Stress in English blends: A constraint-based analysis

The paper provides an analysis of primary stress in English blends within the constraint-based framework of Optimality Theory. Primary stress in blends is determined by the position of stress in the base words, giving priority to the stress of the longer word (size) and/or the stress of the rightmost word (position). We argue that there is no priority relation between the size and position factors, as evident by the intra-word variation. The analysis of blends with polysyllabic base words also incorporates the unique behaviour of blends with monosyllabic base words, and the emergence of the language's default stress pattern.