Proparoxytone words: what they are, examples

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Proparoxytone words are the words that have a stressed syllable on the third-to-last syllable, which means that this syllable is pronounced stronger. We see this in the word “badlogical”, for example. In the case of proparoxytone words, all of them, without exception, receive a graphic accent (acute or circumflex).

In addition to proparoxytone words, there are paroxytone words and oxytone words. Paroxytonic words have a stressed syllable in the penultimate syllable — “beleza”, for example. Oxytone words have a stressed syllable in the last syllable — “picole", for example.

Read too: How to separate a word into syllables?

Summary of proparoxytone words

Proparoxytone words are words that have a stressed syllable in the third-to-last syllable, which causes this syllable to be pronounced more strongly.
The strongest syllable of a word has tonic accentuation, but it can also have graphic accentuation.
Proparoxytone words are always accentuated graphically, with an acute accent or circumflex accent.

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In addition to proparoxytone words, there are paroxytone words and oxytone words.
When the penultimate syllable of a word is the strongest, this word is a nonsense.
When the last syllable of a word is the strongest, that word is an oxytone.

What are proparoxytone words?

Proparoxytone words are words that have a stressed syllable in the third-to-last syllable, which is pronounced more strongly. Just look at the word “atom”. It is proparoxytone and can be separated into three syllables:

á - to - mo

Let's explain everything:

Antepenultimate syllable = Á.

Penultimate syllable = TO.

Last syllable = MO.

Well, whenever the third-to-last syllable of a word is the strongest, that word is a proparoxytone.

How to identify proparoxytone words?

To identify a proparoxytone word, you need to find out which syllable is the strongest in that word. To find out which syllable is the strongest — the stressed syllable —, You can test and pronounce the word in different ways, putting strength in a different syllable each time.

Like this, if the strongest syllable is the third-to-last syllable, the word is a proparoxytone. Let’s take the word “pan” as an example. The different ways to pronounce the word are as follows:

SHOVEL-ne-la

Shovel-HUH-there

Pa-ne-THERE

Which of these three forms of pronunciation is correct? It is the second, that is:

Shovel-HUH-there

Now, remember that I said a while ago that whenever the third-to-last syllable of a word is the strongest, that word is a proparoxytone? Based on this, We know that the word “pot” is not proparoxytone. After all, its strongest syllable is the penultimate one.

Let’s do the same thing with the word “pumpkin”:

A-bo-bo-ra

A-BÓ-bo-ra

A-bo-BO-frog

A-bo-bo-FROG

Which of these four forms of pronunciation is correct? It is the second, that is:

A-BÓ-bo-ra

Based on what we saw just now about the word that is proparoxytone having the strongest antepenultimate syllable, We know that the word “pumpkin” is proparoxytone.

Examples of proparoxytone words

Angle.
Basic.
Comic.
From above.
Fantastic.
Grammar.
Propeller.
Computing.
Lunatic.
Music.
Optics.
Proparoxytone.
Rustic.
Sanskrit.
Title.
Moist.
Vomiting.
Cup.
Zoo.

What is tonic accentuation and graphic accentuation?

Just now, we discovered which is the strongest syllable in two words, remember? The words are “pot” and “pumpkin”. You noticed that one of them doesn't have a graphic accent, correct? So, PANELA doesn't have a graphic accent, but it has a strong syllable, doesn't it? And what syllable is that? The syllable “-ne-”: pa-NE-la.

This strong syllable is also called “stressed syllable”, as it is pronounced with more force than the others. Like this, This stronger pronunciation of a syllable is called “tonic accentuation”.

In turn, graphic accentuation is when we place an accent (acute or circumflex) on the vowel of the strong syllable. Therefore, the strong syllable of the word PUMPKIN is the first “-bo-”, which has a graphic accent. Do you know why? Because, according to the accentuation rules of the Portuguese language, ALL proparoxytone words, without exception, have a graphic accent on the strong syllable.

Let's repeat it, to be clear. The word PANELA only has tonic accentuation, which occurs on the penultimate syllable. The word ABÓBORA has graphic accentuation, located on the third-to-last syllable.

What are the differences between proparoxytone, paroxytone and oxytone words?

OXYTONES	PAROXYTHONES	PROPAROXYTHONES
The last syllable is the strongest.	The penultimate syllable is the strongest.	The third-to-last syllable is the strongest.
EXAMPLES	EXAMPLES	EXAMPLES
Amor, caThu, uruboo, viajar etc.	Ofce, pidustca, cuttlefishthereyou etc.	Âcheers, ético, theregreat etc.

See too:How to know the classification of words according to the number of syllables?

Proparoxytone words and prosody

When we pronounce a word incorrectly, we make a prosodic error. and why this happens? Because we don't know what the strong syllable of the word is. This occurs, for example, if we pronounce a word as if it were proparoxytone, when, in fact, it is paroxytone.

Do you know the word “avaricious”? It means “stingy”, “stingy”, “stingy”. "Agoro” is a paroxytone word. But there are people who think it is proparoxytone, saying: “ávarus.” This is a prosody error. Another example is “Ciclope” (that one-eyed giant). There are people who make a prosody error when saying “Wíclope.”

Proparoxytone words and double prosody

There are words that have double prosody, which means that they can be both paroxytone and proparoxytone. This is the case with the word “acroBata”, which can also be pronounced “acrobaOK". The same happens with the word “hierhoglyph”, which can also be pronounced “hieroglifo”. Both pronunciations are correct.

Solved exercises on proparoxytone words

Question 1

Mark the alternative that presents a proparoxytone word.

A) Sugar.

B) Friendly.

C) Archipelago.

D) Sunflower.

E) Incredible.

Resolution:

Alternative C.

The word “archfootlago” is proparoxytone, since its third-to-last syllable is the strongest. Already “theçúcar”, “amigasvel” and “incrivel” are paroxytones. Finally, “cuteSun” is an oxytone word.

Question 2

Select the alternative in which ALL words are proparoxytones.

A) Difficult, passion fruit, broccoli.

B) Scientific, baobab, reporter.

C) Acarajé, spectacle, distant.

D) Indigenous, chimney, plankton.

E) Anchor, compass, technique.

Resolution:

Alternative E.

The words "brocolis”, “scienceyoustay”, “waitOKculo”, “indígena”, “anblush”, “bussole” and “technica” are proparoxytones, as they have stress on the third-to-last syllable. The paroxytones are: “dificil”, “reperter”, “longinquo” and “plancton”. Finally, the oxytones are: “maracualready", "goodba", "the faceyea” and “chamihuh”.