Spanish Accents

Hola amigitos y amigitas. Today is another "theory" class. I remember we started working on apartments and we will continue working on it this weekend. For now, let's do some grammar! Today, we are looking at accents in Spanish.

Putting Accents on Spanish Words

This is a short, practical guide to putting accents on Spanish words. It may not cover every accented word in the Spanish language - there are good grammar books which discuss all of the peculiarities and exotic incidences - but rather will help you put accents on the words as you do your normal writing, whether it be for school, business or your private life. Here are the basics, which can be summed up in three rules and one concept:

Important Basic Concept

The basis for the written accent is where the SPOKEN accent falls.

First Rule

If the word ends in a vowel, an 'n' or an 's', and the spoken accent falls on thenext to last syllable, then the word does NOT have a written accent. This applies to the vast majority of Spanish words. Examples

libro - libros / patata - patatas / hablo - hablas - hablamos - hablan

Second Rule

If the word does NOT end in a vowel, an 'n' or an 's', and the spoken accent falls on the last syllable, the word does NOT have a written accent. Examples:

All Infinitives: hablar, comer, vivir, esperar, comprar, pedir, etc. azul, intensidad, mayor, universidad, farol, cristal, robot, convoy, pared, amor

Third Rule

Everything that doesn't fit into the two rules above gets a written accent where the spoken accent falls. Examples:

1. Ends in a vowel, 'n' or 's' and the spoken accent does NOT fall on the next to last syllable:

habló, hablarás, hablarán, mirón, catalán, Canadá, dígamelo, química, nación, estación, órdenes

2. Does not end in a vowel, 'n' or 's' and the spoken accent does NOT fall on the last syllable:

fácil, álbum, difícil, síntesis, fútbol, lápiz, cáncer, inútil, azúcar

One Other Situation

What is described above is related to pronunciation and writing. Once you become familiar with these concepts, you can actually put accents on Spanish words as you write, just as you dot your i's or cross your t's when you write English. But there is one other situation where the words get a written accent in Spanish: two words written the having the same letters but with different meanings. Here's a list of the most common ones:

de = of / from		dé = from verb 'dar'
el = the		él = he
que = that		¿qué? = what? (all interrogatives have accents)
mas = but		más = more
se = reflexive pronoun		sé = I know
si = if		sí = yes
solo = alone		sólo = only
te = to you		té = tea
tu = your		tú = you

Have a good day folks! Hope this clarifies things for you all!

Lots of love, lots of respect,

Igor