In American and British English, a compound noun usually carries its main weight on the first part: BLACKboard, POST office, SOFTware engineer. A phrase made of the same words puts the weight on the last part: a black BOARD, a software en-gi-NEER who happens to work in software. Listeners from those varieties use this difference without thinking: it tells them whether they are hearing one fixed unit or two separate ideas. What you will learn: • How compound stress works in the dictionary pattern • What many indian english speakers do • Everyday compounds with even or final stress • Compound or phrase? let context decide • The office noun string • New and typical indian english compounds • Practice: decode the sentence • Listening strategies • Self-check questions to test your ear Level: B1–B2. Self-study: listen, then take the quizzes. Audio voiced with AI from an original script by Dr. Rashmi R Nair.