Editing Mohawk language (section)

==== Stress, length, and tone ====
{{unreferenced section|date=November 2023}}
Mohawk words have both stress and [[Tone (linguistics)|tone]], and it can be classified as a restricted tone system (aka [[Pitch-accent language|pitch-accent]] system). [[Stress (linguistics)|Stressed]] vowels carry one of four tonal configurations, two of which are [[Tone contour|contour tones]]: high, low, rising and falling tones. Contour tones only occur in syllables with long vowels.
*High tone usually appears in closed syllables containing a short vowel, or before {{IPA|/h/}}. It is written with an acute accent: {{lang|moh|káhi}} {{IPA|/ˈkáhi/}} {{gloss|fruit}}, {{lang|moh|oháha}} {{IPA|/oˈháha/}} {{gloss|road}}.
*Rising tone generally occurs in open syllables. It is written with a combination acute accent and colon: {{lang|moh|kaná꞉ta}} /kaˈnáːta/ {{gloss|town}}, {{lang|moh|rón꞉kwe}} /ˈrṹːkwe/ {{gloss|man}}. Notice that when it is one of the nasal vowels which is long, the colon appears after the {{angbr|n}}.
*Long-falling tone is the result of the word stress falling on a vowel which comes before a {{IPA|/ʔ/}} or {{IPA|/h/}} + a consonant (there may be, of course, exceptions to this and other rules). The underlying {{IPA|/ʔ/}} or {{IPA|/h/}} reappears when stress is placed elsewhere. It is written with a grave accent and colon: {{lang|moh|onekwèn꞉ta}} {{IPA|/oneˈkwʌ̃̂ːta/}} {{gloss|stomach}}.