Intonation

Intonation is a meaningful aspect of speech. This aspect of speech refers to patterns of changes in the frequency of vocal fold vibrations. It is these patterns of changes that convey meaning through syntax. Syntax pertains to sentence formation. On another level, intonation refers to pitch, loudness, and the overall rhythm of speech. Pitch contours accompany syntactical units such as phrases and sentences. Linguists refer to intonation as one of several suprasegmental features of speech. Along with tone, stress, and length, intonation is thought to occur above (supra) individual segments like phrases, words, or individual speech sounds. When a speaker's voice rises at the end of a syntactical [Page 405]unit, this generally signals a question. When a speaker's voice falls at the end of a syntactical unit, this generally signals a statement. Whether pitch rises or falls, pitch contours are meaningful. Intonation, then, has the capacity to provide cues for the listener regarding a speaker's culture, gender, mood, age, and other elements of identity.

Many English as a second language speakers find it difficult to master intonation patterns like native English speakers. Their use of first language intonation patterns with second language speech features clearly identifies the speaker as one whose first language is not English. Differences in intonational contours distinguish speakers. For example, the speech of those whose native language is a tone language clearly distinguishes the speaker. In tone languages, such as many African languages, pitch patterns are syllabically meaningful. That is, a rising syllable in a word may have one meaning while a falling syllable in seemingly the same word may have another meaning. Pitch is inherent in the word, not the sentence. In intonation languages, such as American English, pitch patterns are syntactically meaningful. It is the phrase and sentence that reflect meaning. Native English speakers control the meanings of syntactical units as they control pitch patterns. Depending on intonational patterns within syntactical units, different meanings may result. Misplaced intonational contours may sound unnatural or cause ambiguity. Appropriately placed intonational contours clearly signal the pause in syntactical units or the end of syntactical units. The intonational contour of the syntactical unit ending in a full stop or period differs from the independent statement in a series of independent statements punctuated with pauses or commas. The following syntactical units illustrate this point:

• (a)
  He flew to Columbus.
• (b)
  He flew to Columbus, drove to Cincinnati, and walked to campus.

Intonation is meaningful in that the independent statements punctuated with commas rise slightly in pitch. This rise in pitch does not, however, rise to the pitch level of a question. Intonation clearly distinguishes the statement, the phrase, and the question.

The tag question combines both statement and question. It reflects the rising and falling pitch. An example of a tag question follows: “I would like to visit the museum, wouldn't you?” Intonation is meaningful here because the tag question, or brief question adjoining a statement, is often aligned with women's speech. Early studies suggest that the use of tag questions in speech implies weakness and conveys ineffectiveness. Even though many women critics oppose this assertion, gender remains a factor in the use of intonation.

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