Intonation: definition, characteristics, and roles.

Intonation also called prosody or suprasegmentals is the melody of speech since it raises and falls
and this pitch variation conveys meaning. The characteristics are pitch, loudness and speed which
make up the rhythm. Another characteristic is stress which is pitch, loudness and duration
(import/import) and also tone (pitch movement that has meanings) Another characteristic is tonicity,
that is giving prominence to some word to highlight them and tonality which is to divide speech
into chunks to present one piece of information and each one has its own intonation pattern. The
role of intonation is to signal meaning: attitudinal function to express attitudes and emotions by
means of tone, grammatical function to mark beginning or end of grammatical units by means of
tonality or distinguish clause types (questions, statements) by means of tone, focusing function to
distinguish what´s new from known by means of tonicity and tone and discourse function to show
how sequences of sentences go together in spoken discourse to contrast or cohere, it signals end of
the turn or continue talking, etc, psychological function to organize speech into units that are easy to
perform or perceive by means of tonality and indexical function to mark personal or social identity
(characteristic intonation of lawyers)
The School of London vs. The School of Birmingham
The school of London vs. The School of Birmingham
School of London: Wells and O’Connor belonged to it. They link intonation to grammar and
attitude and focus on the speaker. Their approach is based on the grammatical structure and the
attitude conveyed by the configuration of different intonational contours. Prescriptive approach
School of Birmingham: it started in the 70’s with a new approach, a discoursal approach (Brazil,
Jones). They account for intonation through discourse. They study the usage we make of language.
School of Birmingham DISCOUSAL APPROACH, descriptive
• They understand language as a vehicle to do certain things: exchange information (transactional
function) and put the language to social purposes (interactional purposes)
• There is nothing inherent in the text. The intonation choices are made by each speaker, who can
present information in different ways. He believes that the intonation choices speakers make are not
derived from the grammar but from the speaker’s appraisal of the state of affairs in the context of
interaction, that is the speaker´s assessment (not on any real world´s truth) of the relationaship
between the message and the audcience. The choices take place in real time as the conversation
unfolds
• He considers that each tone unit (intonation phrase) has an obligatory prominence (accent): the
tonic syllable (nucleus). If there are more prominences, the first one is the onset and the last one is
the tonic

▪ Discourse intonation.

School of Birmingham. Consider tones in relation to context. Stressed the common values of tone
choices, they introduce a new way of interpreting tones, the general meaning of tones and analize
the contrast. They consider language to exchange info and also for social purposes. No bond
between grammar and intonation. They are not prescriptive (rely on rules) but descriptive
(guidelines)
THE TRADITIONAL APPROACH
Suprasegmental features.
The characteristics are pitch, loudness and speed which make up the rhythm. Another characteristic
is stress which is pitch, loudness and duration (import/import) and also tone (pitch movement that
has meanings) Another characteristic is tonicity, that is giving prominence to some word to
highlight them and tonality which is to divide speech into chunks to present one piece of
information and each one has its own intonation pattern.
The structure of the word group: PRE-HEAD/HEAD/ONSET/NUCLEUS/TAIL

Wells: pre head + head (onset or first tonic syllable) and nucleus + tail Tone unit
 Tonality – Chapter 4 (Wells, 4.1-4.10): - Neutral tonality: 1 clause = 1 IP. - Defining and non-defining
clauses, lists, adverbials, vocatives, tags, unimportant words at the beginning. - Ambiguity

- Neutral tonality (1 clause = IP)

✔ 1 clause = IP: each sentence and each clause is mark by an intonation break.
There is usually an intonation break between coordinate clauses (and) unless
the subject of the coordinate clause is ellipted “Peter likes him and trusts
him”. Coordinate clauses with one object and two subjects require an IP.

Mary has prepared / and we have all just eaten / a delicious

meal.

✔ Simple structures = 1 IP: I want to apologize, I think he is wrong, He said

he was sorry, I hope you haven´t forgotten.

✔ Vocatives: in initial position, they tend to form a separate IP. When not
initial, they are usually attached to what precedes them, forming part or the
tail of the IP. In greetings, however, a final vocative often has its own IP.

✔ Adverbials: ordinary adverbs and adverbials are typically not given their
own IP (adverbs of manner). However, adverbials at the beginning usually
form a separate IP. And, in the middle of a clause, an adverbial is kind of a
parenthesis, so it may have its own IP. Sentence adverbials (adjuncts) modify
the whole clause or sentence tend to have their own IP. If there are several
final adverbials modifying the verb the set them off by IP (Take it slowly,
without rushing, calmly)

✔ Defining vs. non-defining: there are two kinds of relative clause: the
defining usually does not have its own separate IP, while the non- defining
does. Some defining relative clauses don’t have an intonation break at the
beginning but there may well be an intonation break after the clause.

✔ Lists: With parallel words or phrases, there is likely to be an intonation break

after each component if there are more than two components or if the
components are heavy. The decision whether to treat each enumerated item
on a list as a separate IP is to a large extent left to the speaker’s perception of
the context of interaction. If the parallel words or phrases are placed in
contrast by the speaker, then they too are likely to be separated by an
intonation break.
 ✔ Tags: reverse-polarity tags (the tag is negative if the main clause is positive
and vice versa) tend to have their own IP. Constant-polarity tags (positive tag,
positive main clause) tend not to have its own IP.

✔ Unimportant words at the beginning: they form part of the pre-head and
therefore are not accented (oh, well, no, I think, I mean, I suppose, you know,
reporting clauses at the beginning and “she was like “”, I found it) Well can
have its own IP for hesitation, and in its own IP used for emphasis,
deliberation or pathos and the other one too. Unimportant words at the
beginning:

● They form part of the pre-head. Function words like articles, pronouns, conjunctions and
modals or auxiliary verbs. Optionally it applies to interjections such as yes, no, well, so.

✔ It applies to short introductory phrases such as I think, I mean, I suppose, you

know and I said “”, She was like “get stuffed”, I found it ´very interesting).
Alternatively, these unimportant words can have their own IP for pragmatic
reasons (well for instance if the speaker is hesitating, or and if he is talking
with great emphasis.

- Ambiguity.

Sometimes this structure is potentially ambiguous and the tonality can disambiguate it. An
intonation break signals a syntactic boundary. Help keep the dog off. Intonation break and location
can disambiguate it.
Tone – Chapter 2 (Wells): ✓ Default and alternative tones (Wells, 2.1-2.19): FALL Definitive fall Insistent
fall Reinforcing fall RISE Encouraging rise Independent rise Yes-no rise FALL-RISE Implicational fall-rise
Dependent fall-rise RISE-FALL Rise-fall LEVEL Level ✓ Rise-fall: astonishment. ✓ Level tone:
hesitation, expectancy, continuative., expectancy. ✓ Sequences of tones (Wells, 2.20-2.25). FALL + RISE

Definitive fall: Low rising only before a falling tone (protest) because the default head before a
fall is high head.
 Statements: unmarked and default tone, indicating that what we say is complete, and we
express it with confidence, definitely and unreservedly signaling finality.
 Exclamation: expressions of surprise, anger or excitement always have a fall (Exclamatory
fall) They begin with what or how or other expressions with an exclamatory mark except for
commands which may be written with an exclamation mark.
 Wh-questions: This is the default tone but it is a businesslike fall.
 Answer: Yes, no and elliptical answers (I do). The default unmarked tone would be a fall to
express agreement with what the other person is saying. Contradictions can also be said with a
definite fall but they imply warmth and solidarity and being supportive with the other person as in:
“You haven´t payed for the coffee. Yes, I have” (=it´s OK, nothing is wrong)
 Command: Default tone. They are straightforward commands, not warnings. They are firm,
authoritative.
 Interjections and greetings: default tone exclamatory or definitive fall (thank you, oh
good, sure, right) as in: “Unscrew the cylinder head. Right” (=I will). It implies the potential
completion of the conversational interchange. A fall in a greeting is a straightforward greeting or an
exclamation (How nice to see you!) It is more formal. “Thank you” with a fall expresses genuine
gratitude. “Goodbye” with a fall is used to get rid of an unwelcome guest.

Insistent fall:
Yes-no questions: with a fall they are marked and it makes the question more insistent. Also more
businesslike, more serious, more threatening. (Did you take the money) It is also used in guessing
games (Do you come from Spain) Also used when repeating a question because you were not
understood (I said, have you come far?)
Tag questions: The speaker insists, assumes, or expects that the other person will agree. He appeals
for agreement. You force the other person to agree exercising control. When tags are attached to
exclamations they always have an insistent fall. (what a surprise, wasn´t it?) After a command a tag
with a fall sounds very insistent. Tag questions included within a statement as parenthesis usually
have an insistent fall. (It´s strange, isn´t it, how she never wants to do her share of the work)
Elliptical questions: Said with an insistent fall the meaning is slight surprise or scepticism but
accepting the other person has expressed an opinion. It can sound hostile. (a. There is nothing
wrong with greed. b. Isn´t there?) You can also have reverse polarity negative elliptical yes no
question as reaction to a positive statement (rare) as in: “We really thrashed them this time”. “Yes,
didn´t we just!

Reinforcing fall:
● Adverbial: Said with a fall in order to reinforce the sense of the main clause. (“I promise to
love you, for ever” or “You must protest, of course”) “Clearly” or “on the contrary” “when I
am ready” said with a fall are reinforcing (not limiting). Also there are some tonality
idiomatic expressions used in initial position are said with a fall even though they are not
reinforcing such as:
- at least
- at any rate
- by the way
- incidentally
- after all

- RISE: Encouraging rise, independent rise, yes-no rise.

Independent rise:

 with a high head= soothing and reassuring effect. In short responses and greetings
there is no particular soothing effect (remember this soothing rise when talking to
adults can sound patronizing)

 with a low head = defensive, grudging, non-supportive, brusque or dismissive of

the first speaker´s anxiety.
Low head + rise in yes no questions can sound informal, casual.

Dependent rise:
● Clause or smallest element: a leading dependent element may have a rise (After lunch, we
could call on Mary) though the default tone is a dependent fall-rise. A trailing dependent
element the most usual tone is a rice to indicate that it belongs with what went before. (We
are going to Spain, in August) The rise merely announces the topic, it doesn´t draw attention
to it. (newsreaders use fall to announce a topic)
● Open lists: rise indicates non finality, leaving matters open.
● Alternative questions: Is Mary ready or does she need more time? (first part rise like in
open lists)
● Limiting adverbials: When they limit the sense of the whole clause like “unfortunately”,
they tend to have a trailing rise (sometimes a leading rise though fall-rise is more common)

Encouraging rise:
● Statement: Used in short responses encouraging further conversation signaling that the
social interaction is running smoothly. (Have a cup of tea. That´s very kind of you) Soothing
as in don´t worry. (huː \els ɪz ɡəʊɪŋ | əʊ ˈdʒʌst ðə /juːʒʊəl kraʊd | ɍJust for a /run, honey. I
ɍwon’t be /long. We can just 'sit and /talk, if you like.)
● Wh questions: It makes it more gentle, kindly, encouraging, sympathetic, interested (why
are you angry?) Also used in echo questions such as: I came back, why, because I love you
(interested rise)
● Commands: Use to encourage the other speaker to continue as in “go on”. Likewise,
commands said with a rise sound soothing and kindly, but when speaking to children since
to adults they may sound patronizing. (come to daddy, now take your time) Likewise if the
tags comes after a command and has its own IP you it has an encouraging rise giving a
softening effect.
● Greetings: It is more personal. It not means I am greeting you but it expresses an added
interest in the person addressed, “as I greet you, I am acknowledging you”. Also a vocative
after hello or hi always have a rising tone.
● Farewells: goodbye and its equivalents always have a rise, because it expresses good will
and an acknowledgment of the other person (exception “see you” with a fall-rise)
● Interjections: when said with a rise, inviting the other person to speak or continue speaking
as in hello? (answering the phone), yes?, uh-huh, good morning (talking to a customer).
“Oops and whoops always have a rise. In other cases an encouraging rise in an interjection
means continue with your course of action (It´s my exam tomorrow. Good luck!) Besides
we use this tone when calling someone by their name (or fall-rise to get their attention)
● suggestions

Non-supportive rise: it’s use to contradict what the other person says implying defensiveness and
unfriendliness.
✔ Statements: uptalk.
✔ Yes, no elliptical answers: Have you done your homework? No, I haven´t. (and I am not
going to) It is aggressive (truculent). Or to contradict the other person as in: “You haven´t
brought the milk. I have” implying defensiveness and aggressiveness. If you (oh) yes, (oh)
no, before a contradiction we need two IP´s, fall in first one and rise in second one. In this
category we also include perfunctory as in thank you with a rise is not genuine but signals
routine acknowledgment (perfunctory) In some cases interjections with a rise mean “please
continue with your course of action” as in “It´s my exam tomorrow. Good luck” “would you
like me to do it now? Yes, please”
Trailing dependent rise: To indicate that it belongs to what went before (They are going to Spain,
in August)

Yes-no rise:
 Yes-no question: default tone. They include requests such as “would you pass me the salt?”
 Tag questions: if genuinely asking for information with a rise to check whether the other
person agrees or not. Also constant polarity tags if they have their own tone they have a rise
as in: what a lovely dress! You like it, do you?
 Independent elliptical questions: When reacting to a statement made by another speaker
we use this default tone (I am thinking of taking a break. Are you?) I may indicate anything
from boredom to surprise (really?)
 Checking: The words right and OK
 Declarative questions: usually said with yes-no rise (sometimes with fall-rise but the
meaning changes: You didn´t go and tell him with a fall rise means “does that mean you told
him?) Declarative questions are grammatically like statements (they do not present the usual
inversion of the subject and verb like other yes-no questions), and they can be identified as
questions only by their intonation, or by the pragmatics of the situations where they are
used.

Pardon question rise:

● what, sorry or pardon. You can either query the entire utterance or just one element for
instance asking who? If you didn´t hear the name of the person.
● Echo questions: You will have to do it again. I will have to do it again? You can also query
a particular element as in: I´ll have to? It is also possible to query two or more words
individually with a pardon question rise in both. I was talking to James Smith. James?/
Smith? Second-order questions are a type of echo questions with perhaps a narrower focus
(where did it happen? Where? or when?) We also have a please repeat wh question as in:
She took a tonga. What did she take? She took a what? Broad focus pardon questions
request a repetition of everything (what was that again? What did you say?) Clarifications
always have a fall (what is a tonga?)
● Uptalk sounds like a pardon question rise
- FALL-RISE: Implicational fall-rise, dependent fall-rise.

dependent fall-rise (leading)

the speaker has not reached the end of what he wants to say (I opened the door, and…)
indicating that the word, phrase or clause that bears it is part of a larger structure. With a
leading dependent element this is the usual tone and it indicates that there is more material
to come. It is also possible for a fall-rise to be implicational (I don´t know about you, but I
am starving) where you is in contrast with me. So the usual pattern would be fall-rise + fall.
We can also say that the fall-rise corresponds to the topic and the fall to the comment as in
“My brother (topic) will be very angry (comment)” The fall-rise not only announces the
topic (rise) but also draws attention to it. We also use it for open lists to signal they are not
yet complete. Likewise, adverbials placed at the beginning usually have a leading non-final
fall-rise and they limit the sense of the main clause in some way. The dependent fall-rise is
used in leading and trailing tones, topic and comment, open lists and most adverbials that
limit the sense of the main clause in some way, so we call this pattern limiting non-fall.

Implicational fall-rise: (unmarked head tone is falling)

 Statements: the speaker implies something without necessarily putting it into words so he
states one thing but implies something further: a contrast between what is expressed and
what has not (yet) been expressed. Something is left unsaid, perhaps some kind of
implication or reservation. It is a tone that signals a “but” to come. (What can we have for
 tea? Well, we´ve got some strawberries (but we haven´t got any cream)) Also a speaker that
uses a fall-rise has reservations about what is said so his statement may be true under some
conditions but not under others as in: Have you ever visited France? I have been to Paris
(but not to many other parts of the country) The implicational fall-rise also allows us to be
tactful and politely indirect but also hypocritical and devious. (what is she like as a
colleague? She works very hard) meaning that maybe she is not a good teacher or something
else uncomplimentary. The fall-rise also signals that the speaker is tentative about what he
says (I am not sure or I don´t want to commit myself to this) “We could try a riesling”.
Also if someone has made a mistake and we want to correct them in a polite way we use this
tone. It is also used to make a partial statement, that is to say something applies partially but
not completely. “What was the food like? Well the fish was good”
Implication can be spelt out: positively with a fall or negatively with a fall-rise
The fall-rise is often used in negative statements: she wasn´t very pleased. The
implication is that the corresponding positive statement is not true. Besides it has a special
function in negative sentences since it indicates that the scope of negation includes the
word bearing the nucleus but not everything whereas a falling tone does not restrict the
scope of the negation as in I won´t eat anything (fall) = I will eat nothing and with a fall-rise
it means I will eat certain things.
 Commands: For warnings we often use a fall-rise but negative commands often have a fall-
rise (as negative statements) without necessarily implying a warning.
Interjections and greetings: When calling someone by their name, we use this tone to get
their attention. The greeting “see you” usually has a fall-rise.
 Declarative questions: you didn´t go and tell him (meaning does that mean you told him?)

- RISE-FALL: astonishment.

The speaker is impressed or expects the listener to be so. (statements, exclamations and yes-no
questions) The other meaning is challenge or disapproval (all clause types) or ironic (excuse me).
With commands, the speaker refuses responsibility, refuses to be involved (do, take physics then)

- LEVEL: Hesitation, expectancy, continuative.

The main use is as a leading dependent tone. Lists. Except for some interjections, the mid level
is not used as an independent nuclear tone. The meaning is non-finality. Used for vocatives
called from a distance and short routine utterances as: come and get it! (the food is ready),
thank you, can I help you (answering the phone),lists. To mark non-finality without
conveying any expectancy.
Sequences of tones- FALL + RISE

the pattern is a very characteristic way for a speaker to emphasize something early in the utterance
while still keeping a nuclear accent in its expected place on the last lexical item that adds new
information. It is particularly common for the first nuclear accent to go on a word referring to
mental state or on an intensifying word. It is also common for the fall to accent predictable
information. the part with the fall contains the most important idea, while the part with the rise
contains an idea of secondary importance. How do we distinguish the fall plus rise pattern from a
simple fall-rise? The fall-rise implies that there is a but to come, a reservation, while the fall plus
rise pattern is a simple straightforward proclaiming definitive fall. (example I like chocolate)
Commands said with a fall plus rise pattern are pleading requests, rather than orders that are
expected to be obeyed.

- Sequences of tones (Wells, 2.20-2.25)

Leading and trailing tones: The unmarked tone for a dependent element is a non fall

 with leading use dependent fall-rise which indicates that there is more to come, alternative
use dependent rise or mid level tone.

Use leading fallrise (or rise) also with topic and comment (secondary and primary
information) to indicate first item is presented as incomplete but remember that the
difference with the rise is that it not only announces the topic but also draws attention to it or
can also signal a contrast between the topic and some other possible topic. Newsreaders
announce topics with a fall.

 with trailing use rise indicating that it belongs with what went before. The head for a trailing
dependent rise is always low. Alternatively but less commonly use a fallrise

 Open and closed lists used rise and then fall if closed and the same for alternative questions

 Adverbials (leading fall-rise, trailing rise) . Trailing adverbials can be limiting (rise) or
reinforcing (fall). At the beginning a non final fall rise (or rise). At the end a trailing rise.
adverbials said with a fall do not limit the sense of the whole clause but reinforce it
(reinforcing fall) like “forever” Some can be both: clearly, on the contrary, when I am ready,
I am sure, I think. Some take a falling tone when initial even they are not reinforcing, tonally
idiomatic: at least, at any rate, by the way, incidentally and if they follow the main clause
they form part of the tail

 Fall plus rise

 tone concord: two intonation phrases that are grammatically parallel (tendency not rule) as
in the case of non defining apposition, particularly used when utterances as a whole are not
yet finished. It is also used in any parallel structure

It can be used for near synonyms like love, adore. Too (in addition), as well, also, either
usually exhibit tone concord when given their own IP

Tonicity – Chapter 3 (Wells) ✓ LLI Rule. Definition. (Wells, 3.1-3.3) ✓ Compound nouns (Wells, 3.4-3.5 +
Class notes)

Tonicity: where does the nucleus go?

On a stressed syllable
  Within each IP, we select one word as particularly important for the meaning. This is where
we place the nucleus , the syllable that bears the nuclear tone
 In an IP there may be other accents in addition to the nuclear accent. If so, the nucleus is
the last accent in the IP. Any other accents come earlier in the IP and are prenuclear . The
first one is known as onset
 The nucleus must go on a stressed syllable

On or near the last word

 The nucleus is usually located on or near the last word of the IP

 It is only if the words towards the end of the IP are for some reason not accented that the
nucleus will go on an earlier word

Content words and function words

 Content words are nouns, adjectives, most verbs and most adverbs. Words that have
meanings that can be defined in a dictionary
 Function words are pronouns, prepositions, articles, auxiliary verbs, modal verbs. Words
whose meanings may need to be explained in grammar
 Generally speaking, we accent content words but not function words. Hence the nucleus is
typically placed on the last content word in the IP (on the last lexical item )

Neutral tonicity or default tonicity rule: Nucleus or nuclear accent on the last lexical item, the last
content word of the IP unless contrast is involved. We use neutral tonicity to give a stretch of
utterance broad focus. (in narrow focus only part of what we say is brought into focus, as in
contrastive focus for instance)
Compounds
Single stressed (5 casos)
Most compounds in English are single stressed, the main lexical stress goes on the first
element
 N+N 1: when noun 1 delimits the meaning of noun 2, by stating what type of thing it is.
- Ex: a’larm clock
 N+N 2: the whole word denotes a device or instrument. Noun 2 is used for noun 1.
- Ex: ‘pencil case
 N+N 3: noun 2 is the doer of the action (ends in -er/-or).
- Ex: ‘dish washer
 N+N 4: words starting with an initial.
- Ex: ‘e mail, ‘t shirt
 -ing as gerund.
- Ex: ‘sleeping bag (a bag for sleeping in), ‘ironing board (a board for ironing)

Double stressed (7 casos)

Some English compounds are double stressed, their main lexical stress is on their second
element.
 Proper names of people.
- Ex: James ‘Bond
 Proper names of roads and public places.
 - Ex: Victoria ‘Road
- Except those ending in street. Ex: ‘Oxford street
 Names of institutions such as hotels and schools.
- Ex: Jurys ‘Inn, Goldsmith ‘College
 Compounds in which the first noun names the place or time.
- Ex: kitchen ‘window, summer va’cation
 Compounds in which the first element names the material or ingredient
- Ex: leather ‘jacket, cheese ‘sandwich
- Except those ending in juice, cake, bread, water or paper. Ex: ‘orange juice, ‘carrot
cake
 Abbreviations
- Ex: DV’D
 -ing as present participle
- Ex: sleeping ‘child (a child that is sleeping)
- Information status: new/old information. Synonyms. (Wells, 3.6-3.8)

Information status: we accent new info even when predictable like o´clock, hours, dollar, woman,
not old so the place of the nucleus signals the end of the new information
synonyms wash clothes/doing the laundry no accent or rise to indicate secondary info
Hypernyms: malaria/tropical diseases
hyponym: accented: ball games/football
Prospective and implied givenness words that are about to be repeated do not bear the nucleus.
(red triangle and blue triangle) the word “triangle is deaccented because it is about to be repeated.
Speakers can also deaccent word that they think is not new. She is much too busy. Intensifiers
usually accented. You can also impute knowledge to the listener as in: now, what has she done? (she
is always doing stupid things)
Contrast (Wells, 3.10)
Contrastive focus:
A particular kind of narrow focus is contrastive focus where the nuclear accent draws attention to a
contrast the speaker is making. Even function words can be accented for contrast and contrast
overrides other factors. The contrast can be implicit (I don´t know what you are complaining about)
Sometimes patterns of contrastive focus are lexicalized where contrastive focus has become the
fixed stress pattern of the word (monosyllable)

Exceptions to LLI Rule (Wells, 3.11-3.12 and 3.16-3.30; Ortiz Lira; Class notes).

Function words that attract the nucleus:

1. yes-no answers and tags; an answer to a yes-no question involves narrow
focus on polarity and the word that indicates it.
2. Prepositions: there are circumstances where the nucleus is located on a
prepositions.
When the preposition functions as the complement of to be: what is it for?
When a preposition is immediately following a wh- word: what about it?
 When a preposition is used as adverb it is accented (prepositions require a
complement, adverbs don´t) carry on but count on (complement)
⮚ Wh + to be: how are you? (unless there is contrastive focus) – tell me how you are. If the verb
to be consists of more than one word (has been) and if followed by a demonstrative (who is
that/she?) unless “that” is given
⮚ Idiomatic accenting of the verb to be: the trouble/problem/thing/difficulty/snug is that... and
also “here/there you are/it is”
⮚ Pronouns, determiners and demonstratives for contrast
⮚ Pronouns when complement of the verb to be or in idiomatic usages (follow me, what are you
doing here, what do I care, good for you, blow me, etc.)
⮚ Possessive pronouns in final position
⮚ “There” in final position if it refers to a place that is new
⮚ final demonstratives
⮚ reflexive pronouns for emphasis
⮚ indefinite pronouns for emphasis
⮚ auxiliary or modal verbs for contrast (but if there is a new verb on the verb: I don´t want
any more milk)
⮚ too, as well, also, an´all, either, indeed, anyway, anyhow (the last 2 said with a reinforcing
fall) and all of them can have their own IP. too, as well, either, also to mean in addition used at
the end exhibits tone concord
⮚ some in idiomatic expressions as: some reason, some cases, some days (fall-rise)
⮚ the right one, the wrong one, first one, last one, which one
⮚ “again” when it means one more time
⮚ adverbs of manner when at the end
⮚ Words that attract the nucleus: o’clock, hours, dollars, numerals

THE FOLLOWING DO NOT BEAR THE NUCLEUS:

 Empty words and pro-forms do not bear the nucleus (one, so, do, there, some, any, things,
crowd, people, places, guy, man, woman (the last 3 when used as pronouns) Some words are
used as pro-forms like bottle to refer to “wine” and are not accented.
 Vocatives: a vocative at the beginning of an utterance is accented. The final vocative is
usually not accented but attached to the preceding IP.
 Reporting clauses: when following quoted words. Exceptionally if followed by further
material it can have its own IP with a rise to indicate non-finality but the usual pattern is no
nucleus. What a great idea (fall) said Billy (rise) and jumped out of the car (fall)
 Adverbs of time and place: at the end unless they complete the sense of the verb or are an
important part of the message. Alternatively they may bear the nucleus making a fall plus
rise pattern.
 Adverbs of proper functioning: he can´t hear properly, do you think it will work ok?
Certain adverbs: when at the end: then, though, or so, even, sort of thing, as it
were, a bit, you know. This other list behaves in the same way though alternatively
they can be accented (rise): if necessary, of course (cohesion marker of
reinforcement y wells mismo lo trata como reinforcing fall) , please (adverb of
courtesy or softerner), thanks (adverb of courtesy or softerner), thank you (adverb
of courtesy, cohesion marker of reinforcement) , in a way (non-nuclear expression,
approximative), or thereabouts, for a change, for...´s sake, in fact, as a matter of fact,
I would/should have thought, I image, enough (when follows an adjective).
“Again” when it means back to the previous state is not accented.
Indeed is NOT accented when used in a response like “has he, indeed? (fall) to show
surprise or anger (but thank you very much indeed)
etc, and so on, and so forth, and whatnot, and stuff, and things, and the like, and such
like
Final verbs, adjectives, and defining relative clauses the nucleus goes on the
preceding noun. There are idiomatic expressions that follow this tendency: onions
make my eyes water, you are going to get your fingers burnt, she´s got a screw loose,
let´s wait for the dust to settle, wait and see which way the wind is blowing, she
looked like something the cat had brought, keep your fingers crossed, till the cows
come home, it made my hair stand on end, they got on like a house on fire, he´ll have
his work cut out
Event sentences: describing an event where the verb is intransitive and the accent
goes on the noun. Some event sentences involve an adjective as in the zip has come
undone. Description of weather as in the sun is shining count as events. Also
statements referring to unpleasant bodily sensations as in my arm is hurting or my
nose is all red. The verb or adjective is predictable from the context and does not
need to be in focus because it is what usually happens (phone rings compared to
phone has exploded)
Where does the nucleus go in?
Phrasal verbs: when nuclear, accented on the particle except for pour down
Verbs plus prepositional particle: when nuclear, accented on the verb except for look after, do
without, bump into
Phrasal verbs with particle and preposition: when nuclear, accented on the adverbial particle
Phrasals with separated particles: nucleus falls on the object and it is neutral tonicity (take your
shoes off). However if the object is a pronoun or lexical but given, it falls on the adverbial (take
them off)
Exceptions to the LLI Rule according to Ortiz Lira:
1. Event sentences
• Δ The `water’s running
• 2. Nouns + Infinitives
• Δ I’ve got a couple of `letters to write
• 3. Wh-questions ending with a verb
• Δ How much `sugar do you add?
• Δ Whose `advise did you follow?
• Δ What `brand do you buy?
• 4. Final relative clauses
• Δ What about that `story you were telling me?
• Δ This is the `doctor I was telling you about.
• 5. Nouns+adjectives/participles
• Δ He left the `door open.
• Δ Keep your `eyes shut.
• Δ How often do you have your `house painted?
• 6. Transitive verbs + object + verbal particle
• Δ Keep your `head down.
• Δ Don’t forget to put your `clock back.
• 7. Indirect questions
• Δ You can’t imagine how much `effort Mark put into it.
• 8. Subject + passive verb
• Δ `Classes have been cancelled!
• Δ The missing `link has been found.
• 9. Objects of general reference – Nouns of wide denotation
• place, thing, person, colour, time, boy, girl, street, crowd
• Δ I must ex`plain matters.
 • Δ Let’s go to `my place. Vs. Let’s go round to my `office.
• 10. Final vocatives
• Δ Your `taxi’s waiting, love.
• Δ Good `morning, doctor.
• 11. Final reporting clauses
• Δ I don’t want to go `out, he said.
• 12. Final adverbials
• 12.a. Adverbials of time and place
• Δ Autumn seems to be arriving `early this year.
• Δ There’s a `fly in my soup.
• 12.b. Adverbials of courtesy (please & thanks), degree (down-toners or intensifiers) and
proper functioning
• Δ I’ve really had e`nough thank you.
• Δ I’m just going `out for a bit. (down-toners: reject nucleus)
• Δ She lost her head com`pletely. (intensifier: attract nucleus)
• (also informal intensifiers: this or that. “It wasn’t `that bad.)
• Δ She can’t `hear properly.
• Δ Do you think it’ll `work O.K.
• 12.c. Sentence adverbials (disjuncts, like naturally, fortunately, basically; & conjuncts,
like though, for instance, rather)
• Δ Prices went `up, unfortunately (or with another IP and a rise on unfortunately).
• Δ It’s a questions of e`quality, basically. (idem)
• Δ All of our friends are going to the `Lake District. We are going to the `seaside, though
(or separate IP and rise)
• Δ RP is not a dialect, but an `accent, rather. (! same IP)
• 12.d. Sentence vs. non-sentence adverbials
• Δ I went `home, happily. (disjunct)
• Δ I went home `happily (manner adjunct)
• 13. Other patterns in broad and narrow focus
• 13.a. Fossilized expressions
• Δ to keep one’s `fingers crossed
• 13.b. Any- in negative statements
• Δ I don’t think I’m for`getting anything.
• BUT I’m not forgetting `anything.
• 13.c. Reflexive (unaccented) vs. emphatic pronouns (accented)
 • Δ He won’t worry unless you `hurt yourself.
• Δ I have to see it for my`self.
Typically non-nuclear expressions:
Group of words, phrases and expressions that will not normally attract accent because they are
semantically predictable, old information or do not contribute significant information to the context.
1. Time-space markers
They establish a link between the proposition they are appended to and the outside world. There is
some previous reference (tenses, pronouns, etc.).
i. TIME (these very frequently non-nuclear expressions may refer to the duration or frequency of
something that happened):
'Are you /ready yet.
Oh I’m 'not \seeing her any more.
'Nice to \see you again.
She’s \ill from time to time.
I’m 'seeing \Tom today.
'Can we sit /down for a minute?
I’m 'meeting \Jack tonight.
'Guess who I bumped \into the other day.
ii. SPACE (only very general space indicators are non-nuclear):
It’s 'pretty \wild out there.
'Have you been /smoking in here?
2. Cohesion markers
They comprise expressions which make explicit the logical relation between the proposition they
are appended to and its context.
i. ADDITION:
We 'finished quite \early in fact.
She 'can’t \stand him, as a matter of fact.
It’s 'more like a \theme park, really.
'Not \bad, actually.
ii. INFERENCE:
Well 'whose fault \was it, then?
iii. CONCESSION:
He had a \heart attack last year. || It 'hasn’t stopped him \smoking, though.
iv. REINFORCEMENT:
I’m 'OK on my \own, thank you.
I can 'do without your \help, thank you very much.
I 'wouldn’t go my\self of course.
We can con'nect in \Newark if necessary.
We could 'play a \card game, | \whist for example.
v. CONTRAST:
'Nice to be on your \own for a change.
It’s \time-consuming on the other hand.
3. Hearer-Appeal Markers
This class comprises items that are used by the speaker to appeal to the hearer. Most of them serve
to enhance the solidarity the speaker intends to establish with the hearer. Some are “challenging”
and, as such, have a distancing effect.
i. SOFTENERS OR SOFTENING-PHRASES:
Her 'health’s pretty \poor, you know.
It 'can’t be \true, I mean.
'Not for \me thanks.
'Open the \window, please.
It’s a 'bit ex\pensive, you see.
ii. VOCATIVES:
'Don’t \fuss, man.
I 'painted it my\self, Dad.
I’ll do it 'right a\way, dear.
'Here’s my \essay, Dr Smith.
4. Textual Markers
i. REPORTING SENTENCES:
“What a 'great i\dea,” said Billy.
“'What can we do to\day?” he asked.
ii. COMMENT CLAUSES:
She’s Portu\guese, I think.
I \could, I suppose.
'That’s \life, I know.
It was be'ginning to be \dark, I realised.
Is 'that the \end, I wonder.
It 'can’t be \true, I hope.
He’ll be 'off \soon, I imagine.
5. Approximatives
They comprise expressions that indicate the approximate nature of the proposition they are
appended to.
She 'likes \grammar and all that.
It 'weighs 50 \pounds, more or less.
It will 'only take a \minute or two.
We 'have to leave in five \minutes or so.
There were a 'lot of pictures and \posters and so on.
She had 'downloaded a whole lot of \clipart and stuff.
He had a col'lection of pressed \flowers and whatnot.
They've 'found a stash of \drugs and things.
You'll 'need \screwdrivers and so forth.
We could just \chat, sort of thing.
He's 'lived in Norwich for 40 \years, or thereabouts.
THE DISCOURSAL APPROACH ▪ Discourse: definition. The Co-operative Principle. The Four Maxims.
Discourse means the language beyond the sentence, the language in texts and conversations. It is
the language in context, the language in use. As language users we not only recognize forms and
structures but we are also able to interpret things that are not explicit in speech (no shoes no service)
we know there is a condition in order to get the service. We try to arrive at an interpretation which is
in line with our experience of the world (coherence).
The co-operative principle: there is an underlying assumption that in conversational exchanges
participants are cooperating with each other. According to this principle, there are four maxims that
we should follow (quantity, quality, relation and manner) in order to make brief, honest, relevant
and clear contributions and to signal to us in some way if these maxims are not being followed.
According to this principle we expect our conversational partners to make their contribution as
informative as is required but no more or less than is required, following the maxim of quantity. We
also expect their contributions to be honest, meaning that they should not say what they believe to
be false or for which they lack adequate evidence, thus following the maxim of quality and relevant
(following the maxim of relation) and clear, brief and orderly following the maxim of manner.
Moreover, we expect them to signal to us in some way if these maxims are not being followed,
which means that we must assume as listeners that our partner is communicating something maybe
by implying something that is not being said as in:
A: Are you coming to the party tonight?
B: I´ve got an exam tomorrow
Tone. Definition. (Brazil, chapter 1)
Tone
 • It is the major pitch movement (warning! Tone is pitch movement (key is pitch level)
• Utterances are divided into tone units . There is always only one tone in each tone unit
• There are five tones: falling, rising-falling, rising, falling-rising and level

The tone unit. Definition: It is the basic building block of speech. The beginnings and ends are
marked by //. It is the smallest stretch of speech with which a particular choice of tone or key can be
associated. A stretch of speech has as many tone units as it has tonic syllables
Structure: proclitic segment | tonic segment | tonic syllable | enclitic segment
Brazil: proclitic segment + tonic segment + enclitic segment

(onset or first tonic syllable + last tonic syllable)

Wells: pre head + head (onset or first tonic syllable) and nucleus + tail

Common ground. Definition. (Brazil, chapter 1)

Common ground Information that speakers share (or think they share) about the world, each other
experiences, attitudes and emotions. It is not restricted to shared experiences of a particular
linguistic interaction up to the moment of utterance but a product of the interpenetrating biographies
of the participants. It is common, shared knowledge. The world of the speaker and hearer overlap.
Prominence vs. accent. Definitions. (Brazil, chapter 3)
Accent: the attribute which invariably distinguishes the marked from the unmarked syllables within
a word. It is related to rhythm.
Prominence: is a property associated with a word by virtue of its function as a constituent of the
tone unit. Making a word prominent, whether lexical or not constitutes a meaningful choice. The
distribution of prominence depends upon the speaker´s apprehension of the state of convergence he
shares with his hearer, it represents his assessment of the relative information load carried by
particular elements in his discourse. Prominence reflects the speaker´s judgement that the word in
question contains matter which at this time and in this context will be informing, all else in the tone
unit is presented as recoverable because it is predictable. Prominence indicates both the boundaries
of the tonic segment and those words within it which are informing.
Brazil: accent y stress son sinónimos y lo otro es prominence
Wells: accent es prominence y stress es el acento gráfico
First of all prominent syllables are not necessarily stressed syllables even though they can co-occur.
While accented syllables are inherent properties of certain words, prominent syllables constitute a
meaningful choice and make up the set of meaningful contrasts known as intonation and are
associated with certain pitch patterns. When we give prominence to certain syllables we disregard
words that are more or less predictable which we consider to have no important information load to
the hearer even if they have accented syllables. Prominence reflects the speaker´s judgement that
the word in question contains matter which at this time and in this context will be informing; all else
in the tone unit is presented as recoverable because it is grammatically or semantically predictable.
Prominence is a property associated with a word by virtue of its function as a constituent of a tone
unit.
What do we learn about prominence in this chapter?

We learn that even when prominence is strictly a feature of the syllable, its significance is attached
to the whole word since it reflects the speaker judgement that the word in question is informing
something to the hearer, that is to say it contains information which is neither semantically nor
pragmatically predicable to the hearer and needs to be made prominent to convey a certain meaning.
We also learn that intonational meaning is carried by the tonic segment and prominence indicates
both the boundaries of the tonic segment and those words within it which are informing. Also, when
we choose key we need to pay attention to the first prominent syllable in the segment whereas when
we choose tone we need to focus on the last one of said segment. We can also say that there is a
relationship between pitch variation and the distribution of prominence.
Referring vs. Proclaiming tones. Differences. (Brazil, chapter 4)
Main distinction between referring and proclaiming: (dependant on the speaker assessment and not
on real world “truth”)
Proclaiming (in informing matters): content is presented as news, the common ground will be
enlarged with something the listener did not know. Another use would be a teacher using it to “tell”
students common ground information so that they can remember it. Contradictions or denials with a
referring tone amount to a direct confronting of the speaker´s view of things with that of the hearer
and can be rather abrasive. Another meaning is in non informing items (to tell you the truth, frankly,
actually, honestly) is to place the speaker outside the are of convergence (divergence), reserving his
position, staking a proprietory claim or expressing disagreement.
Referring (in informing matters): information that the listener is expected to know, that has already
arisen in some way, commonplace, notions that have been already introduced, treated as part of the
shared universe of reference, information mentioned which is being reinvoked, experiential content,
already negotiated shared common ground, it is an assumed focus of interest (maybe answering a
question the listener asked), evident information. The other meaning of referring tones is to present
new information as if it were already shared for politeness as in some responses which said with an
r tone sound more as if the person has forgotten or misunderstood rather than as if he was wrong (in
contradictions). Another function would be to insinuate the common ground status of a new matter
for tactical purposes (political speech) presented the information as if it had already been
negotiated, accepted in advance as suitable by the listener with the assumption that this is how all
reasonable people would view the matter. Contradictions or denials with the r tone diplomatically
places the matter in the context of assumed common ground implying that the original comment has
been made because of forgetfulness of misunderstanding and it is more acceptable in many contexts
to imply that the man has forgotten than to tell him bluntly that he is wrong. Another meaning is in
non informing items (to tell you the truth, frankly, actually, honestly) to insinuate intimacy or
solidarity (convergence)

Referring plus: We have to remember that...(the speaker thinks that it might have been overlooked)
The hearers are asked to remember something that refers to common ground of course, something
that the speaker thinks his audience may have overlooked. This background is not vividly present as
in the r tone, it needs to be reactivated. Example: Where is the typewriter? In the cupboard (r)
meaning “where it always is” or In the cupboard (r+) meaning “why don´t you ever remember”.
The speaker is asserting dominance, because he has the greater freedom in making linguistic
choices. He can reciprocate. Sometimes it is considered aggressive if it is inappropriate of the
speaker´s role. This tone represents a kind of intervention since the speaker takes a positive
initiative in invoking common ground. I also means I won´t let you down as you fear I would
(soothing rise) In non informing matters: assertion of dominance

Proclaiming plus: (rise-fall) To show surprise or horror. The speaker is adding information to the
common ground but also to his own store of knowledge. The information is doubly new. I am
surprised, disappointed, delighted, because I did not know. This option is used by a dominant
speaker. It is common when someone is reading information from a newspaper or book or in
responses to unexpected news: really? The meaning is “this alters my view of the world” and tends
to be exploited by a dominant speaker who feels able to articulate his surprise.

Functions of language:
o Transactional function: new vs. old information. Examples. (Brazil, chapters 1 and 3 + class
notes). Finding out vs. checking (Brazil. Class notes.)
o Interactional function: convergence vs. divergence. (Brazil, chapters 1 and 3 + class notes)

Transactional Function: Language is used to exchange information, to express content. This is a

transactional explanation of the significance of tone. Tone choice is not dependent on linguistic
features of the message, but rather on the speaker’s assessment of the relationship between the
message and the audience. On the basis of this assessment he makes moment by moment decisions
to refer to sections of his message as part of the existing common ground or to proclaim them as an
addition to it
New info (P – P+)
 The speaker has information that the listener wants and draws upon his own, so far unshared
private, fund of knowledge in providing it. It could be new for the listener (proclaiming), and item
of news that is likely to change the world of the hearer, meaning that the speaker expects that the
area of common ground between him and the listener will be enlarged as a result of being told
something he didn´t already know. Information could be also doubly new information, that is to say,
new for the listener and the speaker (proclaiming +)
Old info (R – R+)
Old information is the one that the listener is supposed to know, the background understanding that
exists between speaker and hearer. It is the same as shared information. It is information that has
already arisen in some way. It refers to a notion that has already been introduced, that is
conversationally in play, an area of common concern, part of the shared universe of reference that is
now reinvoked but is part of the shared, already negotiated common ground. The speaker makes
reference to features which he takes to be already present in the interpenetrating worlds of speaker
and hearer. I also refers to information that is visible evident or information that is new but for
tactical purposes such as politeness the speaker presents as already shared or negotiated. In political
speeches speakers can present new information as old, as if its suitability has already been
negotiated pre-empting its acceptance by his audience with the assumption that this is how all
reasonable people would view the matter. Information can be old (referring), or old information
that needs to be reactivated (referring +), where the speaker reminds the listener about old
information which the listener has forgotten.
- Finding Out vs. Making Sure.
QUESTIONS
Making sure (checking) (r+)
There is a presupposition in the mind of the speaker. He uses a REFERRING TONE which implies
that the speaker expects that what the other person will say will not be new to the speaker. If you are
offering help r+
(r) Social reasons A fall rising tone sounds more polite than a rising tone. It is preferred in questions
asked for social reasons (do you want to take your coat off? / are you sure you can manage that?),
that is mainly to be polite and friendly rather than to check information. If you are offering help r+
is ok but if you are asking for it use r.
Finding out (p)
There is a gap of information. If the speaker uses a PROCLAIMING TONE when he is asking, he
expects the reply will be new to him.
Interactional function 
Language is used to express social relations and personal attitudes. Speakers want to create a bond
or stablish a conversation. It refers to the conventional use of language to open talk exchanges and
to close them, to negotiate role-relationships, peer solidarity, the exchange of turns in a
conversation, the saving of face of both speaker and hearer. It is the interpersonal use of language as
for instance commenting on the weather to indicate readiness to be friendly and to talk. Choice of
tone can also carry the more general social meanings of convergence/divergence or
solidarity/separateness
• Convergence is marked by means of the referring tones
• Separateness is marked by means of the proclaiming tones
R – R+: if the speaker wants to imply solidarity, intimacy or CONVERGENCE. We are at one with
each other.
P – P+: the speaker wants to convey distance, separateness or DIVERGENCE. The speaker is heard
to be reserving his position or staking a proprietory claim to the view expressed in the ensuing
discourse or emphasizing the lack of agreement on the point.
A common use of the fall rise in this function is to fill in some qualification that the speaker
assumes can be taken for granted. Example: Where does this road lead to? Eventually it leads out
onto the bypass with a fall rise on “eventually” means “although you don´t actually say so I take it
you mean where will you get if you continue to the end. Actually with a fallrise is an invocation of
social togetherness, shared understanding which softens the impact of a proclaimed assertion that
will probably be unwelcome.

Role relationship
In all situations there are social rules which determine who speaks when and to whom, and in many
situations speaking rights are distributed in a different way. We use the term dominant to indicate
the person who has the greater freedom in making linguistic choices. The freedom to make choices
is only available to a dominant speaker or to one who is trying to claim dominance
The choice of tone varies if the speaker asserting dominance or not. Cultural practices determine
when it is appropriate to assume dominance and when it is not. For instance you need the rising
tone to be effective in public contexts. When the speaker is seeking to help someone it is often
appropriate to be forceful but when seeking help for oneself it is better not be.
R+ – P+:  When speaker is asserting dominance
P – R: when the speaker is not asserting dominance

Dominant speaker. Dominance is like “control”, role attribute, intervention. In some kinds of social
conversations participants compete with each other for control.
The one who is in control of the conversation or other verbal event (chairperson). Is the one who
has greater freedom in making linguistic choices, either because he has a greater knowledge or a
role of authority or the one who uses the system to claim dominance thus taking on the active role
to reactivate shared matter, that is to say to remind the listener of the importance of a matter that has
probably been overlooked. It is a kind of intervention because the speaker takes a positive initiative
in invoking common ground. A dominant speaker is privileged to intervene.

Key: high, mid or low. Definition. Uses. Examples. (Brazil, chapters 2 + class notes)
Key refers to pitch level contrasts which convey linguistic meaning (warning: tone is pitch
movement) To the listener, some syllables appear to have a steady pitch, some a slight pitch
movement, and some have a marked pitch movement. The key change occurs on the onset syllable.
Key choices
• There are three key choices: high, mid and low. However much someone widens or narrows the
pitch range, he will still exploit the same small number (3) of pitch contrasts to convey linguistic
meaning. The choices are made and recognized with reference to the comparable pitch choice of the
preceding unit (there are no absolute values)
• The key choice is realised only once in each tone unit
• We hear key as an independent, simultaneous choice rather than a secondary one
depending on the speaker’s having selected a particular tone.
High key:
• beginning of pitch sequence – NEW TOPIC
• CONTRAST – contradictions / oppositions (used when the “matter of the tone unit is presented
as being contrary to the expectations of the hearer)
• Particularising as in the sense of choosing one word by rejecting all others or dismissing one
which is not appropriate. With referring tone: implies that the contrast has already been established
within the referential framework the participants share, or in the wider social context. We are going
to London not Birmingham. The closed set of options was already common ground. With a
proclaiming tone: The speaker would be including as part of his news what the two options were.
The speaker can exploit a contrast not yet assented to by his audience. As soon as he finished eating
he changed into tennis gear (of all the things...)
Mid key: addition (neutral or unmarked key choice)  It indicates that there is no particular
assumption upon the part of the speaker about what the hearer’s expectations are, that is, the content
of the respective mid key tone unit is just an addition to what has already been said before.
Low key:
 • equivalence between items in successive tone units, synonymous
• low key occurs where the message is supposed to perfectly meet the hearer’s expectations
• to mean because, therefore or so (one statement is implied by the other establishing a logical
relationship) The equivalence of low key holds across utterances, meaning that when you begin in
low key, there is an equivalence relationship between what you say and something you have said.
• restrictive, specific – parenthetical structures, the speaker offers a more circunscribed
formulation of what went before, a finer point on the matter supplied.
• End of pitch sequence – ENDING TOPICS
• When a speaker begins in low key he indicates that there is an equivalence relationship between
what he says and something the previous speaker had said.
• Low key in utterance initial position means the speaker is offering a more cincumscribed
formulation of what went before. (restrictive)
When it comes to paratones, externally we use high to change topic, mid to continue and low to
finish.
Pitch sequence/Paratone. Definition. (Brazil, chapter 2. Booklet. Class notes.)

Paratone/pitch sequence

The paratone is the largest intonation pattern, often regarded as the spoken equivalent of a
paragraph.

The largest intonation pattern to which an identifiable function can be assigned, often regarded as
the spoken equivalent of a paragraph. For example, a newsreader typically introduces a new item by
using a wide pitch range, and the pitch range becomes steadily narrower towards the conclusion of
the item. (Trask)

A word meant to indicate an analogy with paragraphs in the written language. (Cruttenden)

It is loosely related to the discoursal notion of topic; the pitch range of an intonation-group at the
beginning of a paratone/paraphone may be wide and may narrow as the end of the
paratone/Paraphone is approached. (Cruttenden)

Orientation towards the listener or the language: When the addressee is presumed to have a present
interest in the message that the speaker is seeking to convey. This is direct orientation.

Oblique orientation: reading out or carrying out ritualized procedures amount to vocalizing what is
written or what is habitually said. The speakers are engaged with the language purely as language.
They are thinking about what they are saying rather than about what message they are trying to
convey. Oblique discourse makes use of proclaiming tones in the sense of “I tell you what is written
here” or “I tell you what is customary to tell you on occasions like this” and the level or o-tone.
Level tone occurs in precoded discourse, hesitations when there is a shift from the listener to the
language because the speaker is having difficulty in putting together the language. I means wait a
moment while I am working out what to say next.
Zenobi:
We use language to negotiate meanings. Intonation is a fundamental aspect of communicative
competence. The basis of discourse intonation is found in role relationships and areas of
convergence between participants. Other features help to express the structure of information:
tonicity, tonality, tone, social meanings of tones, key, orientation, etc
r+ tone is used for:
• listen to what I have to say (claiming dominance) because I haven´t finished
• reactivating (it could sound aggressive or perfunctory)
p+ tone is used for:
• doubly new information contrary to beliefs or expectations
• challenge, irony
0 tone:
• oblique orientation to the language of the utterance (not considering convergence or common
ground)
• hesitating
• quoting or reciting prayers
1) Intonation used when informing: any tones and keys
2) Intonation often used when eliciting:
• a) eliciting decisions (yes or no) : rising tone for checking and claiming dominance demanding
an answer from the listener (Is there a hospital near here?) Fallrise also sounds convergent
 • b) eliciting content: fall is used because meaning is totally unnegotiated. When a rise is used the
response is more important than the information
• c) eliciting agreement: fall
3) Intonation used when echoing: rise, matter shared, dominance seeking clarification or trying to
hold the attention of the listener while he is thinking what to say. High key to show contrast. Rise
fall can also be used (doubly new contrary to expectations).
4) Intonation often used when directing: falling
5) Intonation used when requesting: rising (patronizing claiming dominance)
6) Intonation often used when warning: rise (calm warning, patronizing), fallrise (inminent danger,
convergent) Fall: the person does not know the reason of the danger
7) Intonation used when exclaiming and greeting: fall (new information), when rise is used the
speaker claims dominance. May sound casual or perfunctory (particularly with equative key)
8) Intonation used when enumerating or listing: rises for unfinished list and falls for finished and
claims dominance suggesting that the listener should pay attention because there is an item that
follows. Fall can be used when the items are new information. A fallrise implies reference,
convergence, uncertainty.
9) Intonation used when contradicting or correcting: resentful with a rise and mild (convergent)
with fallrise.
10) Intonation used for protesting: rising head and fall, rise and fall
11) Intonation used to express surprise: rise fall and pitch contrast or fall
12) Intonation for implying extra meanings: fallrise
13) Intonation for apologising: fallrise for convergence, fall for heartfelt
14) Intonation to express gladness, regret or sorrow: fall on the feeling and rise on the second part
which is the reason so shared information (a fall on the intensifier sounds more emphatic)
15) Intonation used in emphatic constructions: fall on the emphatic word and rise at the end where
the information is shared and the speaker claims dominance.
16) Intonation for addressing: initial vocatives fall to draw the speaker´s attention or there are
several listeners and the speaker selects one. When a rise is used the speaker claims dominance, or
in conjunction with high key the speaker is not sure that the listener is within his reach. When a
fallrise is used the speaker is certain that the listener is within reach. When a mid level is used the
speaker shows he is elaborating the message and hesitates before his next utterance (oblique
orientation) Final vocatives are normally uninforming or they could have a rise if the speaker claims
dominance.