A DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS OF ENGLISH STRESS PATTERNS

ABSTRACT

The research entitled “A Descriptive Analysis of English Stress Pattern” is intended to describe the English stress pattern, kinds of English stress pattern and the relationship between stress position and word meaning.



This research belongs to a descriptive qualitative research. The use of a qualitative research is suitable with the methods of analyzing data of this research. The data of this research are words taken from Oxford dictionary which use the kinds of stress and some sentences which use the different stress position. In collecting the data, the writer uses library technique, noting, and analyzing text. In analyzing the data, the writer notes some words from Oxford dictionary. The data are marked, classified and analyzed them based on the kinds of stress position.

The result of this research shows that there are three kinds of stress word position, namely primary stress, secondary stress and weak stress which are used in monosyllabic, disyllabic, trisyllabic and polysyllabic word of the Oxford Dictionary. The position of stress is variable and its pattern is not a fixed rule form. There is a difference meaning when the stress of either word or sentence word changes. The stress position of some words which have two kinds of stress placement, have two functions and of course the meaning of those words is different. If the first syllable of those word is stressed, its function is noun while if the second syllable of those word is stressed its function is adjective or verb. Because of the function is different, the meaning of word will be different too. It appears in the stress placement of the sentence too. The stress can be placed in all kinds of words of sentence. The different word stress placement of the same sentence makes the meaning of the sentence different too.