singular--> plural

Question

So basically what I'm asking is that when you have a spanish word and you want to change it into plural what happens to the accents.

For example, if I want to change catalán in to plural would it be los catalánes or los catalanes? Can someone explain the basic rule to what happens to the accents? Thank you very much :D

Answer 1

Hi Kumin,

In Spanish. the word catalán becomes catalanes in the plural and loses the accent mark because it goes from being an oxytone word (a word with the stress on the last syllable) to a paroxytone (a word with the stress on the second to last syllable). Paroxytones do not need a written accent mark when they end in n, s, or a vowel, which is the case in catalanes.

I know it may sound confusing, so here is a great link on how to put accents on Spanish words:

accents

Answer 2

Basically if a word ends in a vowel, N, or S... the accent should be on the second to last syllable. If the pronunciation accent does not naturally fall on that syllable that is when you need to put an accent mark on the correct place where the pronunciation accent takes place. For Example in the word: Catalán- the emphasis according to the rule should be on the A after the T... however, since this is not where the accent falls the word requires an accent mark on the A. Or in the word España the emphasis naturally falls on the A after the P, which is following the rule since the word ends in an A... so España does not require an accent mark since it follows the rule.

If a Word ends in a consonant besides N, or S... the accent should fall on the last syllable. If the pronunciation accent does not fall on the last syllable, the word requires an accent mark and the same rule applies. Hope this Helps!!