Timeline for Is the stress necessary on Don't in Don't mention it
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
10 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Feb 2, 2015 at 20:27 | comment | added | Hot Licks | I kind of suspect you're stressing over stress. The amount of stress normally placed on specific syllables in the above phrase is really quite small. More significant, probably, is the slight changes in tone -- saying the phrase with a higher tone (especially starting high) conveys a bit more honesty to the sentiment, while saying it with a lower tone (and maybe starting lower still) conveys a sort of sarcastic mood. But again, this is all quite subtle -- you will sound artificial if you overdo it. | |
| Feb 2, 2015 at 19:30 | answer | added | Greg Lee | timeline score: 1 | |
| Feb 2, 2015 at 19:04 | vote | accept | Zoltan King | ||
| Feb 2, 2015 at 19:02 | answer | added | Jim Reynolds | timeline score: 1 | |
| Feb 2, 2015 at 18:50 | answer | added | Sarthak Gurung | timeline score: -1 | |
| Feb 2, 2015 at 18:34 | comment | added | Hot Licks | Actually, you can say "don't mention it" in a steady monotone and it doesn't sound that odd, just a little half-hearted. Slightly stressing "don't" makes the phrase "come alive" a bit better. The amount of stress on the first syllable of "mention" is negligible. | |
| Feb 2, 2015 at 17:58 | comment | added | Zoltan King | I'm trying to use "don't mention it" instead of You're welcome. The dictionary says the verb "mention" has stress on first syllable. I think we need to keep that stress. Am I right? | |
| Feb 2, 2015 at 17:47 | comment | added | Barmar | It depends on what you're trying to say. You stress the word that's most significant. | |
| Feb 2, 2015 at 17:44 | comment | added | choster | Related: Prosodic stress. | |
| Feb 2, 2015 at 17:36 | history | asked | Zoltan King | CC BY-SA 3.0 |