When you enter a protest or make a contest over it the accent is on the first syllable: a protest or a contest.

But when you use either word as a verb, you may accent either the first syllable or the second: I protest or I protest or Methinks the lady doth protest too much.

How is it that the verb form is different from the noun form? How is it that the verb form offers a choice, rather than being fixed one way or the other?

It's understandable that a word might coincidentally have such unusual variations, but it's hard to believe the same thing could happen, by coincidence, for two similar words. Surely there must be some common history.

Now, wordnerd, you are having a time with these words "protest" and "contest," aren't you? I just answered your "pro" and "con" question.

I am just taking a guess, but would the pronunciations differ in order to distinguish between the verb and noun forms of the words?

Just an observation, but aren't contests multilateral and protests unilateral?

I think the initial stress on the verbs is a recent development, a levelling of the difference. In some words the final stress on the verb sounds a bit old-fashioned: e.g. combat. But there are many, many pairs that differ like this, such as convict, convert, produce, rebel, import, etc. etc.

Some variation exists: so I say reSEARCH for both noun and verb, and REsearch sounds American, but I don't know which is original.

I have always presumed, though I don't know if it's true, that the difference must have arisen in Middle English when verbs still had an inflectional suffix: importen, convicten, etc. Then a constant rule of penultimate stress would give noun IMport, verb imPORTen.

Maybe it is because I'm from the Mid-West, but I'll say protest either way. If I was to say "I protest...", I would emphasize the second syllable, but for most cases, I emphasize the first. I'll never emphasize the second syllable of contest.

This is an interesting point, being from the Mid-West I'm exposed to pronunciations from different parts of the country, which could lead to my multiple ways of saying the same word. "Either" is a word I'll pronounce either way, depending on some unknown factor.

Hmmm, that's interesting, Sean. I, too, am from the midwest (Wisconsin originally, but Chicago for a long time). I agree with you on "protest," I think. However, I do say "contest, for example, if I were to contest a parking ticket.

I never say either with a long "i." I like it better, but I'd feel as though I were putting on airs.

Should that word be pronounced "either," or "either" ?

After mulling it over for a number of decades I have reached the inevitable conclusion that either is correct.

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However, I do say "contest, for example, if I were to contest a parking ticket.

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I don't know that I've ever said the word that way, or even used it in that sense. I would most likely "protest a parking ticket". I think that that meaning of "contest" has been overrode in my lexicon by "protest".

Now, you are probably too young to have ever said this, but how would you say you are "contesting a will?"

There are several words like this of which "record" (the noun) and "record" (the verb) spring immediately to mind.