Phonetics and Phonology

LI2BE
 Lecture 5
Intonation
Linguistic terms
What is intonation?
What are the functions of intonation?
What are the forms of intonation?
(Intonation patterns)
Importance of intonation
 Linguistic terms:

1. pitch
2. pitch movement, or tone
3. tone unit
(also called tone group, intonation group or
sense group)
4. nuclear syllable (also called tonic syllable)
5. utterance
 Linguistic terms…
1. Pitch /pɪtʃ/
When we listen to people speaking, we can hear
some sounds or groups of sounds in their speech to
be relatively higher or lower than others.
This relative height of speech sounds as perceived
by a listener is called pitch
Eg. In the question Ready? (Meaning “Are you
ready?“) The second syllable will have a higher pitch.
The pitch movement begins on the first syllable.
 Linguistic terms…
1. Pitch (contd.)

What we can hear as pitch is the vocal cords

vibrating.

The faster the vocal cords vibrate, the higher the

pitch.
 Linguistic terms…
2. Pitch movement or tone /təʊn/
This is a change of pitch which affects the meaning
and function of the utterances in discourse.
In English, linguists have distinguished five
different tones.
In a unit of intonation (tone unit), the syllable on
which the pitch movment begins is often called the
tonic or nuclear syllable.
 Linguistic terms…

3. Tone Unit //təʊn ˈjuːnɪt/

(also called tone group, intonation group or sense
group)
The basic unit of intonation in a language
A tone unit is usually divided into several parts
The more important part contains the syllable on which
any change in pitch begins: the tonic or nuclear syllable.
The way in which linguists divide the unit and the terms
they use differ.
 Linguistic terms:
4. Nuclear syllable (also called tonic syllable)
Within a tone group, one syllable stands out from
the others.
This is the nuclear or tonic syllable.
It carries the main focus of information
It is usually, but not always, the final lexical word in
a tone group.
Compare how meaning is changed when you move
the nuclear syllable to different words.
(This is the syllable where the pitch changes most):
I passed the exam. =simply giving information
I passed the exam. = I had thought I might fail
I passed the exam. = But others didn‘t.
I passed the exam =There is only one important
exam and I passed it.
Intonation communicates meaning to the listener.
 Linguistic terms:
5. Utterance /ˈʌtərəns/
In discourse this is what is said by one person before
or after another person begins to speak.
It may be, a) one word, b) one sentence or c) more.
a)A: You! (B: Who, me?)
b)A: Can you help me?(B: What‘s up?)
c) A: Well, I‘ve got this problem, you see. It‘s because
of my childhood, my background,my school. I can‘t
control myself, my feelings, what I do and what I say.
I just don‘t know what to do! (B:Just grow up!)
 What is intonation?
When speaking, people generally raise and lower the
pitch of their voice forming pitch patterns.

They also give some syllables in their utterances a

greater degree of loudness and change their speech
rhythm.

This is called intonation.

 What is intonation …?
Intonation does not happen at random. But has
definite patterns, called intonation or pitch patterns.
These can be analysed according to their structure
(their form) and their function (what their purpose
is).
Intonation can carry information beyond what is
expressed by the words of a sentences.
Example: That‘s great! (can be enthusiastic, ironic etc )
 What is intonation…?
How would you say hello:
to a good friend you meet regularly,
to a good friend who you haven‘t seen for two years,
To someone you don‘t know well and don‘t really want
to talk to,
to a small baby,
to someone on the phone to see if he is still there,
 to catch someone‘s attention across a crowded street.
 Intonation functions:
What would be lost if we spoke without intonation?
Every syllable would be said on the same level pitch,
with no pauses and no changes in speed or loudness.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with
God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the
beginning. Through him all things were made; without
him nothing was made that has been made. In him was
life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines
in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
 Intonation functions…
Intonation makes it easier for the listener to
understand what the speaker is trying to convey.
There are four main functions of intonation:
1. Attitudinal function
2. Grammatical function
3. Accentual function
4. Discourse function

(Some linguists argue that there are more functions).

 1. Attitudinal function of intonation:

Intonation enables us to express emotions and attitudes as

we speak. This gives extra meaning to spoken language.
 It is by changing the pitch that we can show certainty,
uncertainty, enthusiasm, boredom etc.
We can say "yes" so that it almost means "no".
As listeners, we become skilled at detecting shades of
meaning in other people's speech. We can say they
sounded unhappy, tired, self-satisfied, sarcastic, etc. These
attitudes are picked up from very fine variations in pitch and
loudness.
1. Attitudinal function …
Be careful:
Some native speakers may say something in a happy way eg
“I‘m fine“.
It may not mean that they really are fine.
They may just be trying to persuade you that they are.

Intonation is all about communicating something to the

listener.
1. Attitudinal function…

To interpret attitude you may also need to look for other

clues: a) Paralinguistic features

Non-verbal phenomena:
1. facial expressions
/ˈfeɪʃəl ɪkˈspreʃənz/
2. head or eye
movements
3. gestures /ˈdʒestʃəz/
.
1. Attitudinal function…
To interpret attitude you may also need to
look for other clues:
b) Vocal effects such as sobbing or laughing
2. Grammatical function of intonation:

Intonation can show the syntactic or

grammatical struture of what is being said.
This includes
a) placement of boundaries between phrases,
clauses or sentences,
b) the difference between questions and
statements
c) the use of grammatical subordination
2. Grammatical function …

a) placement of boundaries between phrases,

clauses or sentences:
She dressed and fed the baby.
She dressed, and fed the baby.
I don‘t know.
I don‘t, no.
The teacher thinks /the student is an idiot.
The teacher /thinks the student /is an idiot.
2. Grammatical function …

b) the difference between questions and

statements in question tags

They're coming on Mònday / arèn't they?

(statement anticipating the listener's agreement)

They're coming on Mònday / arén't they?

(question seeking an answer, yes or no)
2.Grammatical function…

c) the use of grammatical subordination

Defining relative clause:

The students who worked hard throughout the
semester passed the exam.
Non-defining relative clause:
The students, who worked hard throughout the
semester, passed the exam.
 3. Accentual function of intonation:

Intonation helps place prominence on syllables

which need to be perceived as stressed.
The placing of tonic stress on a particular syllable
marks out the word to which it belongs as the
most important in the tone unit.

My name is Bond. James Bond.

3. Accentual function …

The most common position for the tonic syllable

is the last lexical word (eg noun, adjective, verb,
adverb) as distinct from functions words.

A: Do you know where is he travelling to?

B: I don‘t know where he‘s travelling to, but I know
where he‘s travelling from.
 3. Accentual function …
For contrastive purposes, any word may become the tonic syllable

Normal placement:
Linda was wearing that black skirt.
Contrastive placements:
Linda was wearing that black skirt.
Linda was wearing that black skirt.
Linda was wearing that black skirt.
Linda was wearing that black skirt.
Linda was wearing that black skirt.
 3. Accentual function …
Any word may become the tonic syllable – for contrast

Normal placement:
Linda was wearing that black skirt.
Contrastive placements:
Linda was wearing that black skirt. (not a red one)
Linda was wearing that black skirt. (a particular skirt referred to
already)
Linda was wearing that black skirt. (not just carrying it)
Linda was wearing that black skirt. ( you said she wasn't)
Linda was wearing that black skirt. (it wasn't Jill wearing it)
4. Discourse function of intonation:
The study of discourse attempts to look at the larger contexts in
which utterances occur.
The discourse function of intonation:
1. focuses the listener‘s attention on what is most important.
She comes from Prague.
2. regulates the conversational behaviour
tells the listener that it is his turn to speak
suggests what response is required
(paralinguistic features also help eg gestures)
What are the forms of intonation?
The shortest utterance (piece of speech) we can
find is one syllable.
Two common one syllable utterances are yes and
no.
One syllable can be said with a level tone or a
moving tone.
(The level tone is rare and sounds unnatural).
The forms of intonation…
Moving tones are more common.

From a high pitch to a low pitch

= falling tone.
Yes.

From a low pitch to a high pitch

= rising tone.
Yes?
Five forms of intonation…
fall rise

fall-rise rise-fall

Level

Linguists don‘t always agree with the exact number of tones.

The five forms of intonation…
fall
This is the most common form. It is neutral, final.
There is nothing more to be said.

A: Did you pass the exam? B: Yes, I did.

The forms of intonation…
Rise
 This gives the impression that more will follow.
A: Excuse me! B: Yes?
 It may be an invitation to continue
A: You turn left (yes), then you go straight ahead,
(yes), and our house is on the right (yes)
A: Have you seen Peter? B: No?
(= tell me more)
The forms of intonation…
fall –rise

This is used a lot in English. It means limited

agreement.
A: It was a good film, wasn‘t it? B: Yes.
A would expect B to explain why he doesn‘t agree
completely.
There is some hesitation.
The forms of intonation…
rise- fall
This is used to convey strong feelings of approval,
disapproval or surprise.
A: You wouldn‘t lie to me, would you? B: No!
A: Phonetics is a great subject. B: Yes!
The forms of intonation…
level
 This is rarely used in English.
On monosyllabic utterances, it almost always
conveys a feeling of boredom or irritation.
 It may be used to answer routine questions.
Eg at a doctor‘s.
A: Do you suffer from any serious illness? B: No.
A: Is your eyesight defective? B: No.
 The importance of intonation
“At the heart of many cross-cultural misunderstandings
lie problems associated with intonation features of
learner English. Failure to make use of the
appropriate pragmatic discourse features of English
intonation may result in serious communication
breakdown between native and non native speakers
of even advanced levels of proficiency.“
Charles Clennell (senior lecturer in TESOL at the
University of Australia, Adelaide.)
 Intonation and ambiguity:
Clarify using intonation:

The man saw the boy with the binoculars.

They are hunting dogs.
He saw that gas can explode.
Police help dog bite victim (newspaper headline)
I hit the student with the book.
Students hate boring teachers.
Compare:
These two sentences contain exactly the same
phonemes. If you read the two sentences the
meaning is clear. If you only hear the two
sentences, you still understand the meaning.
This is because of intonation.
1. What‘s that in the road ahead?
(One tone unit. Falling tone).
2. What‘s that in the road? A head?
(Two tone units. Falling tone. Then rising
tone.
Compare:
How can you say these sentences using two
different intonation patterns? (The sentences
are not punctuated.)
“Look at the dog with one eye“.
“Turn right here“.
The meaning depends on the intonation.
Compare:
1. Nevypadáš krásně?
2. Nevypadáš krásně.