Explain the accents. Please .
Can some one explain how and when to put the accent mark on the letters,
what i mean is when i write "COMO ESTA" that is wrong it should be "cómo está"
Why the marks on "O" and "A"
Another example - señor... why is the mark on "n" ??
How do i know where to put it correctly. can u tell me a lesson on Spanish dict that can help me..
Please help me. I'm new to Spanish and this question is slowing down my progress.
Thank you for your time...
4 Answers
WAIT!!!
Ok, not to be dramatic, but I want to encourage you to take a breath and realize that some things come with time. Now, the article Sanlee recommended is an EXCELLENT and very comprehensive article but don't get too terribly caught up in understanding every last bit. You simply don't need to know all the rules in order to learn the language. So unless you have a scholarly instinct to learn the technical points before learning the language, I'd recommend just studying the lessons. For starters, though, just realize that accents usually denote the emphasis or stress to be placed on a syllable. And that nasty wavy thing above the "n?" (ñ) It just means that that "n" is pronounced a little differently. Kind of like "nyuh." Hope that helps for starters. Like I said,the article Sanlee recommended is really great. But understanding will come with time if you are patient.
-Mateo
Hi and welcome to the forum. Here is an article in the reference section that can help you.
Well as far as your examples go 'como' means as, like or how (if it's not a question) but cómo with the accent means how? as a question so if you're using it as a question use the accent.
Esta means means 'this' when referring to a feminine noun - eg esta casa 'this house'.
But está means he is, she is, it is as it's the third person singular conjugation of the verb estar.
Señor carries a tilde so that you know to pronounce the n like a ny sound instead of a normal n sound. (like the ny in canyon).
There isn't really a short cut for learning when and where to use the accents and you just need to give it some time while you learn each example individually.
I hope this is of some assistance 
All the best!
The one on Cómo in ¿Cómo estä? is there because it is an interrogative adverb like ¿Por qué..? (why?) or ¿Adónde...? (where?) or ¿Qué...? (what?). They require accent marks in questions (direct or indirect) and exclamations.
The one on está is there to place the stress on the last syllable. According to the rules of intonation the stress would fall on the first syllable (grave). To make that not happen you need to use an accent mark.
Why is the tilde used above the ñ in señor? ñ is a separate letter in the alphabet. The tilde has nothing to do with stress or syllabication. Ask God or an etymologist why señor is spelled as it is. It is a matter of spelling, not punctuation.
