Now Hear This!The names of US cities may be difficult to pronounce. One problem may be knowing how many syllables to pronounce and another problem may be accenting the correct syllable. Syllables are beats of energy that can be counted. Say “Washington” and use your fingers to tap each syllable you hear: “Wash”-1, “ing”-2, “ton”-3. There are three syllables in “Washington.” When words have two or more syllables one syllable is stressed—pronounced longer, louder, and slightly higher in pitch than the other syllables in the word. If you tap your fingers when you say “Washington” you will notice that the first tap is louder than the others—that means the first syllable is stressed: “WASH-ing-ton.” How many syllables are in each of these cities? Which syllable is stressed? |