intonation
The way your voice goes up and down when you speak.
The pattern of rises and falls in the pitch of the voice when speaking, which helps express meaning, emphasis, or attitude.
How correctly a singer or instrument produces musical notes at the right pitch.
Accuracy of pitch when singing or playing a musical instrument, or the tuning of an instrument so notes sound at the correct pitch.
- Base: intonation
- Plural: intonation, intonations
falling intonation
1voice pitch falling
When your voice goes down as you speak, especially at the end.
- Statements such as “I'm ready” usually have falling intonation.
- Falling intonation can make an answer sound certain or complete.
- When giving the command, she used firm falling intonation.
- Use falling intonation for a normal statement.
flat intonation
1little pitch variation
Speaking with a voice that does not go up or down much.
- The actor delivered the line with flat intonation, so the joke did not work.
- If you use flat intonation throughout a presentation, listeners may lose interest.
- The robot voice had flat intonation and sounded unnatural.
- Flat intonation can sound boring.
question intonation
1intonation signaling questions
The voice pattern that makes something sound like a question.
- His question intonation made the statement sound like a request for confirmation.
- Practise the question intonation in “Are you coming?”
- She used question intonation on the final word to show she wanted a response.
- Use question intonation when you ask, “Really?”
rising intonation
1voice pitch rising
When your voice goes up as you speak, especially at the end.
- In many English yes-or-no questions, speakers use rising intonation at the end.
- She repeated his name with rising intonation, as if she was not sure she had heard it correctly.
- Use rising intonation here if you want to sound more encouraging.
- Your voice goes up with rising intonation.