correctly accented word.

This activity tests the accent mark, so an unaccented answer is not accepted.

Show model answer

teléfono

Write it out

Restore the accent in cafe

The intended reading is ca-FÉ. Type the correctly accented word.

The final vowel carries the spoken stress.

Show model answer

café

Activity 5 · Listening discrimination

Hear the beat, then confirm it in the spelling.

Play each word before choosing. Tap its syllables, identify the strongest one, and then check whether the final letter or written accent predicts what you heard.

Audio 1

Audio transcript: casa.

Audio 2

Audio transcript: hotel.

Audio 3

Audio transcript: teléfono.

Interactive check

Which syllable stands out?

Replay as often as you need. The feedback connects the sound to the written clue.

01Audio 1: Where does the stress fall?
02Audio 2: Where does the stress fall?
03Audio 3: Which syllable carries the stress?

Show answer key
  1. CA-sa — You heard CA-sa. The word also follows the vowel-ending default: next-to-last stress.
  2. ho-TEL — You heard ho-TEL. The final L predicts last-syllable stress, and silent H adds no sound.
  3. te-LÉ-fo-no — You heard te-LÉ-fo-no. The written accent and the spoken stress point to the same syllable.

Common English-speaker slips

Keep the stress clear without distorting the word.

Stress is contrast, not a reason to swallow the remaining vowels or add an English vowel glide.

  1. 01

    Looking only for a written mark

    Every multisyllable word has spoken stress. Casa has no accent mark, but it is still CA-sa.

  2. 02

    Ignoring the final letter

    Without a mark, the ending predicts the route: CA-sa but ho-TEL.

  3. 03

    Dropping an unstressed vowel

    Keep every vowel audible in te-LÉ-fo-no. One syllable stands out; the others do not disappear.

  4. 04

    Treating Ñ as an accented N

    Ñ is its own letter and consonant sound. A written stress mark goes over a vowel: á, é, í, ó, ú.

Final task · Read a contact card

Predict three stresses, then read the names aloud.

Cover the stress guide. For each item, check for a written accent and then its final letter. Say the three items once, play the model, and try again.

Name
CAR-los
City
ma-DRID
Contact
so-FÍ-a

Audio transcript: Carlos, Madrid, Sofía.

I can now…

This private checklist submits and stores nothing.

Three things to keep

Your word-stress summary

  1. Words ending in a vowel, N, or S normally stress the next-to-last syllable when no accent is written.
  2. Words ending in another consonant normally stress the last syllable when no accent is written.
  3. A written accent mark points directly to the stressed vowel and overrides the default route.

Review tomorrow: mark the strongest syllable in casa, hotel, café, lápiz, and teléfono, then read them aloud.

Sources used for this lesson