Intonation In English Made Easy

What do you think of when you think of “learning English”? 

Do you normally think of learning English vocabulary and grammar? 

Well, yes, this is what learning English involves, but it’s not all there is to it. The way we pronounce words and sentences is just as important as learning words and rules. 

This is why learning how to use intonation in English is also a crucial aspect of learning how to communicate effectively in this language. 

So in this post, you will explore what English intonation is, the different patterns of intonation in English, and ways for you to work on your intonation.

Let’s get started.

What Is Intonation In English?

Intonation is the rise and fall of the pitch of your voice as you speak. 

The pitch of our voice is basically how high or low the sound of your voice is. This can change depending on the emphasis you place on certain words, the mood you want to convey, and the context of the conversation. 

So, you can see intonation as the “melody” that comes out of your mouth when you are speaking in English. It’s the music of your sentences. This is a key element of spoken English that helps you make the meaning of your message clear. 

Examples Of Intonation In English

For example, the phrase “It’s 8 o’clock” can mean several things depending on what intonation pattern you use when you say it. 

Imagine that a group of friends has invited you and your partner to have dinner with them. You have to meet your friends at 8:15 pm at the restaurant and you know it will take you at least 30 minutes to get there. 

You’re ready to go but your partner is not. You’re standing at the front door waiting for him (or her) when your partner asks you, “What time is it?”

You reply, “It’s eight o’clock!”. 

How do you think you’d say this phrase? You’d probably say it with such an intonation that it means “Hurry up! We’re going to be late if you don’t speed up!”

Now imagine another situation. 

It’s still 8 o’clock but your appointment is at 11 pm. You still need to have a shower and you’re not ready to go out yet. You’re not in a hurry. You’re actually watching TV on your couch wearing a tracksuit.

Your partner says, “Go take a shower now otherwise we’re going to be late.”

You reply, “It’s eight o’clock”. 

How do you think you’d say it this time? It’s highly likely that you’d use an intonation pattern that means, “Come on, it’s still too early. We still have plenty of time. Relax.”

The words you use are the same, but the “music” of your words is different. This is what intonation is. It’s what allows you to express meaning and emotion at the same time.

There are several patterns of intonation in English, and each conveys a different meaning. Let's get into more detail and look at some of the most common ones.

Patterns Of Intonation In English

There are two main patterns of intonation in English: falling intonation and rising intonation.

Falling Intonation

Falling intonation describes how the voice falls at the end of the sentence and it’s often used in statements, commands, and wh- questions. For example:

Wh-Questions

• What is your ↓ name?
• Where did you go last ↓ night?
• When is the next ↓ train?
• Why did you do ↓ that?
• How did you get ↓ here?
• Who is coming to the ↓ party?
• Which one do you ↓ prefer?
• Whose car is parked  ↓outside?
• What time is ↓ it?
• Where are you ↓ from?

Statements

• I'm not interested in going to the party ↓ tonight.
• I already told you, I don't want to talk about ↓ it.
• The deadline for this project is tomorrow at ↓ noon.
• She's a talented musician, but she can be difficult to work ↓ with.
• I'm really looking forward to my vacation next ↓ month.
• I'm sorry, I can't come to the meeting ↓ tomorrow.
• I'm not sure I understand what you're ↓ asking.
• He's been working on that project for months, but it's still not ↓ finished.

Commands

• Sit ↓ down.
• Stop ↓ talking.
• Be ↓ quiet.
• Go to your ↓ room.
• Pay ↓ attention.
• Stand ↓ up.
• Listen to ↓ me.
• Turn off the ↓ TV.
• Leave me ↓ alone.
• Come ↓ here.

In all these, the intonation of your voice falls at the end of the sentence.

You also use falling intonation in question tags. These are short questions added to the end of a statement to turn it into a question. 

An example of a question tag is, “It’s a nice day, isn’t it?” 

You use falling intonation in question tags only when you want the speaker to confirm or agree with what you have said.

Some examples:

• You're coming to the party, aren't ↓ you? (I’m fairly sure you're coming. I'm just asking you to confirm this.)
• He's a great singer, isn't ↓ he? (I love the singer and would like you to agree with me.)
• They didn't finish the project on time, did ↓ they? (I’m quite sure they didn’t. I'm just asking you to confirm this.)
• We shouldn't be late, should ↓ we?  (I think we shouldn’t, but I’m asking you to confirm.) 

Rising Intonation

If falling intonation means that the pitch of your voice is lower at the of the sentence, rising intonation is the opposite: your voice goes up at the end of the sentence.

This type of intonation pattern is commonly used at the end of yes / no questions, but we also use it to express surprise, uncertainty, or disbelief. 

For example:

Yes / No Questions

• Are you feeling well ↑ today?
• Do you like ↑ pizza?
• Is it cold ↑ outside?
• Did you enjoy the ↑ movie?
• Can I borrow your ↑ pen?
• Are you going to the party ↑ tonight?
• Do you want to come with ↑ me?
• Did you finish your ↑ homework?
• Is your favourite colour ↑ blue?
• Would you like some ↑ coffee?

Questions That Show Surprise

• What?? You got ↑ married?!
• You quit your ↑ job?!
• You bought a new ↑ car?!
• You're moving to ↑ Australia?!
• You're ↑ pregnant?!
• You're getting a ↑ tattoo?!
• You're going ↑ skydiving?!
• You won a trip to ↑ Europe?!
• You're learning a new ↑ language?!

You also use rising intonation in question tags, but only when you're not sure about what you have just said. 

Here are some examples:

• You like ice cream, don't ↑ you? (I’m not sure if you like ice-cream or not)
• She's a good dancer, isn't ↑ she? (I’m not sure if she's a good dancer or not)
• They're going to the concert, aren't ↑ they? 
• He's coming with us, isn't ↑ he?
• We had a great time, didn't ↑ we?

How To Practice And Improve Your Intonation In English

Now that you know a little bit more about intonation patterns in English, the question is: how do you improve your own intonation?

Well, as I said, intonation is like music, so think about how you learned to sing your favourite songs. 

Did you analyse them word by word and study the rules of composition? Maybe. But I think you know how to sing your favorite songs because you’ve listened to them hundreds of times – so many times that now you know what the song sounds like.

You can do the same with English intonation. Expose yourself to a lot of natural, spoken English again and again. And sing, or rather speak, a lot.

Here are some ways you could do this:

• Listen to English speakers and pay attention to how they emphasize certain words and how their pitch changes in the sentences. 

• Use a voice recorder or your smartphone to record yourself speaking English. Listen back to your recordings and pay attention to your intonation patterns. 

• Practice repeating phrases in English with different intonation patterns until you feel comfortable with them.

• Watch English-language TV shows and movies to hear natural spoken English and pay attention to the intonation patterns used in different situations. Try to imitate these. You can also record yourself repeating some of the lines spoken by actors, and then compare your intonation with theirs.

• Choose a short phrase and speak it using different intonation patterns. For example, say, “I told you” as if you were angry, sad, super excited, bored, and so on.

These are all good ways.

Ready To Work On Your Intonation In English?

So are you ready to work on your intonation? It really is an important aspect of English communication and you can start today by listening to the StoryLearning podcast. 

It's a great resource that you can use while you’re doing other things and it will help you expose yourself to a lot of different intonation patterns.

Or you might want to use English audiobooks. You can stop the audiobook at any time and read aloud a few sentences imitating the intonation pattern that you heard. 

My short stories in English books are also available in audiobook format, as well as my other books for English learners such as the 101 Conversations series.

Whatever you decide to do, have fun learning and practising intonation in English!

Olly Richards

Creator of the StoryLearning® Method

Olly Richards is a renowned polyglot and language learning expert with over 15 years of experience teaching millions through his innovative StoryLearning® method. He is the creator of StoryLearning, one of the world's largest language learning blogs with 500,000+ monthly readers.

Olly has authored 30+ language learning books and courses, including the bestselling "Short Stories" series published by Teach Yourself.

When not developing new teaching methods, Richards practices what he preaches—he speaks 8 languages fluently and continues learning new ones through his own methodology.