clearspark on IELTS Speaking: can word stress change how clear a word sounds?

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mintmosaic

07 October 2026

With a word like record, the noun and verb have different stress. Is stressing the wrong part enough to make a familiar word harder to follow?

It can make it harder to recognise. Compare 'a REcord' with 'to reCORD'. Stress helps the listener, though the rest of the sentence gives clues too.

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