1
Stage 1 of 4
canere
Latin · ancient
"to sing"
to sing, giving rise to cantus (a song, a tone)
2
Stage 2 of 4
accentus
Latin · ancient
"a tone added to speech"
a tone added to speech, from ad- (to) and cantus (song)
3
Stage 3 of 4
accent
Old French · medieval
"a distinctive way of pronouncing words"
carried into French for a distinctive way of pronouncing words
4
Stage 4 of 4
accent
English · 1300s
"a distinctive way of pronouncing words, associated with a region or group"
settled as the English word for a distinctive way of pronouncing speech
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