Written accent

 Hi everybody!

 In this lesson, we are going to talk about written accent, or accent mark. As you know, Spanish words have a mark to difference in which syllable you have to make a strong sound.

 But... not all the words have an accent mark. That doesn't mean they don't have sound. There are special rules to difference where you have to accentuate.
 First of all, you have to know that there are three types of accents:

• Acute accent: The words in which the accent is in the last syllabe. E.g: Canción (Song)
• Grave accent: The words in which the accent is in the penultimate syllabe. E.g: Lápiz (Pencil)
• Esdrújula accent: The words in which the accent is in the antepenultimate syllabe. E.g: Círculo (Circle)

 In all this cases, all the words have a mark. But there are cases in which words haven't got a mark. For instance, "cantar" (To sing), is an acute word, and it have no mark. First of all, you have to separate in syllabes, in this case, "can-tar".You have to accentuate the last syllabe ("tar"). But, how do you know when is acute or when is grave if it doesn't have a mark. Well, here comes the rule:

• Acute words: When they finish in a vowel, "n" or "s", it has a mark. If not, they don't have a mark. E.g: Bebé (Baby), Final (Ending)
• Grave words: When they DON'T finish in a vowel, "n" or "s", they have a mark. If not, they don't have a mark. E.g: Débil (Weak), Casa (House)
• Esdrújula words: They ALWAYS have a mark in the accentuated syllabe. E.g: Hipopótamo (Hippo), Cómodo (Confortable), Ejército (Army).

 Dificult? Well, it really is, but if you study hard, you will memorize the rules. Remember, if you have any doubt, you can ask me, and I'll answer as fast as possible.

 ¡Hasta luego! ¡Estudia mucho! (Study hard)