What's the easiest way to figure out how to use Spanish accent marks?

Answer 1

Spanish accent marks tell us how to pronounce a word; the accented vowel is the one we should emphasize.

A good rule of thumb is to assume that all Spanish words should be pronounced with emphasis on the second to last syllable. For example

in the word "hola" the emphasis is on the "O"

in the word "lunes" the emphasis is on the "U"

If a word is pronounced with emphasis on any syllable other than the second to last, the word will need an accent mark on that syllable. For example

in the word "miércoles" the emphasis is not on the second to last syllable, but on the accented "E"

I hope this helps!