Welcome to the Grammar Minute, where we’re saving the English language sixty seconds at a time! I’m Lauren Smyth, and earlier this week, I was addressing an envelope by writing my address. Address Address. Notice anything odd? Those words are spelled almost exactly the same way, but the stress is in a different place. One is a noun, and one is a verb. Hm. What generalizations can we make about this?

Turns out that in English, many words have different stress combinations. Think “addict” and “addict,” for example, or “ally” and “ally.” Generally, if the stress is on the second syllable – think “address,” the word is a verb. If it’s on the first syllable, like address, the word is a noun.

Will you ever use this linguistic tip in real life? Probably not. But you might be able to impress your English major friends at the next class reunion.

That’s your Grammar Minute! Visit thegrammarminute.com for more tips and tricks.