Emphatic Stress Identification

What is Emphatic Stress?

Emphatic stress is a way of highlighting a particular word in a sentence to convey special meaning or importance. This is often done to correct a misunderstanding or to emphasize a point.

For example, consider the sentence:

• "I didn't say she stole the money."

Here, the emphasis on "I" suggests that someone else might have said it.

How to Identify Emphatic Stress

• Listen for Changes in Pitch: The stressed word is often pronounced with a higher pitch.
• Notice the Volume: The volume may increase on the stressed word.
• Pay Attention to Duration: The stressed word might be spoken more slowly or drawn out.

Examples of Emphatic Stress

Let's look at some examples to understand how emphatic stress changes the meaning of a sentence:

• "She didn't break the vase." - Emphasizing "She" implies someone else might have.
• "She didn't break the vase." - Emphasizing "didn't" implies she is innocent.
• "She didn't break the vase." - Emphasizing "break" suggests she might have done something else to it.

Practice Identifying Emphatic Stress

Listen to the following sentences and identify the word that is stressed:

• "He will come to the party."
• "I never said that."
• "We must leave now."