pitch-accent language
[/pɪtʃ ˈæk.sənt ˈlæŋ.ɡwɪdʒ/]
nounpl: pitch-accent languages
língua de acento tonal
1. A language in which the pitch or tone of a syllable or word is phonologically significant and can change the meaning of words, as opposed to stress-accent languages where emphasis or loudness distinguishes words
Japanese is a pitch-accent language where the pitch pattern of a word can completely change its meaning.
O japonês é uma língua de acento tonal onde o padrão de pitch de uma palavra pode mudar completamente seu significado.
2. A language where variations in fundamental frequency (pitch) on syllables serve to distinguish lexical or grammatical meaning
Norwegian and Swedish are examples of pitch-accent languages spoken in Scandinavia.
Norueguês e sueco são exemplos de línguas de acento tonal faladas na Escandinávia.
This is a specialized linguistic term primarily used in academic and linguistic contexts. Understanding pitch-accent languages is important for linguists and language learners, particularly those studying Asian languages like Japanese, Mandarin, or Scandinavian languages. The concept is less commonly discussed in everyday Brazilian Portuguese conversation but is fundamental in comparative linguistics and language typology.
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