The Bedford Glossary of Critical and Literary Terms - Ross Murfin 2018

Stress

Stress: The emphasis placed on a syllable. The symbols ´ and ˘ are used to denote the stressed and unstressed syllables, respectively, of words in a line of verse. Many poets and critics use stress and accent interchangeably, but some differentiate between the two terms, reserving stress for metrical emphasis (the more or less regular rhythmic pattern of emphasized and nonemphasized syllables required by the prevailing meter of a poem) and accent for word accent (the emphasis used in everyday discourse).