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INTONATION
Intonation is referred to the fall and rise in the pitch. Hence the way the voice rises and falls when
speaking is called intonation.
1. It is also called the music of the language.
2. We usually do it every day, without thinking about it when speaking our native language.
3. it’s just as important as words in expressing what is uttered/said.
4. Intonation is about how we say things, rather than what we say.
Intonation and stress are very closely linked. We cannot separate them They go hand in hand. Just as
words have stressed syllables, like wise sentences also have certain patterns of stressed words and the
voice tends to rise, fall or remain flat depending on the meaning or feeling of the speaker we want to
convey. Intonation therefore indicates the mood of the speaker.
INTONATION: BASIC PATTERNS
There are two basic patterns of intonation in English:
A. Single intonation Pattern
1. Falling intonation: A downward arrow (➘) indicates a fall in intonation
2. Rising intonation: An upward arrow (➚) indicates a rise in intonation.
B. Double intonation Pattern
1. Rise-Fall Intonation (➚➘)
2. Fall-Rise Intonation (➘➚)
FALLING INTONATION (➘)
The pitch of the voice falls at the end of the sentence. Falling intonation is the most common intonation
pattern in English. It is commonly found in
1. statements,
2. commands,
3. wh-questions (information questions),
confirmatory question tags
4. exclamations.
Statements
1. Reema doesn’t work here ↘anymore.
2. I want to change my ↘car.Nice to meet ↘you.
3. I’ll be back in a ↘minute.
4. She doesn’t live here ↘anymore.
5. Dad wants to change his ↘car.
6. Here is the weather ↘forecast.
7. Cloudy weather is expected at the end of the ↘week.
8. We should work together more ↘often
9. I'm going for a walk in the ↘park.
Commands
1. Write your name ↘here.
2. Show me what you’ve ↘written.
3. Leave it on the ↘desk.
4. Take that picture ↘ down.
5. Throw that ↘out.
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6. Put your books on the ↘table.
7. Take your hands out of your ↘pockets.
Wh- questions (requesting information.)
(questions beginning with 'who', 'what', 'why', 'where', 'when', 'which', and 'how')
1. What country do you come ↘from?
2. Where do you ↘work?
3. Which of them do you ↘prefer?
4. When does the shop ↘open?
5. How many books have you ↘bought?
6. Which coat is ↘yours?
7. Whose bag is ↘this?
Questions Tags that are statements requesting confirmation rather than questions.
1. He thinks he’s so clever, doesn’t ↘he?
2. She's such a nuisance, isn't ↘she?
3. I failed the test because I didn't revise, did ↘ I?
4. It doesn't seem to bother him much, does ↘ it?
Exclamations
1. How nice of ↘ you!
2. That's just what I ↘need!
3. You don't ↘ say!
4. What a beautiful ↘ voice!
5. That's a ↘surprise!
RISING INTONATION (➚)
Rising intonation invites the speaker to continue talking. The pitch of the voice rises at the end of a
sentence. It is commonly found in-
1. yes/no questions,
2. question tags that are real questions.
Yes/no Questions
(Questions that can be answered by 'yes' or 'no'.)
1. Do you like your new ➚teacher?
2. Have you finished ➚already?
3. May I borrow your ➚dictionary?
4. Do you have any ➚magazines?
5. Do you sell ➚stamps?
Questions tags that show uncertainty and require an answer (real questions).
1. We've met already, ➚haven't we?
2. You like fish, ➚don't you?
3. You're a new student ➚aren't you?
4. The view is beautiful, ➚isn't it?
We sometimes use a combination of rising and falling intonation in the same sentence.
The combination is called Rise-Fall or Fall-Rise intonation.
RISE-FALL INTONATION (➚➘)
The intonation rises and then falls. We use rise-fall intonation for
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1. Choices
2. Lists
3. unfinished thoughts
4. conditional sentences.
Choices (alternative questions.)
1. Are you having ➚soup or ➘salad?
2. Is John leaving on ➚Thursday or ➘Friday?
3. Does he speak ➚German or ➘French?
4. Is your name ➚Ava or ➘Eva?
Lists (rising, rising, rising, falling)
Intonation falls on the last item to show that the list is finished.
1. We've got ➚apples, pears, bananas and ➘oranges
2. The sweater comes in ➚blue, white pink and ➘black
3. I like ➚football, tennis, basketball and ➘volleyball.
4. I bought ➚a tee-shirt, a skirt and a ➘handbag.
Unfinished thoughts (partial statements)
In the responses to the following questions, the rise-fall intonation indicates reservation.
The speaker hesitates to fully express his/her thoughts.
1. Do you like my new handbag? Well the ➚leather is ➘nice... ( but I don't like it.)
2. What was the meal like? Hmm, the ➚fish was ➘good... (but the rest wasn't great).
3. So you both live in Los Angeles? Well ➚Alex ➘does ... (but I don't).
Conditional sentences
(The tone rises in the first clause and falls gradually in the second clause.)
1. If he ➚calls, ask him to leave a ➘message.
2. Unless he ➚insists, I'm not going to ➘go.
3. If you have any ➚problems, just ➘contact us.
Fall-Rise Intonation (➘➚)
The voice falls and rises usually within one word. It is used for-
1. Uncertainty
2. Reluctant attitude
3. Polite requests
4. Suggestions.
Hesitation/reluctance:
1. So you'd be willing to confirm that? ...Well ... I ➘sup➚pose so ...
2. You didn't see him on Monday? I don't quite ➘re➚member ...
Politeness-Doubt-Uncertainty: (You are not sure what the answer might be.)
1. Perhaps we could ➘vis➚it the place?
2. Should we ➘cop➚y the list?
3. Do you think it's ➘al➚lowed?
