Online English Dictionary

accent

Definition

accent [noun]

1. distinctive manner of oral expression; "he couldn′t suppress his contemptuous accent"; "she had a very clear speech pattern"

2. special importance or significance; "the red light gave the central figure increased emphasis"; "the room was decorated in shades of grey with distinctive red accents"

3. the usage or vocabulary that is characteristic of a specific group of people; "the immigrants spoke an odd dialect of English"; "he has a strong German accent"; "it has been said that a language is a dialect with an army and navy"

4. the relative prominence of a syllable or musical note (especially with regard to stress or pitch); "he put the stress on the wrong syllable"

5. a diacritical mark used to indicate stress or placed above a vowel to indicate a special pronunciation

accent [verb]

1. to stress, single out as important; "Dr. Jones emphasizes exercise in addition to a change in diet"

2. put stress on; utter with an accent; "In Farsi, you accent the last syllable of each word"

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Synonyms

noun
emphasis, stress, prominence, importance, accentuation, force, priority, diacritic, diacritical mark, circumflex

pronunciation, intonation, enunciation, articulation, rhythm, inflection, utterance, intensity

verb
stress, emphasize, accentuate, highlight, underline, underscore