Rules for Stress

In Spanish, words are spelled just like they sound. In order to take advantage of this simple and nearly perfect system of spelling, one must first know the rules for stress - that is, how to know which syllable is pronounced the loudest.

1. Words ending in a vowel, -n, or -s are stressed on the next to the last (penultimate) syllable:
   
   nada
   na - da
   
   limonada
   li - mo - na - da
   
   zapatos
   za - pa - tos
   
   origen
   o - ri - gen
   
   compro
   com - pro
   
   esta
   es - ta
   
   estas
   es- tas
   
   
2. Words ending in any consonant except -n or -s are stressed on the last syllable:
   
   doctor
   doc - tor
   
   ciudad
   ci - u - dad
   
   comer
   co - mer
   
   
3. When rules #1 and #2 above are not followed, a written accent is used:
   
   compró
   com - pró
   
   está
   es - tá
   
   estás
   es - tás
   
   
4. Written accents are also used to differentiate between words that are pronounced the same but have different meanings:
   
   si - if
   sí - yes
   
   mi - my
   mí - me
   
   el - the
   él - he
   
   tu - your
   tú - you

Don't think of these rules as burdensome. Rather, view them as your friends. They allow you to pronounce any Spanish word correctly.