Editing Syllable (section)

==== Weight ====

[[Image:Syllable illustrations 3and4.svg|thumb|upright=1.5|Branching nucleus for ''pout'' and branching coda for ''pond'']]

{{Main|Syllable weight}}

<!-- Cross-linguistically, there is evidence for a hierarchy of syllable weights according to syllable structure. -->
A '''heavy syllable''' is generally one with a ''branching rime'', i.e. it is either a ''closed syllable'' that ends in a consonant, or a syllable with a ''branching nucleus'', i.e. a long vowel or [[diphthong]]. The name is a metaphor, based on the nucleus or coda having lines that branch in a tree diagram.

In some languages, heavy syllables include both VV (branching nucleus) and VC (branching rime) syllables, contrasted with V, which is a '''light syllable'''.
In other languages, only VV syllables are considered heavy, while both VC and V syllables are light.
Some languages distinguish a third type of '''superheavy syllable''', which consists of VVC syllables (with both a branching nucleus and rime) or VCC syllables (with a coda consisting of two or more consonants) or both.

In [[mora (linguistics)|moraic theory]], heavy syllables are said to have two moras, while light syllables are said to have one and superheavy syllables are said to have three. [[Japanese phonology]] is generally described this way.

Many languages forbid superheavy syllables, while a significant number forbid any heavy syllable. Some languages strive for constant syllable weight; for example, in stressed, non-final syllables in [[Italian language|Italian]], short vowels co-occur with closed syllables while long vowels co-occur with open syllables, so that all such syllables are heavy (not light or superheavy).

The difference between heavy and light frequently determines which syllables receive [[stress (linguistics)|stress]] – this is the case in [[Latin]] and [[Arabic language|Arabic]], for example. The system of [[meter (poetry)|poetic meter]] in many classical languages, such as [[Classical Greek]], [[Classical Latin]], [[Tamil language|Old Tamil]] and [[Sanskrit language|Sanskrit]], is based on syllable weight rather than stress (so-called ''quantitative rhythm'' or ''quantitative meter'').