Definition of accent

The word "accent" has its roots in the Latin word "accentus," which means "a setting or placing." This word was later adopted into Middle English as "accent," with the primary meaning of "a stress or emphasis" in speech or music. Over time, the meaning of "accent" expanded to include the notion of a distinct way of pronouncing a language, often associated with a particular geographic region or social group. In the 15th century, the term began to be used to describe the distinctive features of a language, such as its vowel sounds, syllable stress, and word order. Today, the word "accent" is widely used in linguistics and language teaching to describe the pronunciation and intonation patterns of different languages and dialects, as well as the grammatical and phonological features that set them apart.