Intonation - EnglishSolo

🎹 Intonation: The Melody of English

Intonation is all about focus. It means that the sounds (pitch) of the voice rises and falls according to certain signals, for example surprise or confusion. The correct intonation will make communication clearer.

Intonation Problems

Some speakers of English struggle with intonation. Some common problems include sounding flat or monotone, or changing pitch at the wrong time.

Piano keys representing the musical nature of intonation

📉 Statements

Statements have a falling intonation.

He is a student↘

❓ Questions

Yes-No Questions

Yes-No questions have a rising intonation.

Do you drink coffee↗

WH-Questions

WH-questions have a falling intonation.

What time is it↘

Where are you going↘

Note: In spoken English, intonation can represent grammatical forms, such as a question. For example, the helping verb may be omitted in the following question:

(Do) You like rugby↗

⚖️ Choices

A statement expressing choice has a falling intonation.

Do you want to hike or swim↘

I want to swim↘

✅ Agreement

Statements expressing agreement have rising intonation.

Learning English is hard↘

Original statement

You're right, it IS hard↗

Agreement with emphasis

😲 Surprise

Statements or questions showing surprise have a rising intonation.

I don't watch TV↘

Original statement

You don't watch TV↗

Surprised response

You failed chemistry↗

Expressing surprise

🎯 Practice Intonation Patterns

Click to practice different intonation patterns:

Click any button above to practice intonation patterns!

🎧 Practice Tip: Practice listening to the intonation of spoken English. Over time, you'll be able to identify meaning just by the speakers' changes in pitch.