Intonation by Solomon Osuokam Ogbeh

 

Introduction

Intonation refers to the rise and fall of the pitch of the voice when speaking. It is a crucial aspect of spoken English that conveys meaning beyond the literal words. Proper understanding and use of intonation can improve communication skills and help convey emotions, attitudes, and emphasis.

Importance of Intonation

Intonation is essential in English for several reasons:

• Conveying Meaning: It can change the meaning of a sentence. For example, "You're coming, aren't you?" with a falling intonation at the end implies expectation, whereas with a rising intonation, it implies uncertainty.
• Expressing Emotions: Intonation helps express emotions such as surprise, anger, happiness, or sadness.
• Indicating Questions: Rising intonation at the end of a sentence typically indicates a question.
• Emphasising Points: It can be used to emphasise certain words or phrases to highlight their importance.

Basic Patterns of Intonation

English intonation can be broadly classified into two patterns: falling intonation and rising intonation.

Falling Intonation

Falling intonation is when the pitch of the voice falls at the end of a sentence. It is commonly used in:

• Statements: "I am going to school." /aɪ æm ˈɡəʊɪŋ tə skuːl/
• Commands: "Close the door." /kləʊz ðə dɔː/
• Wh-questions: "Where are you going?" /weə ə juː ˈɡəʊɪŋ/
• Exclamations: "What a beautiful day!" /wɒt ə ˈbjuːtɪfl deɪ/

Rising Intonation

Rising intonation is when the pitch of the voice rises at the end of a sentence. It is typically used in:

• Yes/No questions: "Are you coming?" /ɑː juː ˈkʌmɪŋ/
• Tag questions (when uncertain or seeking confirmation): "You're coming, aren't you?" /jʊə ˈkʌmɪŋ, ɑːnt juː/
• Lists (for all items except the last one): "I need to buy bread, milk, eggs, and butter." /aɪ niːd tə baɪ bred, mɪlk, eɡz, ænd ˈbʌtə/

Intonation in Different Sentence Types

Statements

In statements, intonation typically falls at the end, indicating completeness and certainty.

• "She lives in Lagos." /ʃiː lɪvz ɪn ˈleɪɡɒs/
• "They have finished their homework." /ðeɪ hæv ˈfɪnɪʃt ðeə ˈhəʊmwɜːk/

Questions

Intonation in questions can vary:

• Wh-questions usually have a falling intonation: "What is your name?" /wɒt ɪz jə neɪm/
• Yes/No questions usually have a rising intonation: "Did you see the movie?" /dɪd juː siː ðə ˈmuːvi/

Commands and Requests

Commands generally have a falling intonation, conveying authority or urgency.

• "Sit down." /sɪt daʊn/
• "Please open the window." /pliːz ˈəʊpən ðə ˈwɪndəʊ/

Tag Questions

Tag questions can have either rising or falling intonation:

• Rising Intonation: Used when the speaker is uncertain or seeking confirmation: "You're a student, aren't you?" /jʊə ə ˈstjuːdənt, ɑːnt juː/
• Falling Intonation: Used when the speaker is certain and expects agreement: "It's a nice day, isn't it?" /ɪts ə naɪs deɪ, ˈɪznt ɪt/

Intonation and Attitudes

Intonation can express a range of attitudes and emotions:

• Surprise: "Really?" /ˈrɪəli/ (with a sharp rise)
• Disbelief: "You did what?" /juː dɪd wɒt/ (rising-falling)
• Boredom: "Oh, I see." /əʊ, aɪ siː/ (with a flat or falling intonation)

Practice Exercises

Exercise 1: Identifying Intonation Patterns Listen to the following sentences and identify whether the intonation is rising or falling:

1. "Can you help me?" /kæn juː help miː/
2. "He left early." /hiː left ˈɜːli/
3. "What's your favourite colour?" /wɒts jə ˈfeɪvərɪt ˈkʌlə/
4. "You’re joking, aren’t you?" /jʊə ˈdʒəʊkɪŋ, ɑːnt juː/

Exercise 2: Practising Intonation Practise saying the following sentences with the appropriate intonation patterns:

1. "Are you ready?"
2. "I can't believe it!"
3. "Why did you do that?"
4. "She is coming to the party."

Exercise 3: Role-Playing In pairs, create dialogues where you practice using different intonation patterns. Pay attention to how intonation affects the meaning and emotion conveyed in the conversation.

Conclusion

Intonation is a vital aspect of spoken English that helps convey meaning, express emotions, and indicate questions or statements. By understanding and practising different intonation patterns, students can improve their communication skills and better understand the subtleties of the English language.