Agudas, Graves, y Llanas

[Roxerz]

Estoy tomando una clase de fonetica y fonologia y no entiendo cómo diferenciar las palabras agudas y graves que no tienen acentos. Sólo podemos diferenciar si escuchamos la palabra?

Im taking a phonetics class and I dont understand how to categorize/differentiate the aguda and grave words that dont have accents. Are we only able to diferentiate if we hear the word? For me, American-English as my 1st language, its not easy to hear the difference between hablo and habló unless you say them back to back.


También, cual es la diferencia de Llanas y Graves?

Estoy leyendo algo de la universidad de Weber pero no he visto instrucciones para saber las diferencias.
http://faculty.weber.edu/tmathews/grammar/marks.html

[Rusty]

You might find this (http://forums.tomisimo.org/showpost.php?p=153310&postcount=2) helpful, but the syllabus you were looking at contains the same, and more, information.

The basic rules of thumb presented in the syllabus only apply when listening to the words.
Later the syllabus categorizes words into one of four classes-palabras llanas, agudas, esdrújulas o sobresdrújulas. Which syllable is stressed is the classifier. It gives you examples of stressed words that fit each category.

I've heard a few people say that they have a hard time hearing which syllable is stressed. It takes a good deal of listening practice, in that case, to detect the difference, but I can assure you there is a huge difference.


In American English, we have lots of words that are spelled the same but whose stressed syllable shifts depending on how the word is used in a sentence.

The noun 'suspect' is not said the same way as the verb 'suspect'.
The noun 'present' is pronounced differently than the verb 'present'.

There are many more such examples:
reject
object
recall
produce
convict
contest
rebel
permit
insult
incline
project
address
insult
insert
recoil
upgrade
convert
(many others)

These and other words make sentences like these a challenge for students of English:
Compress the compress to stop the bleeding.
A complex issue developed at the complex.
She is content with the content.
Let's record a record.
If you perfect your intonation, your accent will be perfect.

(I'll bet you had no problem shifting the stress).

Things get worse:
Please leave the minute details for the last minute.
The bow got stuck in the bow.
Get wind of how to wind your top in the next issue. If it's wound too taut, it can wound you.


At least Spanish spelling rules clearly define which syllable gets stressed (if you learn the spelling rules).
And you should follow the spelling rules. ;)