Phonology Three

Intonation is the way our voice goes up and down when we speak. It helps us understand the meaning of what someone is saying, like if they're asking a question or making a statement.

Intonation is like the melody of speech. It's how we use changes in our voice pitch to give meaning to what we say.

It's used to express different meanings and emotions. For instance, a rising intonation at the end of a sentence usually suggests a question, while a falling intonation indicates a statement.

Intonation can be used to convey sarcasm, irony, and even extreme emotions. For example, saying "Oh great!" with a flat intonation can be sarcastic.

It's a key component of how we understand and interpret language; the smallest change in intonation can change the meaning of what we say.

Intonation is often used to make a statement sound more polite or forceful, or to highlight certain words or phrases.

Unlike most other language features, intonation can be used in a non-verbal way; even without saying a word, we can express emotions like happiness or disappointment with our voice.

Intonation is present in all languages; it's not specific to a single language. It allows people from different cultures to easily understand the meaning of each other's utterances.

The rise and fall of the voice in speech, indicating grammatical structure, attitude, or function.

A distinct unit of pronunciation characterized by a single accented syllable and its surrounding unstressed syllables. It helps break down long sentences into manageable units.

The tendency for the voice to fall at the end of a statement, conveying a sense of completion or finality.

The tendency for the voice to rise at the end of a yes/no question, suggesting uncertainty or asking for confirmation.

A combination of falling and rising pitches often used to express surprise or unexpectedness.

The use of intonation to convey a speaker's attitude, such as enthusiasm, interest, surprise, or caution.

The use of intonation to signal different grammatical functions, such as declarative statements, interrogative questions, or imperatives.

A pattern of rising intonation on each item of a list, except for the final item which has a falling intonation.

The combination of intonation and other linguistic features (like vocabulary and grammar) to express a particular speech act, such as inviting, advising, or complaining.

The ability of intonation to convey subtle nuances of attitude, such as politeness, skepticism, or sarcasm.

The relative level of speech sounds perceived by the listener.

The distance between a speaker's highest and lowest pitch notes.

A movement of pitch in speech with a specific direction: rise, fall, rise-fall, or fall-rise.

A chunk of spoken language broken up by pauses and intonation, similar to a phrase in writing.

The stressed syllable that comes before the tonic syllable in a tone unit.

The characteristic rhythm of English, where stressed syllables are pronounced with more force, and unstressed syllables are compressed or weakened.

The function of intonation to signal the difference between statements, questions, or commands.

The function of intonation to communicate emotions and attitudes.

The function of intonation to organize spoken language into blocks of information, and to highlight important information within those blocks.

The type of intonation where pitch rises and then falls, often used for emphasis, contradiction, or a strong statement.

A discoursal approach to intonation focuses on how intonation helps us understand spoken language in a broader context, beyond single sentences.

In discourse intonation, the speaker's voice rises and then falls or just falls. This signals new information.

In discourse intonation, the voice falls and then rises, indicating that the speaker is referring to something already known.

The 'Distance Delta' is a concept in discourse intonation that illustrates how shifts in focus are signaled by changes in intonation.

Discourse, whether spoken or written, utilizes markers to indicate shifts in focus, references, and changes in topic.

Intonation helps us identify different types of speech acts, like asking a question, making a statement, or giving a command.

Brazil's work on Discourse Intonation aimed to analyze the role of intonation in communication more systematically.