Examkin

Question

Difficulty: MediumWord and Syllable Stress

In standard English pronunciation, polysyllabic words ending with the suffix '-ity' place primary stress on the antepenultimate syllable (third syllable from the end). Which syllabification correctly indicates the primary stress placement for the word durability?

  1. A
    du-RA-bil-i-ty
  2. du-ra-BIL-i-tyAnswer
  3. C
    du-ra-bil-I-ty
  4. D
    DU-ra-bil-i-ty

Answer

The syllabification 'du-ra-BIL-i-ty' correctly indicates primary stress placement on the antepenultimate syllable.
The word 'durability' consists of five syllables: du-ra-bil-i-ty. In English phonology, words ending in '-ity' assign primary stress to the antepenultimate syllable, which is 'bil'. Therefore, the option showing primary stress capitalized as 'du-ra-BIL-i-ty' is correct.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Divide the target word into its individual syllables.
The word 'durability' breaks into 5 syllables: du - ra - bil - i - ty.
Accurate syllabification is necessary to identify syllable position relative to the word ending.
2
Apply the stress rule for words with the suffix '-ity'.
Suffixes ending in '-ity' attract primary stress to the antepenultimate (third from the end) syllable.
The suffix '-ity' systematically dictates accentual pattern shift in English phonology.
3
Count three syllables backward from the end of the word.
1st from end: 'ty', 2nd from end: 'i', 3rd from end: 'bil'. The syllable 'bil' carries the primary stress.
Counting backwards locates the antepenultimate syllable accurately.

Key Concept

Antepenultimate stress rule for words ending in the suffix '-ity'
Rate this question

Topics

Word and Syllable Stress

More questions from this topic