3.3 Tonic, Pretonic, and Propretonic Syllables

Syllable positions relative to accent

Figure 3.4: Syllable positions relative to accent

  • We will encounter these specific terms for a syllable’s position respective to the word’s accent
  • Let’s use the plural of דָּבָר to illustrate: דְּ ׀ בָ ׀ רִים
    • The Propretonic syllable is two (or more) steps away from the accent = דְּ
      • Notice how the vowel changed from the Qamets in דָּבָר to a Vocal Sheva in דְּבָרִים
      • This vowel shortening of the propretonic syllable is called Propretonic Reduction and is extremely common in Hebrew
    • The Pretonic Syllable is the syllable immediately before the accented syllable = בָ
    • The Tonic syllable is the one with the accent = רִים49

You will encounter the term “unaccented syllable”. This refers to any syllable other than the Tonic syllable.

  1. If there is a syllable AFTER the accented syllable, technically it is called “Posttonic,” but you will not encounter this term for the remainder of this course.↩︎