ACCENT (Gr. prosôdia, Lat. accentus, "song added to speech," i.e. the melody of lang.).

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  • Author(s): T.V.F.B.
  • Source:
    New Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry & Poetics. 1993, p3-6. 4p.
  • Additional Information
    • Subject Terms:
      Stress (Linguistics); Versification; Syllable (Grammar); Orthography & spelling; Intonation (Phonetics); Poetics
    • Abstract:
      The article presents a definition of the term ACCENT (Gr. prosôdia, Lat. accentus, "song added to speech," i.e. the melody of lang.). In the general sense, the emphasis or prominence that some syllables in speech bear over others, regardless of how achieved (the intonational means are via pitch, stress, or length); in the specific sense, a synonym for stress, a dimension of speech not reflected in most Western systems of orthography. Technically, "stress" in linguistics denotes intensity of articulatory force, resulting from greater musculatory exertion in forming a sound.