Diacritic Accent

Level 1

The diacritic accent separates two words that would otherwise be spelled alike: é (is) and e (and).

How It Works

Why these accents exist. One-syllable words normally take no accent (pan, sol). A short list of words breaks that rule so they are not confused with a word spelled the same way. The accent always goes on the word that is stressed or has the open vowel.

  • é (is, from ser) and e (and): Ela é de Lugo e el é de Vigo.
  • nós (we) and nos (us; also en + os, in the)
  • vós (you, plural) and vos (you, plural, as an object)
  • máis (more) and mais (but, a more formal word)
  • vén (comes, from vir) and ven (come!, from vir; they see, from ver)
  • dá (gives, from dar) and da (of the, de + a)
  • á (to the, a + a) and a (the; to)
  • só (only, alone) and so (under, a rare word)
  • pé (foot) and pe (the name of the letter p)

Not every accent on a short word is diacritic. Many words have an accent because of the general rules, not to separate a pair. Está (is) has an accent because it is stressed on its last syllable and ends in a vowel, just like café. It only happens to look like esta (this). In the same way, tamén and alguén follow Written Accent Rules.

No accent on demonstratives or question words. Galician never uses an accent to mark este, ese or aquel, and question words such as que, onde and como take none, while Spanish writes qué, dónde and cómo.

More pairs, such as fóra / fora and pór / por, come later in More Diacritic Accents. The contraction á is taught with Contractions of A With the Article.

Examples (6)

  1. Ela é de Lugo e el é de Vigo.

    She is from Lugo and he is from Vigo.

    É (is) has an accent; e (and) does not.

  2. Nós sempre nos vemos no café.

    We always meet at the café.

    Word by Word: We always each-other see in-the café.

    Nós (we) is stressed; nos (each other) is not.

  3. Quero máis auga, por favor.

    I would like more water, please.

    Word by Word: I-want more water, please.

    Máis means more. Mais without an accent is a formal word for but.

  4. O meu irmán vén hoxe. Ven ti tamén!

    My brother is coming today. You come too!

    Word by Word: The my brother comes today. Come you also!

    Vén means comes, and ven means come!

  5. Ela dá clases na escola da vila.

    She teaches at the town school.

    Word by Word: She gives classes in-the school of-the town.

    Dá means gives, and da means of the.

  6. A nena vai á escola.

    The girl goes to school.

    Word by Word: The girl goes to-the school.

    A is the article the; á is a + a, to the.

Common Mistakes

  • Writing the verb é without its accent.

    Ela e profesora.
    Ela é profesora.

    Without the accent, e means and. The verb is always é.

  • Writing the subject pronoun nós without its accent.

    Nos somos de Ourense.
    Nós somos de Ourense.

    The subject pronoun we is nós, with an accent. Nos without an accent is an object pronoun (us) or en + os.

  • Writing mais when you mean more.

    Quero mais café.
    Quero máis café.

    More is máis. Mais without an accent means but.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Diacritic AccentLevel 1

Learn This First

Diacritic accents distinguish otherwise identical spellings.

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

nós