accent

== English == === Etymology 1 === Inherited from Middle English accent, from Medieval Latin accentus and Old French accent, acent, both from Latin accentus, past participle of accinō (“sing to, sing along”), from ad- + canō (“to sing”). The word accent had been borrowed into Old English already, but was lost and reborrowed in Middle English. ==== Pronunciation ==== enPR: ăk′sənt, ăk′sĕnt (Received Pronunciation, Ireland) IPA(key): /ˈak.sənt/, /-sɛnt/ (US, Canada) enPR: ăkʹsĕnt, IPA(key): /ˈæk.sɛnt/ (Australian) IPA(key): /ˈæk.sɛnt/, /-sənt/ (New Zealand) IPA(key): /ˈɛk.sent/, /-sənt/ Rhymes: -æksɛnt, -æksənt Hyphenation: ac‧cent ==== Noun ==== accent (countable and uncountable, plural accents) (linguistics) A higher-pitched or stronger (louder or longer) articulation of a particular syllable of a word or phrase in order to distinguish it from the others or to emphasize it. Synonym: stress Hyponyms: stress, stress accent, pitch, pitch accent In the word "careful", the accent is placed on the first syllable. (figuratively) Emphasis or importance in general. At this hotel, the accent is on luxury. (orthography) A mark used in writing, in order to indicate the place of the spoken stress. (orthography) Any mark used in writing over letters, either in order to indicate the place of the spoken stress, or to indicate the nature or quality of the vowel marked, or to distinguish homophones. The name Cézanne is written with an acute accent. For more quotations using this term, see Citations:accent. Modulation of the voice in speaking; the manner of speaking or pronouncing; a peculiar or characteristic modification of the voice, expressing emotion; tone. (linguistics, sociolinguistics) The distinctive manner of pronouncing a language associated with a particular region, social group, etc., whether of a native speaker or a foreign speaker; the phonetic and phonological aspects of a dialect. a foreign accent a broad Irish accent a hint of a German accent a thick French accent (informal, sometimes proscribed) A manner of pronunciation suggesting that the speaker is from a different region; a foreign accent. My professor's accent is so thick that it's difficult to understand her lectures. She spoke with a strong accent that betrayed her southern roots. I was surprised to learn that he was an immigrant, as he spoke without any accent. (sign languages) A distinctive manner of producing a sign language, such as someone who does not normally use a certain sign language might have when using it. A word; a significant tone or sound. (usually plural only) Expressions in general; speech. (prosody, poetry) Stress laid on certain syllables of a verse. (music) A regularly recurring stress upon the tone to mark the beginning, and, more feebly, the third part of the measure. (music) A special emphasis of a tone, even in the weaker part of the measure. (music) A mark used to represent this special emphasis. (music) The rhythmical accent, which marks phrases and sections of a period. (mathematics) A prime symbol. Emphasis laid on a part of an artistic design or composition; an emphasized detail, in particular a detail in sharp contrast to its surroundings. accent color A very small gemstone set into a piece of jewellery. (archaic) Utterance. ===== Usage notes ===== The word "accent" is often used specifically to refer to manners of speech that differ significantly from the local standard or one's personal speech. ===== Derived terms ===== ===== Translations ===== ==== See also ==== circumflex diacritic ==== References ==== “Accent, sb.” on pages 50–51 of § 1 (A) of volume I (A–B, ed. James Augustus Henry Murray?, 1888) of A New English Dictionary on Historical Principles (1st ed.) “accent, n.” in the Oxford English Dictionary (2nd ed., 1989) === Etymology 2 === From Middle French accenter, from Old French accenter, from Latin accentō, from accentus. ==== Pronunciation ==== (Received Pronunciation) enPR: ăk-sĕntʹ, IPA(key): /ækˈsɛnt/ (US) enPR: ăk-sĕntʹ, ăkʹsĕnt, IPA(key): /ækˈsɛnt/, /ˈæk.sɛnt/ Rhymes: -ɛnt, -æksɛnt ==== Verb ==== accent (third-person singular simple present accents, present participle accenting, simple past and past participle accented) (transitive) To express the accent of vocally; to utter with accent. (transitive) To mark emphatically; to emphasize; to accentuate; to make prominent. (transitive) To mark with written accents. ===== Translations ===== ==== References ==== “Accent, v.” on page 51/3 of § 1 (A) of volume I (A–B, ed. James Augustus Henry Murray?, 1888) of A New English Dictionary on Historical Principles (1st ed.) “accent, v.” in the Oxford English Dictionary (2nd ed., 1989) == Catalan == === Etymology === Borrowed from Latin accentus. First attested in the 13th century. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): (Northern) [əkˈse̞n] IPA(key): (Balearic) [əkˈsent] IPA(key): (Central) [əkˈsen] IPA(key): (Valencia) [akˈsent] IPA(key): (Northwestern) [akˈsen] Rhymes: (Central) -en, (Balearic, Valencia) -ent Hyphenation: ac‧cent === Noun === accent m (plural accents) accent (phonology) stress (often in the plural) tone, sound ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Related terms ==== === Further reading === “accent”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007 “accent”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2026 “accent” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua. Alcover, Antoni Maria; Moll, Francesc de Borja (1963), “accent”, in Diccionari català-valencià-balear (in Catalan) == Danish == === Etymology 1 === Derived from French accent, from Latin accentus, a calque of Ancient Greek προσῳδία (prosōidía, “prosody, accent”). ==== Pronunciation ==== IPA(key): [ɑɡ̊ˈsɑŋ] Rhymes: -ɑŋ Hyphenation: ac‧cent ==== Noun ==== accent c (singular definite accenten, plural indefinite accenter) accent (a voice influenced by dialect or another language) accent (a mark on a letter (like grave or acute)) ===== Declension ===== === Etymology 2 === Derived from Latin accentus, a calque of Ancient Greek προσῳδία (prosōidía, “prosody, accent”). ==== Pronunciation ==== IPA(key): [ɑɡ̊ˈsɛnˀd̥] Hyphenation: ac‧cent ==== Noun ==== accent c (singular definite accenten, plural indefinite accenter) (linguistics) accent (stress or a pitch in articulation) accent (emphasis) accent (a mark on a letter (like grave or acute)) ===== Declension ===== === Further reading === “accent” in Den Danske Ordbog == Dutch == === Etymology === Inherited from Middle Dutch accent, ultimately from Latin accentus. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /ɑkˈsɛnt/ Rhymes: -ɛnt Hyphenation: ac‧cent === Noun === accent n (plural accenten, diminutive accentje n) (linguistics) accent (distinctive pronunciation of a language; phonetic and phonological aspects of a lect) a notably deviant or disprivileged pronunciation of a language (linguistics) accent (contrasting articulation to express emphasis) (orthography) accent (symbol to indicate spoken accent or the nature of a vowel) Synonym: accentteken (music) accent (stress or emphasis) (music) a mark that indicates musical accent Synonym: accentteken accent (emphasis laid on a part of an artistic design or composition; an emphasized detail, in particular a detail in sharp contrast to its surroundings) ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Related terms ==== ==== Descendants ==== Afrikaans: aksent → Indonesian: aksen → Papiamentu: aksènt === References === === Further reading === “accent” in Woordenlijst Nederlandse Taal – Officiële Spelling, Nederlandse Taalunie. [the official spelling word list for the Dutch language] Matthias de Vries; Lambert Allard te Winkel (1864), “accent”, in Woordenboek der Nederlandsche Taal, published 2001 == French == === Etymology === Inherited from Middle French accent, from Old French acent, accent, borrowed from Latin accentus (“accent, tone, accentuation”). === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /ak.sɑ̃/ Rhymes: -ɑ̃ Hyphenation: ac‧cent === Noun === accent m (plural accents) accent, manner or tone of speech (linguistics) an accent symbol Hyponyms: accent aigu, accent circonflexe, accent grave (linguistics) accent, stress (music) strain, section emphasis, focus ==== Derived terms ==== mettre l'accent sur ==== Descendants ==== → Norwegian Bokmål: accent → Turkish: aksan === Further reading === “accent”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012 == Middle English == === Etymology === Borrowed from Medieval Latin accentus, Middle French accent and Anglo-Norman accent; ultimately from Latin accinō. First attested in c. 1395. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /akˈsɛnt/ Hyphenation: ac‧cent === Noun === accent (plural accents) (rare) (The addition of quotations indicative of this usage is being sought:) accent (modulation of the voice in speaking) ==== Descendants ==== English: accent Middle Scots: accent Scots: accent === Further reading === “accent, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 30 March 2026. == Norman == === Etymology === From Old French acent, from Latin accentus, from ad + cantus (“song”). === Noun === accent m (plural accents) (linguistics) accent, stress == Norwegian Bokmål == === Etymology === From French accent (“accent, manner or tone of speech”), from Middle French accent, from Old French acent, from Latin accentus (“accent, tone, accentuation”), past participle of accinō (“sing to, sing along”), from both ad- (“to”), from ad (“to, towards”), from Proto-Italic *ad (“toward, to, on, up to, for”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂éd (“to, at”) + and from canō (“to sing, recite, play”), from Proto-Italic *kanō (“to sing”), from Proto-Indo-European *keh₂n- (“to sing”). === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /akˈsaŋ/ Rhymes: -aŋ Homophone: aksent Hyphenation: ac‧cent === Noun === accent alternative spelling of aksent (“accent”) only used in accent aigu (“acute accent”) only used in accent circonflexe (“circumflex”) only used in accent grave (“grave accent”) === References === “accent” in Det Norske Akademis ordbok (NAOB). == Old English == === Etymology === Borrowed from Latin accentus. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /ˈɑk.kent/ Rhymes: -ɑk.kent Hyphenation: ac‧cent === Noun === accent m accent mark, diacritic ==== Declension ==== Strong a-stem: === References === John R. Clark Hall (1916), “accent”, in A Concise Anglo-Saxon Dictionary‎[8], 2nd edition, New York: Macmillan Joseph Bosworth; T. Northcote Toller (1898), “accent”, in An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary‎[9], second edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press. == Pali == === Alternative forms === === Adjective === accent present active participle of acceti ==== Declension ==== == Romanian == === Alternative forms === акчент (accent) — post-1930s Cyrillic spelling === Etymology === Borrowed from French accent. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /akˈt͡ʃent/ Rhymes: -ent Hyphenation: ac‧cent === Noun === accent n (plural accente) emphasis accent ==== Declension ==== === Further reading === “accent”, in DEX online—Dicționare ale limbii române (Dictionaries of the Romanian language) (in Romanian), 2004–2026 == Scots == === Etymology === Ultimately from Latin accentus. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /a(k)ˈsɛnt/ Rhymes: -ɛnt Hyphenation: ac‧cent === Noun === accent (plural accents) accent === References === “accent”, in The Dictionary of the Scots Language, Edinburgh: Scottish Language Dictionaries, 2004–present, →OCLC. === Further reading === Eagle, Andy, editor (2026), “accent”, in The Online Scots Dictionary‎[10] == Swedish == === Etymology === Ultimately from Latin accentus. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /akːˈsɛnːt/, /akːˈsaŋː/ Rhymes: -ɛnːt, -aŋː Hyphenation: ac‧cent === Noun === accent c an accent, an emphasis, a stress (in articulation) an accent, a mark on a letter (grave or acute) an accent, a voice influenced by dialect or another language ==== Declension ====