Definition of Intonation

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1. Definition of intonation Intonation is the topic of particular theoretical and practical interest. It is the sphere of suprasegmental phonetics. The flow of speech does not consist only of segmental units (speech sounds), there are also other phonetic means that characterize a sequence of speech sounds. They are called suprasegmental or prosodic means. Intonation is a language universal. There are no languages which are spoken as a monotone, i. e. without any change of prosodic parameters. But intonation functions in various languages in different ways. Intonation is indispensable in communication, because it is instrumental in conveying meaning. No sentence can exist without a particular intonation. No meaning can be expressed without it. Intonation can be described on the acoustic level (in terms of its acoustic characteristics), on the perceptions level (in terms of the characteristics perceived by human ear) and on the linguistic level (in terms of meanings expressed by intonation). In Macmillan`s dictionary intonation is considered as the way in which the voice rises or falls when someone speaks. But it is the layman`s definition. According to most Russian linguists on the perception level intonation is defined as a complex, a whole, formed by significant variations of pitch, loudness and tempo (the rate of speech and pausation) closely related. Some definitions also include timbre (voice quality), which sometimes is sometimes regarded as the fourth component of intonation. In British and American tradition intonation is restricted to the pitch (tone) changes only. Intonation is identified with pitch movements (or melody), because pitch has the greatest linguistic value. 2. Accentual and integral components of intonation Different kinds of meanings are expressed by different sound means. Lexical and grammatical meanings are made using sound
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