Unaccented (Adjective)
Meaning 1
(used of vowels or syllables) pronounced with little or no stress; "a syllable that ends in a short vowel is a light syllable"; "a weak stress on the second syllable".
Classification
All adjective clusters.
Examples
- The second syllable of the word "computer" is unaccented.
- In phonetics, the vowel in the word "about" is an unaccented syllable.
- She has an unusual accent that pronounces the last syllable unaccented in words that typically stress the last syllable.
- In most languages, articles are usually pronounced with an unaccented syllable.
- In this language, every word must have one syllable that is stressed, but all other syllables are unaccented.
Synonyms
Meaning 2
(used of syllables) carrying no stress; "an atonic syllable carries no stress".
Classification
All adjective clusters.
Examples
- The prefix "un" is usually unaccented in English words.
- In poetry, the second syllable is often unaccented and called a pyrrhus.
- The atonic syllable "the" is an unaccented syllable in the sentence "the horse is running".
- The unaccented ending on the verb root makes it an infinitive.
- In Middle English, the final syllable was often unaccented and lost its stress.