The emphatic accent can be defined as a tool that is used to differentiate two words that are spelled the same, but whose meaning is different. This type of accent is also known as a diacritical and allows greater force in pronunciation.

In the case of the written word, the emphatic accent is represented by an oblique line (´) or tilde. To this is added that this resource is commonly applied in monosyllabic words that have a pair.

An example of what is described above is evidenced in the words “ tea ” and “ tea ”. The first does not have an accent because it refers to the accusative or dative form of the second person singular, while “tea” is related to an infusion of herbs.

Examples of emphatic accent are: “I told you not to go to the party” (the monosyllable “you” lacks an accent, but no force in pronunciation). “At the party we drink tea” (the accent is used in “tea” to differentiate it from its equal). Also, the emphatic accent is used in interrogative and exclamatory adverbs. 

What is the emphatic accent?

The emphatic accent is the one that is applied to distinguish two words that are written the same and their meaning is different according to the context in which they are developed.

In addition, the use of this type of accent changes the intention of the sentence . This occurs because of the way the speaker pronounces. The emphatic accent has an expressive character, since although it is not represented by a tilde within a word or phrase, it has force from an oral point of view.

Examples of words with an emphatic accent

1. – From / give.
2. – The / him.
3. – More more.
4. – My / me.
5. – I know / know.
6. – Yes Yes.
7. – Tea / tea.
8. – You / you.
9. – What what.
10. – Who who.
11. – How / how.
12. – Which which.
13. – When when.
14. – How much / how much.
15. – How much How much.
16. – How / how.
17. – Where where.
18. – Who is who is.

Examples of sentences with an emphatic accent

1. – I told you not to drink so much tea .
2. – Daniel’s son looks a lot like him.
3. – Your dress is as beautiful as you .
4. – I’m more higher than you, but not as white as you are .
5. – If tomorrow is good weather, then yes I go.
6. – I do n’t know if the boy left yesterday afternoon.
7. – My ice cream is big and it’s everything to me .
8. – My cousin comes from Germany, I hope he makes a good impression on you.
9. – And what does it matter to me?
10. – Just give me a kiss.
11. – Do n’t go to the party without my permission.
12. – Kenya, don’t wear my dresses.
13. – The children have all their toys destroyed.
14. – Understand that you are not going to the beach with your friends.
15. – Give me back everything I loaned.
16. – Yes , I agree to be your wife.
17. – You don’t know anything about my life.
18. – I hope you do not give to mourn.
19. – Every day I repeat the same thing to you .
20. – My cousins ​​arrive from Holland this afternoon.
21. – I need you to lend me your blue pants.
22. – I must go out to buy a gift for my friend Nicolás.
23. – Alfredo wanted to go play, but his parents did not give him permission.
24. – It’s the best chocolate in the world.
25. – I do n’t know , that’s not my problem.

Other examples

1. – Chamomile tea is good for easing digestion.
2. – Every day that passes my love for you grows more .
3. – Let me know if you go to the beach this weekend.
4. – He didn’t tell me if he would come tonight.
5. – I know that when I leave everyone will miss me.
6. – They told you not to be late at the house today.
7. – The doctor I told you not to eat sweets.
8. – They invited me to the party, but I can’t go because I have to work.
9. – Tell him to give you the books I lent him last week.
10. – Yes , they confessed their betrayal.
11. – You will like strawberry ice cream .
12. – Vanessa is the most intelligent of his family.
13. – Martin waited to walk to Carlos at the airport.
14. – I love you with the force of the wind.
15. – I know you want to go back to the country.
16. – Books were lost from the library last month.

Examples with “what”

1. – What do you want me to do for you?
2. – What went wrong with the washing machine?
3. – Tell him what you want for your birthday.
4. – How beautiful is the morning!
5. – You don’t know how nervous I felt when I saw it.
6. – But what do you want me to tell you?
7. – What do you want me to bring you from Paris?
8. – What a good goal from Messi!
9. – Look, what a cute puppy.
10. – What do you want to eat today?
11. – What book are you reading?
12. – What are you doing?
13. – What symptoms does the patient have?
14. – What clothes will you wear today?

Examples with “who”

1. – Miguel told Carlos who did not attend the meeting.
2. – Who are the people who live in the house across the street?
3. – I don’t know who ‘s behind all this.
4. – Who moved to that house?
5. – Who went to fire the teachers?
6. – Who are those who are standing there?
7. – The truth is that he did not tell me who his brothers were.
8. – When push comes to shove, who cares?
9. – Who did this?
10. – Who would have imagined that you would manage to be the head of a company!
11. – Who’s there?
12. – Who wants to go to the board and solve this exercise?
13. – I wondered who it could be at that time.

Examples with “how”

1. – I want to know how it went with your boss.
2. – How I enjoyed this day!
3. – How have you been all this time?
4. – How I miss hearing your voice every day!
5. – How was the reunion with your promotion friends?
6. – How are we going to get to the hospital if you don’t know the address?
7. – How glad I am to hear good news!
8. – How are you?
9. – How should this work be done?
10. – How you name?
11. – How do I look?
12. – How I love you!

Examples with “when”

1. – Tell me when you’re coming.
2. – When will your grandparents arrive?
3. – When will my brother come to visit me?
4. – My brothers didn’t tell me when they ‘re coming.
5. – When are you coming to visit us?
6. – When was the last time you saw her?
7. – When do we go to the movies?
8. – When are you going to stop doing what others want and start doing what you want?
9. – When will it be time to go?
10. – When will I learn to read?
11. – When will you be silent?
12. – When will we eat?
13. – When will the rain stop?

Examples with “where”

1. – Alejandro I have looked for you everywhere, where were you?
2. – Where do you want to go with this silly discussion?
3. – My grandmother never remembers where she leaves her glasses.
4. – Where did you see my dad?
5. – Where is the capital of Mexico?
6. – Where is my necklace?
7. – Where is the sky?
8. – Where did you leave the bike?
9. – Where are we going to eat?
10. – Where are the motorcycle keys?

Examples with “how much” or “how much”

1. – They haven’t told me how many people will come to the party.
2. – Mom, how many times have you been to Italy?
3. – No matter how difficult the situation is, I will cope.
4. – How sweet is his look!
5. – You don’t know how much I like your company.
6. – How much debt do you have in the bank?
7. – Long time without hearing from you!
8. – How beautiful it is to be in love!
9. – How old is your younger brother?
10. – Long time no see!
11. – How much beauty there is in this city!
12. – How many fingers do you see here?
13. – How long will it take you to arrive?
14. – How many magazines have you read this month?
15. – How long will the treatment last?
16. – What a mystery!

Examples with “which”

1. – They are all beautiful, I don’t know which one will win.
2. – Manuel, I want you to tell me what your wishes are for this Christmas.
3. – What are your goals for next year?
4. – Which wig will suit me better, the black or the yellow one?
5. – Which of the two is the older?