Speaking: Pronunciation A1 - Lesson 2: Basic Word Stress

Speaking: Pronunciation A1

Basic Word Stress

Listen to the examples here.

What you will learn: By the end of this lesson, you will be able to hear and correctly stress simple two-syllable words in English.

What is Word Stress? 🥁

In English, we don't say every part of a word with the same power. We push on one part more. This is called word stress. It means making one syllable (or word part) stronger, louder, and a little longer.

Think of it like a drum beat. Some beats are quiet (da) and some are LOUD (DUM). Getting the beat right makes your English sound much more natural!

DUM-da

WA-ter

STU-dent

MAR-ket

da-DUM

ho-TEL

a-BOUT

en-JOY

Key Concepts

💡 A Simple Tip for Nouns

Here is a very helpful tip! Most two-syllable nouns in English have stress on the FIRST syllable (the DUM-da beat).

For example: TEA-cher, COUN-try, PIC-ture, PEO-ple.

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Practice the Stress 🎯

Activity 1: Clap the Beat

Say these words out loud. Clap your hands LOUDLY on the strong, stressed syllable (in BOLD/UPPERCASE). Click 🔊 to hear the word.

1. STU-dent
2. a-BOUT
3. MAR-ket
4. MON-ey

Activity 2: Listen and Choose the Beat

Click 🔊 to hear the word, then choose the correct beat pattern. Click your choice to see if you're right!

Activity 3: Sentence Rhythm (Challenge!)

Now, let's try stress in a full sentence. Click 🔊 to hear the sentence, then try saying it, stressing the bold parts.

• I en-JOY my TEA-cher.
• My STU-dent is from Siem REAP.

Vocabulary

• Word Stress | ការសង្កត់សំឡេងលើពាក្យ
  Making one part of a word sound stronger and louder.
• Syllable | ព្យាង្គ
  A part of a word with one vowel sound. 'Water' has two syllables: 'wa' and 'ter'.
• Water | ទឹក
  The clear liquid that you drink every day. (Stress: WA-ter)
• Student | សិស្ស
  A person who studies at a school or university. (Stress: STU-dent)
• Money | លុយ
  Riel or dollars that you use to buy things. (Stress: MON-ey)
• Market | ផ្សារ
  A place to buy fresh food, like Phsar Leu in Siem Reap. (Stress: MAR-ket)
• Teacher | គ្រូ
  A person who helps students learn. (Stress: TEA-cher)
• Hotel | សណ្ឋាគារ
  A place where people pay to stay when traveling. (Stress: ho-TEL)
• Enjoy | រីករាយ
  To take pleasure in something. (Stress: en-JOY)

Your Mission ⭐

This week, listen carefully to English words you hear. Listen for the "music" and the beat.

1. Try to hear the DUM-da or da-DUM beat in new words.
2. Find 5 new two-syllable words and practice saying them with the correct beat.
3. Try saying the challenge sentences from Activity 3 to a friend.