Stress.

Each syllable contains a vowel and some syllables are often ‘stressed’ – i.e. spoken with emphasis. For example:

• Apple: /app/le/ - in this word the ‘a’ in ‘apple’ is stressed (‘apple’);
• Degenerate: /de/gen/er/ate – in this word, the ‘e’ in ‘de-‘ is stressed (as well as the ‘e’ in ‘gen’ and the 'a' in 'ate' – degenerate);
• Bar: /bar/ - in this word, the ‘a’ in ‘bar’ is stressed (bar);
• Degenerately: the same rules apply as with 'degenerate', but, in this example, the 'y' in '-ly' is stressed because it's pronounced as an 'e' - /dee/gen/er/ate/lee/.