1. © 2001, Kent Lee
Stress shifts in word formation
1. Strong (non-neutral) suffixes.
Creating new words by adding certain suffixes can cause the main word stress to shift rightward.
These suffixes are called strong suffixes (or non-neutral, or Class 1). The main word stress is marked
with an acute accent [ ! ], and when necessary, secondary stresses are marked with a grave accent [ ` ].
The stress shifts will occur with the addition of the strong suffix if the word is long enough, and if the
stress is far back enough on the base.
suffix base derived word
-al (ADJ) pólitics polítical
-ic álcohol alcohólic
-ify ácid acídify
-ity nórmal normálity
-ous ánalogue análagous
-ual cóntext contéxtual
-y (noun) ánalogue análogy
If the main stress is already close enough to the end of the word, then addition of a strong suffix will
not cause the stress to shift any farther:
polémic polémical
A few strong suffixes and prefixes may bear a secondary stress. The verbal suffix -ate bears a
secondary stress (as opposed to the unstressed adjectival -ate suffix – see below). The prefix auto- bears
main stress when it means “automatic”, and the Latin suffix -esce (‘to become’) bears main stress,
downgrading the other stress to a secondary stress. Finally, many French suffixes bear main stress. Some
Greek prefixes can take primary stress in hard-to-predict ways, especially in scientific terms.
-àte (verb) hýdrogen h drógenàte
auto- mobile automobile
-esce phósphor phòsphorésce
French suffixes: -ade cascáde, façáde
-e, ee fiancé, fiancée; sauté; employée
-ese Chìnése
-esque burlésque
-ette dinétte
1

2. -eur entreprenéur
-ier cavalíer
-oon buffóon
-esque, eque picturésque, discotéque
-que communiqué
Greek prefixes nánometer, télephone, parámeter
Many Latin prefixes may be unstressed, or contain a long vowel that has a secondary stress. Only
in very short words, with only short syllables following the prefix, would the prefix take on main stress.
Latin prefixes ad-, co-, con-, de-, dis-, e-, en-, ex-, in-, mid-, ob-, pre-, re-, se-, sub
adjóin, ádjunct, dèfér, disdáin, préjudice, rèimbúrse
2. i-vowel suffixes.
Many words contain suffixes beginning with -i-, especially in combination with other suffixes, like -i-
ous, ion, i-an, etc. In these cases, the main word stress shifts to the syllable immediately preceding the
i-vowel suffix. Sometimes the stressed vowel before the i-vowel suffix may be shortened. Hyphenated
form by themselves (like ‘al-‘) indicate a Latin/Greek word root, prefix, or suffix that does not exist as
a word by itself.
-ian statístic statistícian
-iana Índian Indiána
-ial fin- fínial
space spátial
-iant, -iance, -iancy lúxury luxúriance
-iate de- + fol- defóliate
-iary bénefit benefíciary
-ien al- álien
-ient, -ience, -iency de+fic- dèfícient, dèfícience, dèfíciency
-ion Américanìze Americanizátion
deríde derísion
cohére cohésion
-ious cop- cópious
lúxury luxúrious
-ium, -ion, -ia (plural) crit- critérion, critéria
bactérium, bactéria
The stressed vowel in the preceding syllable is always stressed, and tends to be long if the base ends
in a single consonant (VC), except for the short í=[I]; if it is followed by two consonants (VCC), it is
short.
IVS = i-vowel suffix, V = vowel, C = consonant
2

3. V!C + IVS ! quot;
!C
á = [eI / ey / !I] spátial
é=[i:] secrétion
ó=[quot;u] locomótion
ú=[u:] electrocútion
i!C + IVS ! !C
í = [I] partítion
V!CC + IVS ! !CC
#
á = [æ] contráction
é = [!] detéction
í = [I] jurisdíction
ó = [a: ~ quot;] concóction
ú = [ U] condúction
The i-vowel suffixes can cause a change in the pronunciation of certain final consonant of the root
(base) word. These consonants are usually {t, d, s}, and change to {$, %, &}.
-t- = $ as in -tion resignátion
-tian Mártian
-tial pártial
-tient pátient
-tiate inítiate
-tious fictítious
-Ct- = % as in -tion depíction, deténtion
-tian reáction
-tial experiéntial
certain consonants + - -tient séntient
-tiate poténtiate
t-, e.g., -ct-, -nt-
-tious conténtious
-c- = $ as in -cian mortícian
-cial fináncial
-cier glácier
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4. -s- = & as in -ian Eurásian
-ial ambrósial
-sion derísion
-Cs- =$ as in -ion ascénsion
Also, e-vowel suffixes usually display similar stress and pronunciation patterns as the i-vowel suffixes:
spontáneous, advantágeous, carbonáceous, crustácean
3. Neutral suffixes.
Neutral suffixes do not affect the main word stress, and don’t cause the stress to shift when they are
added. These include the grammatical (“weak”) endings. Most word-building suffixes in English are
neutral suffixes.
grammatical suffixes
-ed defíbrolàte defíbrolàted
-ing réify réifying
-s, -es, -’s, -s’ bátch bátches
-er (ADJ) prétty préttier
-est (ADJ) píthy píthiest
word-building suffixes
-able acknówledge aknówledgeable
-age cóver cóverage
-al (NOUN) pórt pórtal
-ary vísion vísionary
-!te (NOUN/ADJ) afféction afféctionate
-er, -or (NOUN) óperate óperator
-ful wónder wónderful
-hood chíld chíldhood
-ible corróde corródible
-ice pre+jud- préjudice
-ile, ìle dúct dúctìle
-ish coquétte coquéttish
-ism fúnctional fúnctionalism
-ist génerative génerativist
-ize rátional rátionalist
-less agénda agéndaless
-ly abtrúse abtrúsely
-ment acknówledge acknówledgement
-most ínner ínnermost
-oid plásma plásmoid
-ship assístant assístantship
-some bóther bóthersome
-th (numeral) thírty thírtieth
-ward héaven héavenward
-wise contráry contráriwise
-y (ADJ) chéese chéesy
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5. 4. Locating stress.
Below are a few guidelines for locating stress. These principles mainly work for longer words and
words formed with prefixes and/or suffixes.
quot; Identify prefixes with special stress patterns, and assign stresses accordingly.
i-vowel suffixes fictítious
e-vowel suffixes extemporáneous
French suffixes picturésque
some Greek prefixes télescope, pícosecond
-ésce luminésce
secondary stress prefixes & suffixes illuminàte
# Identify neutral suffixes and strike them out. Write a “0” above them, because they will not count
in determining stress.
0 0 0 0 0 0
wonderful, acknowledgement, plasmoid, assistantship, incorrigible, retooling
$ Count the syllables, starting from the end of the word and counting backwards. All neutral suffixes
are marked “0quot;. After any neutral suffixes, label syllables as “-1”, “-2”, “-3”, from right to left,
whether they are strong suffixes or part of the word root.
-3 -2 -1 0 -3 -2 -1 0 -3 -2 -1
politically assistantship normality
% Evaluate the syllable length of syllables -1 and -2. But for most longer nouns (3 or more syllables)
with no neutral endings like normality above, then evaluate the syllables (-3, -2). The syllables (-1,
-2) or (-2, -3) comprise the stressable key. A syllable is long if it consists of a long vowel (V:), a
double vowel (VV), a vowel and two or more consonants (VCC). A syllable is short if it contains
a short vowel (V) or a vowel + consonant (VC).
V: [ey, i:, quot;u, u:] = long abatement
VV au, ea, oi, etc. = long encounter
VCC = long enactment
V [æ, !, I, U] = short leviathan
VC = short annihilate
-3 -2 -1 0 -3 -2 -1 0 -3 -2 -1
politically assistantship normality
S S L L S S
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6. & Of the -1 and -2 syllables (or (-2, -3) with some nouns), assign primary stress to the long syllable.
If both syllables are short, or both are long, then stress the first syllable of the pair.
polítically assístantship normálity levíathan
' Assign secondary stress to other longer vowels (even in shorter words).
píàno pòlémical
( For very long words, label the first two syllables of the word as “+1, +2quot;, and evaluate the first
two syllables for secondary stress. Assign secondary stress to the longer of the two syllables; if
both are long, stress the first (“+1”).
12 1 2 1 2
LL L S L L
rìbonucléic sèsquecenténnial càrbonáceous
z:keslstressshifts.wpd
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