What is Intonation?
Intonation is the way the voice rises or falls when communicating. In short, it is the music of
speech. It focuses more on how you say it rather than what is being said. This is important in
English communication because sentences may vary in meaning depending on the intonation. It
also yields dynamics on your speech and makes it more compelling to hear.
The most common types of Intonation we have in English are the following:
Falling intonation
Rising intonation
Falling–rising intonation
Rising–falling intonation
Falling Intonation
One of the most common intonation patterns in the English language is the rules of falling
intonation. This is when the pitch of the voice falls at the end of a sentence. We commonly use
them in statements, commands, WH-questions, confirmatory question tags, and exclamations.
Below are some examples where we use the falling intonation:
In statements, we say:
Pleased to meet ↓you.
Mom wants to buy that ↓bag.
We should keep ↓going.
In commands, we say:
Show me the way to the ↓station.
Take your shoes ↓off.
Leave them on the ↓desk.
In WH-questions, we say:
What food do you ↓want?
Where do you come ↓from?
Whose book is ↓this?
In question tags, we use the rules of falling intonation only when we seek confirmation or invite
agreement.
For example, we say:
He thinks he’s so smart, doesn’t ↓he?
They didn’t enjoy the party, did ↓they?
She’s the one you told me about, isn’t ↓she?
In exclamations, we say:
That’s a perfect ↓gift!
How nice of ↓you!
What a beautiful ↓performance!
Rising Intonation
Another intonation marking used in the English language is the rules of rising intonation.
This is when the pitch of the voice rises at the end of the sentence. It is commonly used in yes or
no questions, and question tags that show uncertainty.
In question tags showing uncertainty, we say:
You’re new here, aren’t ↑you?
He prefers the beach, doesn’t ↑he?
The rules were changed, weren’t ↑they?
In yes or no questions, we say: Do you like your new ↑shirt? May I borrow your ↑book?
Will she ↑agree?
Rising-Falling Intonation
We do not only use rising or falling intonations alone, but we can likewise use a combination of
both. Consider the rules of rising-falling intonation.
This is generally used for giving out a list, a set of choices, partial and conditional statements.
In stating a list, use rising intonation in the first series of items. Then, use a falling intonation on
the last item to indicate that the list has ended. For instance:
She bought some ↑bread, ↑meat, ↑pasta, and ↓apples.
He enjoys outdoor activities such as ↑mountain climbing, ↑trekking, and ↓camping.
This bag comes in colors of ↑white, ↑gray, ↑black, and ↓yellow.
When used in choices, we say:
Would you like to have ↑tea or ↓coffee?
Is Jane coming ↑today or ↓tomorrow?
Did you say ↑east or ↓west?
We also use the rising-falling intonation in partial statements. This is when the speaker is
hesitant to fully express his ideas and is unable to finish his statement.
For example:
What was the place like? –Well, it ↑seemed ↓nice… (but it’s too small.)
So did you enjoy the trip? –Hmmm, ↑yes I ↓did… (but it was too short.)
Do Ethan and Ricky know you? –Well, ↑Ethan ↓does… (but not Ricky.)
In conditional statements, we use the rising intonation in the first clause, then gradually shift to
the falling intonation in the second clause.
So we say:
If you have any ↑questions, send me a ↓message.
Ever since you came ↑here, everything’s doing ↓well.
Unless she ↑asks, I’ll stay ↓silent.
Falling-rising intonation
Finally, one of the familiar rules of intonation is the usage of the falling–rising intonation within
a word. This is often used when the speaker is uncertain of an answer to a question or shows
reluctance.
For example:
Should we ↓re↑port this incident?
Do you think it is ↓va↑lid?
Would he ↓su↑pport the team?
Why learn the Rules of Intonation?
Unlike other languages, the English language follows several rules of Intonation. We use a
different intonation in every different situation in English. And while other people don’t give so
much importance to the rules, having the right intonation helps us sound clearer and more
natural.
Below are the five benefits of having a very good intonation.
1. Awareness of intonation aids communication.
2. Incorrect intonation can result in misunderstandings, speakers losing interest, or even taking
offense!
3. Intonation allows you to play well in tune. So, the better the tune, the more you’ll sound
better and will be perceived as a better speaker.
4. Your tone is usually better and more consistent because you have better control in managing
your air better in order to play in tune better. Your technique has to improve in order to make the
adjustments necessary to play in tune.
5. You will feel more confident and at ease when you know your intonation is good. When you
have good intonation, speaking in English will become more fun!
Now that you already know the reasons for the importance of intonation in English, make sure
you practice and learn them. This will be a little challenging at first, but trust, it will be totally
useful if you already get the hang of it. So, keep practicing.
Did you like what you have just read? If you want more articles about how to improve your
English pronunciation skills, check out this article about the Rules of Word Stress and learn all
of them now!
