diacritikát

Diacritikát, often referred to as a diacritical mark or simply a diacritic, is a symbol that is added to a letter to change its pronunciation, distinguish it from a similar-looking letter, or to indicate stress or tone. These marks are employed in many alphabets and writing systems worldwide, playing a crucial role in conveying the correct meaning and sound of words.

Common examples of diacritics include the acute accent (´), used in languages like Spanish (e.g., *café*) and French (e.g., *été*), to indicate a stressed syllable or a specific vowel sound. The grave accent (`) appears in languages such as French (e.g., *mère*) and Italian (e.g., *lìbro*), often denoting a different vowel sound or a specific historical pronunciation. The umlaut or diaeresis (¨), seen in German (e.g., *Mühe*) and French (e.g., *naïf*), can modify vowel sounds or indicate that two adjacent vowels should be pronounced separately.

Other frequently encountered diacritics include the circumflex accent (ˆ) in French (e.g., *forêt*) and Portuguese (e.g., *lâmpada*), the cedilla (¸) in French (e.g., *français*) and Portuguese (e.g., *cabeça*), and the tilde (~) in Spanish (e.g., *niño*) and Portuguese (e.g., *mão*). The use of diacritics is essential for accurate reading and writing in languages that utilize them, preventing ambiguity and ensuring proper communication. Their presence significantly enriches the phonetic and semantic capabilities of written languages.