Stress Spotter
Stress SpotterPaste a word or sentence. Find the main beat, compare primary and secondary stress, and explore British noun/verb readings. Word stress comes from pronunciation — not a guessed spelling or suffix pattern.
Use *word* or CAPS for an explicitly strong function word. Where a word has several readings, use its selector below.
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Gold ● = primary ˈ · Blue ◐ = secondary ˌ · · = unstressed beat · weak = unstressed function word
Syllable stress
The numbers refer to the chosen spoken form, not written vowel letters. IPA divisions are a practical guide; syllable counts can vary in words such as family, comfortable and fireman.
How to read the patterns
One main beat
Primary ˈ goes before the stressed syllable: photograph /ˈfəʊtəɡrɑːf/. Its primary beat is 1 of 3. The full /ɑː/ at the end does not mean another primary beat.
Follow the family, not a suffix guess
Compare photograph /ˈfəʊtəɡrɑːf/, photography /fəˈtɒɡrəfi/ and photographic /ˌfəʊtəˈɡræfɪk/. The main beat moves, some vowels change, and photographic keeps a lighter first beat. The tool looks up each complete word rather than applying a universal -ic or -ion rule.
A lighter beat is not a second main beat
Secondary ˌ is shown before the primary beat where the selected dictionary form marks it: photographic /ˌfəʊtəˈɡræfɪk/ or magazine /ˌmæɡəˈziːn/. This learner display omits the source’s post-primary secondary marks, following a common British dictionary convention. A later full vowel can remain full without an extra stress symbol. Secondary strength also varies with rhythm and context.
Meaning and acceptable variants
A REcord /ˈrɛkɔːd/ differs from to reCORD /rɪˈkɔːd/. The same distinction applies to present and object. Choose the intended reading rather than treating the first dictionary entry as the only answer.
Both CONtroversy /ˈkɒntrəvɜːsi/ and conTROversy /kənˈtrɒvəsi/ are British variants. Our model has GARage /ˈɡærɑːʒ/, adVERtisement /ədˈvɜːtɪsmənt/, laBORatory /ləˈbɒrətəri/, cigaRETTE /ˌsɪɡəˈrɛt/ and magaZINE /ˌmæɡəˈziːn/.
Sentence stress highlights likely content words, not a complete intonation contour. Weak-form choices use cautious context clues; explicit emphasis and phrase-final position keep strong forms. For linking /r/, assimilation and other joins, use Flow Builder →.
Sources: Britfone (whose stress marks attach to vowel nuclei), with reviewed British forms from Cambridge. Unknown words are marked, never assigned an invented suffix-based stress.
British Modern RP · STRUT /ʌ/, DRESS /ɛ/, TRAP /æ/, /r/ and /ɡ/. GOAT /əʊ/ and pre-dark-L /ɒʊ/; NEAR /ɪə/ by default and the course’s within-word /ɪː/ forms. No audio. Word-level dictionary notation is not a narrow transcription of every connected-speech detail.