Intonation

 Intonation is a feature of pronunciation and is common in all languages. In phonetics, intonation is the melodic pattern of an utterance. It is primarily a matter of variation in the pitch level of the voice. Stress and rhythm are also involved in many languages, including English. Intonation conveys differences in expressive meaning, such as surprise, anger, wariness, etc.

 In language, using the right intonation can change the meaning of words. For example, if we think of our voice as a musical instrument, when we speak, our voice gets louder and softer, places emphasis on certain parts, and goes up and down the notes. The notes of our voice are called pitch, and the change in pitch is what we call intonation.

 At its simplest, intonation could be described as ‘the music of speech’. A change or variation in this music can affect the meaning of what we say.

 

The main English intonation patterns:

There are two main American English intonation patterns - falling and rising.

Falling:

When our voice lowers its pitch at the end of a sentence, we call it falling. This is the most common pattern in American English.

Rising:

When our voice raises its pitch at the end of the sentence, it is called rising.

There are other ways to change our pitch to change our meaning. But if we learn these two main patterns well, the rest will follow.

 

Different function of intonation in English:

The main functions of intonation are:

1.        Attitude:

Most of the time, we feel that in many spoken languages around the world, especially in English, it’s easy for the listeners to understand the speaker’s attitude, such as boredom, interest, surprise, anger, appreciation, happiness, and so on, through our expression or intonation. For instance, different types of intonation would be our intonation when receiving a surprise gift at work. Here, rising intonation expresses our surprise and delight.

Similarly, a flat tone might express boredom or indifference. Thus, we often express gratitude and other emotions as much through our intonation as through specific words.

 

2.        Grammar:

some intonation patterns in English correspond to the use of particular grammar structures. The most common example is in the use of wh-questions which usually have a falling intonation.

How to improve our Intonation:

The best way to improve our intonation is to become more aware of it. By listening carefully to a recorded conversation, we can improve our intonation.

Another way to record our voice. With a recording, we can always rewind, listen again, and try a new version.