Diacritic/ˌdaɪəˈkrɪtɪk/ Definition 1 of 2Pro Tip 1/3Pronunciation Clues A diacritic mark can guide you to pronounce a word correctly in different languages. The diacritic in 'café' shows it is pronounced 'ka-FAY'. Pro Tip 2/3Stress Importance Using diacritics can change which syllable is stressed, altering the word's meaning. In Spanish, 'papá' means 'father', while 'papa' means 'potato'. Pro Tip 3/3Language Variance Different languages use diacritics uniquely. Pay attention to each language's rules. German 'ü' and French 'û' have different diacritic uses.