Acentuacíon
Not all words in Spanish need an accent mark or tilde!. Generally, the accent mark denotes the phonetic emphases on a given syllable if the word does not follow the natural stress on that particular syllable. In other words, as accent mark expresses an exception to the following rules.
Rule 1:
Words ending in any of the five vowels or consonants n or s carry the stress on the next to last syllable:
- muchacho
- Elena
- elefante
- caqui
- Carmen
- muchachos
Rule 2:
All other words ending in a consonant (except n or s) are stressed on the Last syllable:
- roncar
- aptitud
- Brasil
- frijol
- Internet
Rule 3:
Then, if a word carries the stress on a different syllable, it must show the accent mark on the vowel of the syllable that is stressed:
- inglés
- glándula
- pájaro
- glotón
- clímax
Rule 4:
All words in Spanish that are stressed on the third or fourth syllables must be written with an accent mark:
- Cuéntamelo
- centímetro
- cláusula
- lámpara
- entrégaselo
Not a Rule but still Important:
There is a final use of the tilde or accent mark. Certain words have the same spelling, but have different meanings. Then, an accent mark is used to differentiate their meaning:
| Word 1 | Word 2 |
|---|---|
| él = he | el = the |
| tú = you | tu = your |
| sí = yes | si = if |
| más = more | mas = but |
| sólo = only | solo = alone |
| aún = moreover | aun = even |
| té = tea | te = you (object pronoun) |