Most Italian words are stressed on the second syllable from the end, e.g. andare, parlare, tradimento.

If a polysyllable word is stressed on the last syllable, it is marked in writing with a graphic accent (a dash above the letter), e.g. sarà, gioventù.

Many words are stressed on the third syllable from the end, some rare grammatical forms even on the fourth syllable. This is not stated in writing.