Individual Words

Look at the word 'airport'

Which part of the word (syllable) is more important 'air' or 'port'? 

Is it AIRport or airPORT?

The difference is important because if the wrong syllable is stressed your pronunciation will be difficult to understand. Also if every syllable is stressed, your English will not be natural. 

The answer is: AIRport (the first syllable is stressed)

In English a syllable is stressed by making it higher and louder. Try saying 'airport' in this way. Don't worry if it sounds strange! 

TIP

In English, most nouns and adjectives with two syllables have the first syllable stressed. Try saying the words below. 

Examples:

Oxford OXford
London LONdon
music MUsic
money MOney
water WAter

happy HAppy
quiet QUIet
busy BUsy
lovely LOVEly                        Can you think of more? 

When you learn a new word, try to check the word stress by looking in a dictionary. All good learners dictionaries should show the stressed syllable. You can also practise listening for word stress when you watch films!