stress in –teens

Humble   Sun May 25, 2008 3:07 pm GMT
Hi,
I wonder if you could explain how you stress –teen numerals in these collocations
1. he is in room nineteen
2. nineteen per cent of the population
3. was born in nineteen seventy-seven
4. lucky numbers are nineteen, thirteen and seventeen.
5. nineteenth nervous breakdown

Would it grate on your ears if I only stress the last syllable everywhere?

Thanks.
Uriel   Sun May 25, 2008 5:43 pm GMT
I think it generally has the same stress as the first syllable in US English -- they kind of get equal footing.
Skippy   Sun May 25, 2008 6:41 pm GMT
Yeah, I keep saying the -teens to myself and I'm saying them with equal stress...
Humble   Thu May 29, 2008 4:02 am GMT
Uriel and Skippy, thank you.
guest   Thu May 29, 2008 12:55 pm GMT
I say them all with equal stress EXCEPT number 1., where I say:

He is in room NineTEEN

with greater stress on the -teen than on the nine-.
Not because it comes at the end of the sentence though, because "nineteen" specifies the room and therefore takes greater stress for me