34) Definition of Intonation.

• "Intonation is the melody or music of a language. It refers to the way the voice rises and falls as we speak. How might we tell someone that it's raining?

It's raining, isn't it? (or 'innit,' perhaps)

In linguistics, intonation is variation of spoken pitch that is not used to distinguish words; instead it is used for a range of functions such as indicating the attitudes and emotions of the speaker, signalling the difference between statement and question, and between different types of question, focussing attention on important elements of the spoken message and also helping to regulate conversational interaction. It contrasts with tone, in which pitch variation in some languages does distinguish words, either lexically or grammatically.

Although intonation is primarily a matter of pitch variation, it is important to be aware that functions attributed to intonation such as the expression of attitudes and emotions, or highlighting aspects of grammatical structure, almost always involve concomitant variation in other prosodic features. Crystal^[1] for example says that "...intonation is not a single system of contours and levels, but the product of the interaction of features from different prosodic systems - tone, pitch-range,loudness, rhythmicality and tempo in particular."

Most transcription conventions have been devised for describing one particular accent or language, and the specific conventions therefore need to be explained in the context of what is being described. However, for general purposes the International Phonetic Alphabet offers the two intonation marks shown in the box at the head of this article. Global rising and falling intonation are marked with a diagonal arrow rising left-to-right [↗] and falling left-to-right [↘], respectively. These may be written as part of a syllable, or separated with a space when they have a broader scope:

He found it on the street?

[ hiː ˈfaʊnd ɪt | ɒn ðə ↗ˈˈstɹiːt ‖ ]

Here the rising pitch on street indicates that the question hinges on that word, on where he found it, not whether he found it.

Yes, he found it on the street.

[↘ˈjɛs ‖ hi ˈfaʊnd ɪt | ɒn ðə ↘ˈstɹiːt ‖ ]

How did you ever escape?

[↗ˈˈhaʊ dɪdjuː | ˈɛvɚ | ə↘ˈˈskeɪp ‖ ]

Here, as is common with wh- questions, there is a rising intonation on the question word, and a falling intonation at the end of the question.

In many descriptions of English, the following intonation patterns are distinguished:

• Rising Intonation means the pitch of the voice rises over time [↗];

• Falling Intonation means that the pitch falls with time [↘];

• Dipping or Fall-rise Intonation falls and then rises [↘↗];

• Peaking or Rise-fall Intonation rises and then falls [↗↘].

35) Types of Intonation in English

We call the melody of language intonation. Intonation refers to the total pitches, i.e., the rising and falling of the voice when a person is speaking, within an utterance. It is the English intonation that makes English sound really English.

Intonation also makes speech meaningful. English intonation adds the meaning of an utterance in two ways:

It shows the relationship of words within and between sentences;

It tells something about the feeling of the speaker.

In other words, different pitches may indicate different meanings for the same utterance. Different pitches help us express our feelings: happiness, sadness, surprise, annoyance, anger, and so on. In listening to the meaning of an utterance, therefore, we listen to how speakers talk as well as as to what they say. The HOW and WHAT together give us the meaning of an English utterance.

Intonation patterns that disagree with the content of the utterance may indicate doubt, sarcasm, or confusion.

Basic intonation types

English has two basic intonation types: rising and falling. When they go together, they can make a falling-rising tone.

Look at the following example:

——IsJohn in?

——No, John’snot in.

——IsJohn in?

——No,John isnot in.

“Is John in?” has rising intonation. The pitch of the voice goes up at the end of the utterance. The speaker is asking a question. “No, John’s not in” in a) has falling intonation. The pitch of the voice goes down at the end of the utterance. The speaker is answering a question. “No, John’s not in” in b) has falling-rising intonation. The pitch of the voice goes down first and then goes up at the end of the utterance. The speaking is answering a question with implication, such as: John’s not in, but his wife/sister/brother is.

Types of intonation patterns we have to learn

English can be spoken correctly and naturally with the following three intonation patterns: falling, rising and falling-rising.

36) Regional types of the British pronunciation.

Не уверена что это то что нужно! Но если попадется этот билет не пугайтесь! Внизу сначало идёт введение! Потом 7 возможных акцентов в Британий! Не пугайтесь что так много! Выучите только 3-4 из них! Этого будет достаточно! Или же все но в кратций!))

The United Kingdom is probably the most dialect-obsessed nation in the world. With countless accents shaped by thousands of years of history, there are few English-speaking nations with as many varieties of language in such a small space. Here is a list of the most important types of British English. While this is not a complete list by any means, it will give you an overview of the accents and dialects most often discussed on this site and elsewhere.