Lab II - Booklet 2015 PDF

1 Prof.
Francisco Zabala - 2015
Lab II
Z!kza sÁ t9 { !Hms?ØmdHRm\<
Prof. Francisco Zabala

2 Prof. Francisco Zabala - 2015
Unit 1: Introduction
Contents:
Stress: word stress and stress in context. Compound words. Stress shift.
The influence of stress on weak and strong syllables as well as weak and strong forms.
The three T’s: tonality, tonicity and tone
The School of London and the School of Birmingham
Class 1
1. Pre-listening:
a. Read the text. What’s it about?
b. Focus on the syntax. Imagine you had to use this dialogue in one of your classes: what level would
be suitable?
c. Focus on the lexis. Do you still agree with your previous answer?
2. Listen (Track 1)
Busy in the kitchen
Billy: Mummy, you busy?
Mother: Yes! I’m in the kitchen.
Billy: Can I go swimming in Chichester with Jim this morning?
Mother: Jim?
Billy: Jim English. He’s living with Mr. and Mrs. Willis in the village – Spring
Cottage.
Mother: Isn’t it a bit chilly to go swimming?
Billy: What’s this? Can I pinch a bit of it?
Mother: Oh, Billy, you little pig! It’s figgy pudding. Get your fingers out of it!
Billy: Women are so silly! I only dipped a little finger in…
Mother: Well, it’s a filthy little finger. Here. Tip this chicken skin into the bin and I’ll
give you a biscuit.
Ponsonbi, M. (1987). How now brown cow? Cambridge: Prentice Hall International. Page 71.
3. Post-listening
a. Would you still use it in the class you mentioned above? Why?
b. What phonological features in the text can be exploited in a language class?
Segmental analysis
1. Weak and strong forms
2. Weak and strong syllables
3. Weak and strong vowels
4. Difficult contrasts for Riverplate Spanish speakers:

a. Production vs. distribution problems
b. Onglide/offglide
c. KIT .H. vs. FLEECE .h9.
d. TRAP .z. vs. STRUT .U. vs. BATH .@9.
e. LOT .P. vs. THOUGHT .N9.
f. FOOT .T. vs. GOOSE .t9.
g. DRESS .d. vs. NURSE .29.
h. .o+ s+ j. (aspiration and devoicing of approximants)
i. .a+ c+ f. full closure
j. .cY+ R+ Y+ sR. and sequences of affricates (e.g. huge giant)
k. English alveolar Zs+ c\ vs. Spanish dental ZsŒ+ cŒ\
l. .c+ C.
m. .a+ u.
n. .M. + vowel
o. Consonant clusters
p. Keeping final consonants
5. Allophones and connected speech processes

a. Full aspiration and lack of aspiration
b. Devoicing of approximants .k+ q+ v+ i.
c. Devoicing of obstruents
d. Pre-fortis clipping
e. Masked plosives
i. No audible release/Unreleased
ii. Lateral release
iii. Nasal release
f. Clear and dark .k.
g. Dentalization
h. The glottal stop
i. Elision
j. Assimilation
k. Linking (and intrusive) .q.
Suprasegmental analysis
1. Word stress:
Find examples of these patterns: (¸ unstressed vs. ˜ stressed syllable)
¸ ˜ ˜¸ ˜¸¸
2. Compound words
Find examples in the dialogue: ____________________________________________
3. Sentence accent (Track 2)
Listen:
Nucleus: 1. Here 2. Mummy
Onset + Nucleus 1. What’s this? 2. Busy in the kitchen.
4. Accent vs. stress (Track 2)
I only dipped a little finger in
5. Information and intonation (Track 2)

a. Chunking
He’s living with Mr and Mrs Willis in the village Spring Cottage
b. Prominence: nucleus placement
Billy: What’s this? Can I pinch a bit of it?
Mother: Oh, Billy, you little pig! It’s figgy pudding. Get your fingers out of it!
Billy: Women are so silly! I only dipped a little finger in…
Mother: Well, it’s a filthy little finger.
c. Tone
Billy: Can I go swimming in Chichester (with Jim this morning?)
Mother: Isn’t it a bit chilly to go swimming?

KEY: Busy in the kitchen
1aHyh Hm C? 99jHsRm
8aHkh {{ rlUlh { it raHyh {{
8lUC? {{ 7idr {{ `Hl 1Hm C? 7jHsRHm {{
8aHkh {{ j?m 1`H f?T arvHlHM Hm 8sRHsRHrs? { vHC tcYHl CHr dlN9mHM {{
8lUC? {{ rcYHl {{
8aHkh {{ 2cYHl 7HMfkHR {{ ghy 2kHuHM vHC 1lHrs?q ?l alHrHy 8vHkHr {{ Hm C? 8uHkHcY {{ 1roqHM
8jPsHcY {{
8lUC? {{ 1Hyms Hs ? aaHs 8sRHkh { s? 2f?T qrvHlHM {{
8aHkh {{ 1vPsr 8CHr {{ j?m 1`H woHmsR ? aaHs ?u Hs {{
8lUC? {{ 1?T 8aHkh {{ it 1kHsk 8oHf {{ Hsr 1eHfh 8oTcHM {{ 1fdsRN9 8eHMf?y d`Ts ?u Hs {{
8aHkh {{ 3vHlHm ? 1r?T 8rHkh {{ `H …?Tmkh acHos ? rkHsk deHMf?q Hm {{
8lUC? {{ vdk Hsr ? 7eHkSh dkHsk deHMf? {{ 8gH? {{ …sHo CHr tsRHj?m rjHm { rHms? C? daHm { ?m `Hk 2fHu it
? 9aHrjHs {{
A Top-Down Approach
Reflect...
What can you remember about your previous courses in pronunciation?
What kind of connections have you made between sounds and intonation?
Can these two areas be separated from each other?
Although students in Argentina are normally introduced to sounds first and intonation later, this does not
mean that they are separate entities. To be more precise, it can be argued that sounds and intonation are
more than just the two sides of a coin. According to Dalton & Seidlhofer (1994, 70)
in the top-down approach, the assumption is that once the prosodic features of pronunciation are in
place, the necessary segmental discriminations will follow of their own accord. This view is consistent
with a more communicative perspective in language teaching, in that it focuses on how speakers
achieve meaning in discourse.
It is not surprising that David Brazil (1994), whose main focus was placed on the communicative value of
intonation, shares this view. In the following sections the model presented goes along these lines. It may
be possible to approach a text globally and from this macro-picture start uncovering the building blocks
that hold all the pieces together. This is a metaphoric way of introducing a top-down approach.
Suppose you are an official at a Space Centre who is talking to a colleague about a recent launch. Read out
the following dialogue and imagine what it would sound like:
A: There was a launch. Were you free to watch it?

B: I have never missed one.
A: What did you think of the European space shuttle?
B: It was fabulous! Especially as it took off.
(adapted from Dickerson 1989, p. 32)
Let’s explore this text!
Reflect
To start with, you need to think about what words deserve to be stressed. For instance, do all the words in
the sentence “there was a launch” contribute to its meaning in the same way? Why?
Speakers and listeners of a particular language share a code. They are able to understand each
other because they share the way in which they approach an oral text. In other words, an English
speaker will pronounce in a clear way the cues that he or she thinks the listener will need to
successfully interpret the message. English speakers highlight certain syllables of their message by
means of stress: these are the syllables that English listeners need to reconstruct the content of
the message. Communication is effective when the listener’s needs are matched by the cues the
speaker has made explicit in their message.
In there was a launch, the only relevant syllable is launch, therefore this is the only stressed
syllable. This stressed syllable constitutes a whole word, in this case a noun. The remaining
syllables are unstressed as they play a less relevant role in the meaning-cline. This very short
sentence is useful to illustrate how English speakers unconsciously use phonetics to deal with
meaning: content words tend to be highlighted, while grammar words tend to be backgrounded.
What is more, it is the stressed syllables of content words that get highlighted!
Stop!
Activity 1:
Before carrying on, go back to the conversation above and identify the content words in it.
Provide the category of each content word. The answers are to be found in the following section.
Stress: content words vs. grammar words
As stated in the previous section, speakers highlight elements in speech by means of stress. From
a semantic point of view, it is clear that since content words normally contribute to the meaning
in a message, these are the items that should carry stress. However, from a phonetic point of
view, stress is not a property of words but of syllables. Therefore, the stressed syllables in
content words are the elements that get highlighted. It is interesting to note here that:
• The verb to be is semantically empty, so it behaves like a grammar word.

• Some grammatical words are likely to be stressed because they are heavily loaded with
meaning, such as the interrogative pronouns (i.e. question words) and, at times,
demonstrative pronouns.
• Some content words have more than one stressed syllable.
• Some lexical items are made up of more than one word (e.g. compound nouns, phrasal
verbs, etc.).
noun adjective verb
A: There was a launch. Were you free to watch it?
adverb verb
B: I have never missed one.
verb adjective compound noun
A: What did you think of the European space shuttle?
adjective adverb phrasal verb
B: It was fabulous! Especially as it took off.

English speakers and listeners rely on stress to decipher what is relevant in a message. If we read
between
en the lines, we can also understand that they need something else to decipher the
message: the absence of stress,
stress, which marks what elements are not burdened with meaning
because they are easily recoverable, or because they are grammatical elements used just
ju to hold
the text together. The alternation of stressed and unstressed syllables is semantically powerful
and its phonetic correlate is rhythm.
rhythm. Let’s analyse the rhythm structure of this conversation. The
stress mark [!] will be used to represent a rhythmic
rhythmic stress in the orthographic tier. A big dot will
represent a stressed syllable and a small dot an unstressed syllable in the rhythm tier above the
text.
Activity 2 – Track 3:
Listen to the recorded text. Notice that the strong beats are clearly enunciated,
enu while the
unstressed syllables are less loud and quickly articulated. After listening to it several times, copy
the audio and try to keep the same pace.
Notice!
Traditionally, English rhythm was thought to be isochronous (i.e. beats occur at regular intervals
of time). Although modern research has proved this wrong, the idea is still widely used in
teaching. You should focus on reducing unstressed syllables as much as possible and cram them
together in between the beats.
Stress vs. accent

Once the stresses in each intonation phrase have been located, one finer distinction needs to be
made. Although all stresses contribute to the rhythm in the phrase and tend to be related to its
meaning, every phrase must have one and only one obligatory accent called nucleus. In contrast,
there may also be another accent called onset, but this is not essential.
Stress is a property of some syllables that makes them more prominent than others; the listener
perceives this prominence mainly in terms of loudness. An accented syllable should not only be
stressed, but it should also show some pitch change: there may be a pitch jump (as is the
normally the case in the onset syllable) or a glide that initiates a major pitch movement (as is
normally the case in the nuclear syllable). The nucleus is normally located on the last new lexical
item. The onset, if present, tends to occur on the first lexical item. Again, it is relevant to
remember that semantically speaking, the meaning of the nucleus and onset is related to the
word in which they are hosted; phonetically, however, the onset and nucleus are syllables. At this
stage, the onset syllable can be indicated by capitalization or the [!] mark, the nuclear syllable can
be capitalized and underlined, and finally all the remaining rhythmic stresses can be indicated by
the [ ‡] mark. For example: e!SPECially as it ‡took OFF.
Notice!
Stress = Prominence (loudness + strong vowel quality / length)

Accent = Stress + Pitch
Nucleus = Last accent (generally last new lexical item)
Onset = First accent (generally first content word)
Activity 3:
Go back to the text. Decide which of the stressed syllables are likely to be onset syllables and
which nuclear syllables. Apply the notation explained above.
The shape of the tone unit

The conversation that has been presented to discuss intonation is made up of four exchanges.
Some of these exchanges are in turn made up of smaller units. In this case, these units coincide
with the grammatical unit that is normally known as sentence. In the study of speech the unit of
analysis is not the sentence but the intonation phrase, also known by its more informal
denomination: chunk. There are six intonation phrases in this conversation; four of them have
two accents (an onset and the obligatory nucleus) while the remaining two lack an onset.
A: There was a LAUNCH. Were you !FREE to WATCH it?

B: I have !NEVer MISSED one.
A: !WHAT did you ‡think of the ‡Euro ‡pean SPACE ‡shuttle?
B: It was FABulous! E!SPECially as it ‡took OFF.
By definition, the nucleus is the pitch movement initiator. In other words, there is a further
choice to be made at each nuclear syllable, that of tone. Although this topic will be tackled in
further detail in the following units, it may be useful to show how these choices are mapped on
the text. A slanted tonetic mark can be placed before each nuclear syllable to indicate the
direction of the pitch movement involved. The onset syllable normally shows a jump up in pitch,
while the nuclear syllable may show a glide. All unaccented syllables follow the movement
indicated by the accent that precedes them, if there is one: the onset defines the movement of
all the syllables in the head and the nucleus defines the movement of all the syllables in the
nucleus and tail.
Activity 4 – Tracks 4 & 5:

Listen to track 4.. First, you will hear a whistled version of the text. Notice the prominence of every
stressed syllable. Also, focus on the pitch variations manifested by the onset and nuclear syllables.
Finally, you will a slow-tempo
tempo version (track 5).
). Try to connect what you hear with the interlinear
notation.
Stress shift and downgrading

Although words normally have a fixed stress-pattern
stress pattern in their citation form, this pattern may vary
when these wordss occur in context. Due to rhythmical reasons, some of the stresses may be
downgraded: i.e. they may be sacrificed for the sake of simplicity. English tends to reject two
stresses close to each other, so one of them may go. Sometimes, a secondary stress may
ma become
an onset and a primary stress may be downgraded as it is quite close to the nucleus. (See Wells
2006, 5.10.) Listen to these examples:
Track 6: !Euro ‡ ean Áspace

p space /shuttle vs. !European Áspace
space /shuttle
Segmental analysis
Once the stresses
es have been spotted, the phonemic treatment of a text is straightforward. After having
dealt with the sounds of English for a considerable time, you must be aware that the greatest difficulty for
a non-native
native speaker is likely to be found in the selection of vowels. The previous work on this text will
come in handy at this stage: stressed syllables will always select a vowel from the strong vowel system,
while unstressed syllables normally select a vowel from the weak vowel system (Wells: 2008). To put it
differently, the presence of a stress, be it in the form of an accent or a mere rhythmical stress, will protect
the vowel in a syllable from obscuration, i.e., from becoming a weak vowel.
The English vowel systems: weak and strong vowel sub-systems

sub systems
1-. The first intonation phrase consists of just one stressed syllable, the nucleus. The nuclear syllable is
protected, so a strong vowel must be chosen. The spelling consists of several vowels; therefore a long
vowel is likely to be used. The pre-nuclear
nuclear syllables
syllables are not protected by stress and, as a result, are weak.
These grammar words will be used in their weak form.
.C? v?y ? ÁkN9msR.
2-.. The second phrase contains two accents. The syllables that host these accents need a strong vowel. The
word free needs a long vowel because 1) strong short vowels cannot be used in word-final
word position, 2) the
requently mapped to .h9.. The nuclear syllable watch needs a short vowel since it is an
spelling <ee> is frequently
example of the basic vowel pattern (consonant letter + vowel letter + consonant letters).
letters) The remaining
syllables are unstressed, therefore they are weak forms. Note, however,
however, that it may have been possible to
use the strong form of the verb to be since it is a full yes/no question.
.v? it !eqh9 s? òvPsR Hs .
3-. The third intonation phrase consists of two unstressed syllables that stand for two grammar words in
their weak form, the onset syllable made up of a protected short vowel, the unprotected final syllable of
the onset word, the nuclear syllable (miss is another example of the basic vowel pattern) and an
unstressed pronoun as the tail. Note, however, that although most unstressed syllables take a weak vowel,
this is not always the case. The word one, for example, does not have a weak form.
.`H g?u !mdu? ÁlHrs vUm.
4-. The fourth phrase is more complex than the previous ones. There are three stressed (though
unaccented) syllables in the head, i.e. between the onset and the nucleus. The word European is late-
stressed (also known as double-stressed) since the main stress does not fall on the first or second
syllables. In its citation form, the word presents the following stress pattern: .$iT?q?!oh9?m.. This is a clear
example of 1) the Teutonic rule, 2) the rule of alternation and 3) the rule of derivation. As English is a
Germanic language, it is subjected to the Teutonic rule. This demands that either the first or second
syllable of every English word should be stressed. Since the primary stress in this word falls on the third
syllable, there must be a secondary stress towards the beginning. In order to locate the secondary stress,
two rules come in handy: the rule of alternation states that stresses tend to repel each other, just like
magnets do. Consequently, if the third syllable hosts the primary stress, then not the second but the first
syllable should host the secondary stress. At the same time, the rule of alternation helps to corroborate
that this is so: the primary stress of a word may become the secondary stress in derivate words
(.!iT?q?o = $iT?q?!oh9?m.).
As expected, the nucleus falls on the last new lexical item, the compound word space-shuttle .!rodHr $RUsk..
This is a compound noun made up of two nouns, where the first classifies the second noun. This pattern
(N1+N2) is early stressed in approximately 80% of the cases. Although the semantic nucleus is the whole
compound word, the phonetic nucleus is the primary stress. The rhythmic stress found in shuttle follows
slavishly the pitch movement dictated by the nucleus.
As regards sounds, the words what and think take short vowels because they conform to the basic vowel
pattern. The word shuttle takes a short vowel because double letters (<tt> here) prefer short vowels to
precede them. The word space is a clear example of how final silent-<e> makes the previous vowel say its
name.
.!vPs cHc it ‡SHMj ?u C? ‡iT?q? ‡oh9?m ÁrodHr /RUsk.
5-. The fifth intonation phrase is quite simple. There is only one protected syllable, the nucleus. The first
two syllables are two weak forms and the two syllables in the tail are typical examples of weak syllables
containing unprotected vowels.
.Hs v?y Áezai?k?r.
6-. The final intonation phrase is interesting since it illustrates the behaviour of phrasal verbs. They are
similar to compound words in the sense that both are treated as a single lexical item, not as two
independent words. Also, it is relevant to draw your attention to the fact that phrasal verbs need to be
closely inspected: an unwary student may think that the particle is a grammar word unworthy of the
nuclear accent. Yet, a phrasal verb is one unit that is loaded with meaning, thus deserving a stress. These
structures are typically double stressed in their citation form: the verb takes the secondary stress and the
adverbial particle the primary stress (took off .$sTj !Pe.).
.H!rodR?kh ?y Hs ‡sTj ÁPe.

Summary:
I
Text N
F
Intonation L
phrases U
E
Accents & stresses
N
C
Phonemes E
Stress and communication
Reflect...
How important do you think rhythm is when it comes to understanding an oral text?
How important
ortant do you think it is to be understood by a native speaker of English?
How important do you think it is to be understood by another Spanish speaker?
Here are some quotes for you to voice your ideas:

“In English conversation, native-like
native rhythm and melody
lody are often more important to listeners
than exact vowel and consonant sounds. That is, native listeners depend heavily on your phrase
rhythm and your melody to make sense out of your message”
(Dickerson 1989, Page 31, Chapter 1, Lesson 4)
“When you talk

alk with people, you want them to understand what you say. We all do. What can we
do to hold our listener’s attention? One of the things we can do is to try to deliver our message
with the minimum amount of distraction. Wrong rhythm is a major distraction. Wrong rhythm
tends to divert the listener’s attention away from what we are saying and attract attention to how
we are saying it. So, when you talk, an important way you can keep your listener focused on what
you are saying is to use the rhythm that the listener
listener expects. The expected rhythm does not draw
attention to itself.”
(Dickerson 1989, Page 71, Chapter 2, Lesson D)
Do you think that is true? What happens in Spanish? You understand a foreigner better if:
a. Their sounds are accurate but they make a faulty

f use of stress
b. Their sounds are faulty but they make an accurate use of stress
What about your listening skills? Do you understand everything that English speakers say? Is it
possible to understand everything? How do you think adult learners feel when they have to solve a
listening task? Why?
Intonation – and stress in particular – is a source of confusion for foreign learners of English. To cap it all,
this is not a one-way problem: learners find it very hard to understand spoken English and, in turn, their
own speech may be difficult to be understood. Crystal and Davy (1975, 8) stated that “unlike grammar,
vocabulary, and segmental pronunciation, mistakes in intonation are not usually noticed and allowed for
by native speakers, who assume that in this respect a person sounds as he means to sound”.
Rost (2002) believes that learners fail to understand spoken English because their expectations are placed
on the wrong cues: they want to hear accurate sounds and build meaning in a linear fashion. Actually, the
English are “stingy” in that respect: they only articulate with great clarity the stressed syllables of the
words they believe are relevant in any given context. The message is coded, and the key to decode it is not
to be found in the clarity of each sound but on the context of interaction and in your prediction skills.
The use of weak syllables and weak forms puzzles Spanish speakers, who rely on vowel quality to
understand a message. In the following example, the message would be clear even if all the unstressed
syllables were taken away. The words that are reduced need to be weak so as not to attract attention to
themselves: if a strong form is used, listeners normally think that these have been chosen to show contrast
or emphasis.
Although a strong form is possible,

a weak form is more frequent. This adjective = meaning verb = meaning
is the only word that can collocate A pronoun is used to refer
here. .v? it !eqh9 s? òvPsR Hs . to recoverable information.
It = launch
A pronoun is used to refer to Vs.
recoverable information. You = my This particle is predictable
interlocutor .v? !it9 !eqh9 s? òvPsR Hs . because it is the only word
that can collocate here.
If the pronoun is strong, it is selected as a word that is essential to

the meaning. This would be interpreted as emphatic (e.g. “You of
all people!!!”) or contrastive (e.g. “You and not me!”).
The Three T’s: Tonality, Tonicity & Tone
Activity 5 – Track 7:
Listen to the following conversation. Many of the words are repeated, but the tone changes. Does the
meaning of each word change when the intonation is different? What type of meaning changes?
The Bear
Sid: ÁShh!
Joe: ÁWhat?
Sid: ÁBear!
Joe: òBear?
Sid: ÁBear!
Joe: ÁWhere?
Sid: ÁThere!
Joe: òFar?
Sid: ÁNo!
Joe: òNear?
Sid: ÁYeah!
Joe: òRun?
Sid: ÁRun! (Hancock 2003, p. 116)
There are different languages in the world, and some languages exploit tone at the lexical level. Chinese,
for example, is a tone language. English and Spanish are not, they are intonation languages. In the text
above, some words have been intoned differently, but the lexical meaning remains stable: òrun and Árun
have the same “dictionary meaning” (lexical meaning), but they have a different pragmatic meaning. A
rise is used to ask a question: the speaker wants to check whether he should run or not. A fall is used to tell
the interlocutor something: he must run for his life. The point here is that intonation operates at a unit
broader than the word. Intonation is at work in intonation phrases. The meaning is not derived from the
lexical meaning of the word that bears the nucleus; it is a property of the whole combination of elements.
As stated above, intonation is best treated as a system. In a system, phenomena do not occur at random.
There is a set of choices that can be made at different points. The three T´s are the choices made in the
English intonation system.
Intonation system
Tonality Tonicity
Tone
(chunking) (nucleus placement)
Although these three choices occur in real time, it is advisable to follow this order in the analysis.
1) Tonality: Speech can consist of just one syllable preceded and followed by silence (e.g.
. Ám?T.),
), but it normally consists of a stream of sound much longer than that. The first task
a listener has to carry out is the division of this stream into smaller units.
u The intonation
phrase is the unit of prosodic analysis. From a phonetic point of view, an intonation
phrase contains at least nuclear syllable. From a semantic point of view, this is a complete
unit of information. Listeners need these units to process
process information. Even though an
intonation phrase does not always correspond to any grammatical unit, it often coincides
with a clause. When it does, this intonation phrase is said to be an example of neutral
tonality. When it does not, the tonality is marked.
marked. Long phrases, for instance, tend to be
chunked off. On average, each chunk tends to be made up of 7 syllables, approximately.
a. Neutral tonality (1 clause = 1 IP)
Track 8
i. Main clauses
Homer went to the bar | but Ned went to church.|
ii. Main and subordinate clauses
clau
We can eat at Mc Donald’s | if you behave properly.|
b. Marked tonality (more than a clause = 1 IP / less than a clause = 1 IP)

i. More than one clause
I thought (that) it would rain.|
ii. Less than one clause
Sir Charles Chaplin | expressed his political views
vie in his films.|
2) Tonicity: This is also referred to as nucleus placement. By definition, each intonation

phrase is complete if and only if it contains a nucleus, the major pitch movement initiator.
The nucleus tends to reside in the last lexical item in the IP (LLI rule), therefore this is
called neutral tonicity. Marked tonicity occurs when the nucleus falls somewhere else. This
topic will be further developed in other units.
a. Neutral tonicity (LLI rule)
Track 9
My name’s Bond.|
b. Marked tonicity
i. Deaccentuation of old information in final position
(My name’s Bond)| James Bond.|
ii. Contrastive focus
(My name’s Bond | James Bond.|) What’s your name?|
iii. Exceptions to the LLI rule
Shut up you silly old fool.| (Vocative in final position)
We’re going to be late, I guess| (Final comment clause)
Uncle Cuthbert is coming.| (Event sentence)
3) Tone: According to most authors, there are five distinctive tones in English. A tone is the
intonation curve or contour that is initiated by the nucleus. Phonetically, pitch movement
can take place on the nuclear syllable alone if there is no tail, or it can be spread through
the tail if there is one. There are two families of tones: falls and non-falls.
i. Falls: 1-. Fall [ Á]
Track 10
2-. Rise-fall [ Î]
ii. Non-falls 3-. Rise [ò]
4-. Fall-rise [ ;]
5-. Level [>]

The School of London & the School of Birmingham
Reflect...
What sorts of units have been discussed in the sections above?
What do you think is the scope of an intonation phrase?
Is there anything above it in a phonological hierarchy?
Up to this point we have analysed English pronunciation both at the segmental and suprasegmental levels.
Our proposal is a top-down approach, whereby many of the intricacies related to the choice of phonemes
are solved in a simple way by approaching the text from its prosody. The spotting of stressed and
unstressed syllables uncovers what sorts of vowels are necessary in each of them. The interplay between
stress in connected speech and the use of weak and strong forms becomes transparent.
The study of the Three T’s – i.e. tonality, tonicity and tone – allows us to understand the workings of the
intonation system in English. As any other system, the choices are not whimsical; these choices are
triggered at different stages to assign meaning to speech. First, speech is segmented, then prominences
are located and a tone is selected at the nuclear syllable. These choices operate at the level of the
intonation phrase. Now, is the intonation phrase the most comprehensive unit of analysis?
We need to go back in history to find an answer to this question. At present, we can confidently state that
each intonation phrase is part of a text. There are connections between these phrases and, above all, there
are connections that link these phrases to items outside the text. We can arrive at this conclusion thanks to
the contributions made by discourse analysts. There came a moment when the sentence was a straight-
jacket, since many of the suprasegmental phenomena could not be accounted for. The next broader unit,
the text, did provide certain answers... but not all. The idea that there is something broader than the text
itself was very appealing and innovative. This is how the context was taken into consideration.
The British tradition has a long-standing history. Palmer, in the early 20h century, introduced the construct
of the nucleus. He realized that the most meaningful choice of tone occurred at a particular syllable. Other
phoneticians added more findings: a) there are five contrastive tones, b) the nucleus tends to fall on
certain grammatical categories, c) there seems to be a connection between intonation and information, d)
intonation can be analysed as a system, etc. The School of London has been the most influential in Britain.
Daniel Jones, J. D. O’Connor, G. F. Arnold, A. C. Gimson, Alan Cruttenden and John Wells, among others,
work along these lines. We owe the tonetic marking system of strokes and circles superimposed to the
orthographic text to them. Their approach is based on the grammatical structure and the attitude
conveyed by the configuration of different intonational contours. On the one hand, he heavy reliance on
grammar can be useful for the foreign learner: the presence of grammatical boundaries can help us predict
the boundaries of intonation phrases, the division between grammar and content words can help us
identify what words are likely to be stressed and which are prone to be nuclear. Also, their taxonomy of
tone choices may be straightforward – e.g. wh-questions take a fall, while yes/no-questions take a rise. On
the other hand, however, this approach tends to be burdened with contradictory and never-ending lists of
epithets to describe attitudes and a lack of flexibility regarding the tone choices triggered by grammar.
In the 70’s, David Brazil and other researchers studied discourse. They stressed the communicative value of
the choices made by language users rather than the intrinsic value of grammatical structure. Brazil
recorded people interacting with each other and he was able to draw some conclusions that did not
necessarily match the precepts of the traditional approach, that of the School of London. We call this
newer trend the School of Birmingham, as this is where they worked. Brazil’s approach is followed by
Barbara Bradford and Adrian Underhill, among others. They understand language as a vehicle to do certain
things: you can exchange information (i.e. there is a transactional function) and you can put language to
social purposes (i.e. there is an interactional function). This view does away with the slavish bond between
intonation and grammar, as it offers a more phonological set of options. Their contribution has unearthed
the more general meanings of tones as opposed to the more local meanings found in the attitudinal
approach.
In this course both approaches are adopted. In spite of the differences they seem to present, we will see
that they can complement each other perfectly well. This is not surprising in the least; after all, both
approaches came to existence as a tool to explain the behaviour of the same object of study: English
intonation. The School of London is more prescriptive, which is good at an early stage for it helps learners
to study rules. The School of Birmingham’s contributions, which are descriptive, are very valuable to grasp
a broader picture of how intonation works, especially as regards tone choices and the interplay between
the elements in the intonation phrase and other elements in the text and the context of interaction.
Unit 2: The Anatomy of Intonation
Aims:
To understand the phonetic configuration of accents in an intonation phrase

To perceive the English tones
To predict the configuration of the English tones
To produce the English tones
To produce tonetic transcriptions
Contents:
The anatomy of English intonation

Typical cases of chunking
The onset and nucleus
The fall
The rise
The fall-rise
The level
The rise-fall
The Anatomy of English Intonation
In the previous unit you were introduced to the basics of English intonation. Here you will expand that
knowledge and devote time to the production of tones. We shall focus on:
Typical cases of chunking

The placement of the nucleus
The configuration of the tone
The placement of the onset syllable
An emphasis will be placed on the interlinear notation. Those learners who favour their auditory memory
may not benefit from this analysis. Yet, most learners are not auditory. If you are a visual learner, you will
surely find this system useful in the extreme. Just like musicians, you will be able to pitch your instrument:
your voice. The upper line stands for the normal highest note your speaking voice can produce. Similarly,
the lower line stands for the normal lowest note your speaking voice can produce. A word of caution is
called for here: you should never strain your voice. Listen to your voice in Spanish in order to identify your
high and low pitch. If you try to get a note much lower or higher than your usual ones, your voice will crack
and this may be harmful. In intonation studies, it is the relative pitch that matters, not the absolute pitch.
In music, the opposite is the case. You need to be able to show a contrast between your high and low
pitch, and you should also find your mid pitch. With these three notes you will be able to exploit the
meaning oppositions presented in this system.
Reflect...
What do you think of your voice when you hear a recording? Do you identify with it?
Does your voice setting resemble your parents’ or friends’ setting?
Compare two singers: whose singing voice is higher, Christian Castro’s or Patricia Sosa’s? Does this mean
that the former is unable to produce low notes and the latter high notes?
Tonality: Problem cases for Spanish speakers
Track 11 – The starting point of any intonational analysis is chunking. Wells (2006) maintains that
most languages use tonality in a similar way. Since English and Spanish share a lot in this area, we will focus
on the greatest differences.
1) Initial short words: Spanish speakers tend to chunk words when they occur at the
beginning of a sentence. Although there are no statistics about this, it may be true that
they are absorbed as either the onset syllable or just a pre-head. This happens with words
such as Oh, Well, Yes, No, Now, etc. Notice that the comma after these expressions does
not mean that a pause is needed. Examples:
A: Well, !what about ‡going Áout to/night?

B: Oh, I !think it’s a ‡great i Ádea. Shall we !tell òSheila?
A: (À)No, ;not to/day. She’s in a !bad Ámood. Do you !like Thai òfood?
B: Yes, I a Ádore it. Now, !what ‡time shall we Ámeet?
2) Final elements: When the following elements occur in final position, they are typically part
of the tail. If they are chunked off, however, they are likely to take a rise (a trailing tone
that exploits politeness).
a. Vocatives:
!Sit Ádown, /Mary.
Is Àthat your ;seat, /Graham?
b. Adverbs of courtesy:
!Pass the Ásalt, /please.
!That’s e Ánough, /thanks.
c. Reporting clauses:
“I’m !going to be Álate,” she /whispered.
d. Comment clauses:
Your !father will be Ámad, I i/magine.
e. Copy tag (constant positive polarity):

She’s Áangry, /is she?
f. Reversed polarity tags (after a rising nuclear tone):

À
Granny ‡can’t be ;pregnant, /can she?
Finally, two words seem to be problematic for Spanish speakers, namely the conjunction that and the verb
to be. As these words normally occur in the weak form, students should not end a chunk after them:
a-. * I !think >that | we can !buy a Ácar.
* . `H !SHMj >CUs { vh j?m !a`H ? Áj@9 .
;I think | that we can !buy a Ácar. ☺
. ;`H SHMj { C?s vh j?m !a`H ? Áj@9 .
b-. * >Some ‡people ‡are | !very am Ábitious.
* . >rUl ‡oh9ok ‡@9 { !udqh zl ÁaHR?r .
>Some ‡people |are !very am Ábitious. ☺
. >rUl ‡oh9ok { ? !udqh zl ÁaHR?r .
c-. * !There >was | a !big Ádog in the /yard.
* .!Cd? >vPy { ? !aHf ÁcPf Hm C? /i@9c.
There was a !big Ádog in the /yard. ☺
.C? v?y ? !aHf ÁcPf Hm C? /i@9c.

Activity 1: Chunking a readymade text

Readymade or written texts tend to contain elaborate lexis and grammar, but the planning implied makes
for clear intonation boundaries. As punctuation and phonological boundaries may not go hand in hand,
there are no punctuation marks in the text.
1. Look at the underlined section. Where does it belong to?
2. Listen to the recording and insert boundaries (with |) whenever you detect that an
intonation phrase ends.
Track 12 complementary therapy
complementary therapy which focuses on the whole person is becoming more
widely used it considers a patient’s physical symptoms and also takes lifestyle
into account most practitioners believe that the body seeks a state of balance
what complementary therapy does is help people achieve this balance treatment
not only relieves the disease but also promotes general wellbeing how
complementary therapy works is still not entirely clear recent research has
compared it with traditional medicine in one study conducted in Canada a group
of patients who had severe back pain were treated either with complementary or
traditional treatments patients who had complementary treatments showed
faster rates of improvement (Hewings, 2007, p. 115.)
3. Listen to the recording again and underline the nuclei. What sort of elements get
accented? What elements are deaccented?

ɊjPlok?ᶅldmsqh ᶑSdq?oh
ɍjPlok? ‡ldmsqh ᶑSdq?oh { vHsR Ɋe?Tj?rHy Pm C? ᶅg?Tk ᶑo29rm { Hy aHɊjUlHM
lN9 ᶅv`Hckh ᶑit9yc {{ Hs j?m!rHc?y ? ᶄodHRmsr ᶑeHyHjk /rHls?ly { ?mc !N9kr?T
sdHjr ᶑk`Hers`Hk Hmst ?/j`Tms {{ ɍl?Trs oqzjⱠsHRm?y a?ᶄkh9u { C?s C? !aPch
ᶄrh9jr? ᶄrsdHs ?u ᶑazk?mr {{ ɊvPs ᶅjPlokHᶑldmsqh Sdq?oh /cUy { Hy Ɋgdko ᶅoh9ok
?sRh9uCHr /azk?mr {{ Ⱡsqh9sl?ms { mPs …?Tmkh qHᶅkh9uy C? cHⱲyh9y { a?s ɊN9kr?T
oq?ᶅl?Tsr ᶅfdm?qk vdk ᶑah9HM {{ !g`T jPlokHᶄldmsqh ᶄSdq?oh ᶑv29jr { Hy !rsHk
mPs Hm ‡s`H?kh ᶑjkH? {{ Ɋqh9rms qHⱠr29sR { g?y j?lɊod?c Hs vHC sq?ᶑcHRmk /ldcrm {{
Hm vUm ⱠrsUch { j?m…cUjsHc Hm Ⱳjzm?c? { ? Ɋfqt9o ?u ⱠodHRmsr { gt gzc r?…uH?
Ⱳazj /odHm { v? Ɋsqh9sHc ᶅ`HC? vHC ᶅjPlokHⱨldmsqh { N9 sq?ᶑcHRmk { ᶑsqh9sl?msr {{
ⱠodHRmsr { gt gzc jPlokHⱲldmsqh /sqh9sl?msr { R?Tc Ⱡe@9rs? { ɊqdHsr ?u
Hlᶑoqt9ul?ms {{

The Intonation Phrase
In the previous unit a full intonation phrase was sketched. In this section, a full analysis of the possible
combinations will be presented. The only obligatory element in an intonation phrase is the nucleus. All
other elements may be optional. Remember that the onset syllable is the beginning of the head.
(pre-head) + (head) + NUCLEUS + (tail)
Track 13
NUCLEUS: ᶑGo|
head + NUCLEUS: ɊDon’t ᶑgo|
pre-head + head + NUCLEUS: Oh Ɋdon’t ᶑgo|
pre-head + head + NUCLEUS + tail: Oh Ɋdon’t ᶑgo Paᶆtricia|
head + NUCLEUS + tail: ɊDon’t ᶑgo Paᶆtricia|
NUCLEUS + tail: ᶑGo Paᶆtricia|
pre-head + NUCLEUS + tail: Oh ᶑgo Paᶆtricia|
pre-head + NUCLEUS: Oh ᶑgo|

Tonicity
Reflect...
What’s the correct translation into Spanish of “I thought it was going to be cold”: “Pensé que iba a hacer
frío” or “Sabía que iba a hacer frío”? What does this depend on?
Is nucleus placement as important in Spanish as it is in English?
What do you think of the following intonation phrases? Do they have the same intonation pattern? No te
veo, Linda. No te veo linda.
Tonicity is one of the subsystems that make up intonation. It consists of the placement of the nuclear
syllable. Since the nucleus is the only obligatory element in all well-formed intonation phrases, then
tonicity choices are at work every time you speak. Mind you: you make nucleus placement choices both in
English and Spanish!
The nucleus can be defined by different criteria:
a) Phonetic criterion: the nucleus is generally perceived as the most prominent syllable in
the intonation phrase, especially because it normally is the major pitch movement
initiator.
b) Distributional criterion: the nucleus is the last accent in an intonation phrase (there may
be other stresses, but the nuclear syllable is the last one where a pitch choice is made).
c) Functional criterion: the nucleus signals the focal structure in the intonation phrase.
Unlike tonality, which is supposedly pretty stable across languages (Wells, 2006), tonicity is by far the most
difficult of the Three T’s to be learned by Spanish speakers.
Neutral and Marked Tonicity
The very first steps in this course were devoted to devising a top-down model to work with English
pronunciation. This idea goes along the lines of the traditional approach to tonicity. At the very top, the
decisions that govern the choice of a suitable nucleus are made. The trends that were discussed in Unit 1
are summarized below:
• All content words tend to be stressed. However, some words may lose their stress because
of contextual factors, such as the vicinity of other stresses.
• The nucleus tends to fall on the last lexical item. It is hosted in a stressed syllable that
becomes accented, as the nucleus is the major pitch movement initiator.
• Old information is normally de-accented. Therefore, the nucleus tends to fall on the last
lexical item that is new.
Crystal (1969) noted that in his corpus, the nucleus tends to fall on the last lexical item in approximately
80% of the tokens. Since this figure is high, it is reasonable to state that when this occurs the tonicity is
unmarked (or neutral). In contrast, marked tonicity occurs when the nucleus does not fall on the last
lexical item. This can be the caused by several factors: the last lexical item may be old information, the
nucleus may fall on a grammar word, or there may be final lexical items that do not attract the nucleus.
A very easy rule of thumb is that the nucleus is likely to fall on the last NEW lexical item. Although this
seems to be a simple rule to follow, most Spanish speakers find it terribly hard to apply. There is an
intimate connection between information and intonation in English. The English ear is extremely sensitive
to this, and many times the accenting of old information may lead to miscomprehension. Also, since they
play down old information in a systemic way, many of the syllables and words that are not highlighted are
said very quickly and in a low volume at times. Spanish speakers may find it difficult to understand English
speech because of this very reason.
Interesting!
“In an analysis of a corpus of about 1,200 intonation groups, Altenberg (1987) found that (i) there is a
strong tendency for the last lexical item to carry the nucleus (78%); (ii) English nouns have the greatest
potential for prosodic prominence and particularly nuclear accent (73%)” Ortiz Lira (1998, page 52).
Prominence – Selection - Highlighting
Detecting the nucleus

You already know some things about tonicity. The nucleus tends to fall on the last lexical item (LLI). If there
is old information at the end of an intonation phrase, it falls on the last NEW lexical item. For practical
reasons, using the LAST NEW LEXICAL ITEM rule can provide you with better results as it is more
comprehensive. Remember, however, that there are exceptions to the LLI rule that do not involve old
information.
Activity 3 – Track 14
Listen and underline the nucleus in each IP. (Ponsomby, 1992, p. 80.)
a) We didn’t mean to arrive just in time for lunch.|
b) Is this the book you are looking for?|
c) But you told me I could come round tonight.|
d) I haven’t seen Elizabeth for ages.|
e) No dear. | He broke his leg in a skiing accident.|
f) Are all nine of the Joneses coming to dinner?|
Read each sentence. Practise shifting the nucleus as indicated. Then, compare your version to the
recording. What context of interaction is projected by each of them? (Ponsomby, 1992, p. 80.)
a) Are you coming to Majorca with us this summer?
Are you coming to Majorca with us this summer?
b) My wife doesn’t look like a sack of potatoes.

My wife doesn’t look like a sack of potatoes.
Listen to the following utterances. Focus on their prominences. Then, decide which question is suitable for
each of them: (Bradford, 1988, p. 8)
1. They hired a car.

a. Did they take the car?
b. Did they hire bikes?
2. No, the train was delayed.
a. Had she already arrived at the station?
b. Was the plane late?
3. The bank’s on the corner.
a. Where’s the bank?
b. What’s on the corner?
4. I sent him a letter.
a. Aren’t you going to send Tony a letter?
b. How does Mr Pringle know your news?
5. It’s next Tuesday.
a. Is it your birthday next week?
b. Was it your birthday last Tuesday?
B uses the same words to answer the two different things that A says. Predict the prominences in each of
B’s interventions: (Bradford, 1988, p. 9-10)
1 A: Paul looks happy! B: He’s got a new car.

A: I think Paul needs a new car. B: He’s got a new car.
2 A: We must get some flowers. B: I’ve got some flowers.

A: Don’t forget to get them a present. B: I’ve got some flowers.
3 A: Let’s go to Paris. B: I’ve been to Paris.

A: Have you had a good weekend? B: I’ve been to Paris.
4 A: You need something hot. B: Then I’ll have some soup.

A: The soup’s good here. B: Then I’ll have some soup.
5 A: How did you know it was Mike who rang? B: He said he’d phone.
A: Why hasn’t he written? B: He said he’d phone.
Activity 4 – Track 18 – Contrastive focus

First listen to this short conversation. Pay attention to the way A’s intervention affects the nuclear choices
B makes. Then, predict the prominences in the following dialogues: (Bradford, 1988, p. 8)
Example: A: What did you have | for starters?

B: I had chicken soup.
A: And what did the others have?
B: Chris had tomato soup | and James | had tomato salad.
One A: And what did you have for dessert?

B: I had apple pie.
A: What did the others have?
B: Chris had cherry pie | and James | had cherry cake.
Two A: It’s your birthday this month,| isn’t it?

B: Yes. It’s the thirty-first.
A: Are both your sisters’ birthdays | this month too?
B: Yes. Sarah’s is the twenty-first | and Jenny’s | is the twenty-fourth.
Three A: Where did he wait for you?

B: At the back entrance.
A: And where had you arranged to meet?
B: At the main entrance,| which is right on the main street.
Four A: When did you visit Japan?

B: I went last year.
A: And are you going again?
B: Yes, | I’m going again this year. | In fact, | I’m going this month.
Five A: What’s the problem?

B: She’s got black shoes.
A: And why is that a problem?
B: She needed white shoes | to go with her white dress.
The Focal Model
Although there is no agreement in the literature as to what the exact definition of focus is (for instance,
some authors use the term as a synonym for nucleus – which is disfavoured in this course), this model
seems to be comprehensive. Broadly speaking, the focus can be thought as the stretch in the intonation
phrase that is foregrounded. Ortiz Lira (1998, page 54) reminds us that the focus determines the
accentuation pattern of an intonation phrase because: “(i) accents signal focus; (ii) not all focused
constituents need to take an accent, and (iii) unfocused constituents do not take an accent.”
Notice!
Focus
.!e?Tj?r.
Broad and Narrow Focus

Semantically, an intonation phrase contains different elements. These elements are linked to the whole
text and the context. The interplay between these relationships and the intonation phrase has a bearing on
the focus domain (i.e. the scope of the focus). In the next example, the question is too open to restrict the
answer in any way:
A: What happened?
B: [I have !just had a Ábath.]
All the items in the answer are new. The whole intonation phrase is in focus. In other words, this IP is in
broad focus.
Now, the next context is different:

A: Who has just had a bath?
B: [ ÁI] have /just had a /bath.
This time, only part of the answer is in focus. The nucleus falls on the only new item, the pronoun. Narrow
focus occurs when only part of the information is in focus: generally, the last new item in the focus
receives the nucleus while the elements that are old remain out of focus and are deaccented.
Activity
Track 19 – Listen to the recording and mark the prominences. Focus on new and old info.
(O’Connor and Fletcher 1989, page 53).
The Language School

ALICE: I want to improve my English. Is it a good idea | to go to a
language school | in August?
CAMERON: I went to an English summer school | a year ago. It was at the
Gold School of English.
ALICE: Was it good?
CAMERON: Yes | very good. There were grammar lessons | and regular
progress tests. And we also | played games. That was great.
ALICE: What sort of games?
CAMERON: Guessing games, for example. A simple game | is the bag game.
One group | has a big bag | and the other group | guesses what’s
in the bag. It’s a good game at the beginning | to get to know each
other.
ALICE: Did you get to know | the other students well?
CAMERON: Yes! It wasn’t a big group. I’ve forgotten exactly how many. We got
on very well | together.
Remember!
As stated in the first unit, you should always bear in mind that:
1-.You should approach an intonation phrase from the end.
2-. A lexical item may be made up of more than one word.
3-. Be careful with early stressed compound words as they are only one lexical item.
E.g.: !film $prize –!Harry w ‡ on a Áfilm /prize.
3-. Be careful with final phrasal verbs: the particle there is not a grammar word but part of a compound
lexical item. They are double stressed.
E.g.: $run a!way – It’s!time to ‡run a w Á ay.
C? ᶑᶑkzMfvHcY ᶆᶆrjt9k {{
ᶑzkHr {{ `H ɍvPms st Hlᶄoqt9u l`H ᶑHMfkHR {{ ɍHy Hs ? ᶄfTc `HᶑcH? { s? …f?T st ?
ⱳkzMfvHcY ᶆrjt9k { Hm ⱠN9f?rs {{
ᶑjzlq?m {{ ⱳ`H ᶆvdms st ?m ᶆHMfkHR ᶆrUl? rjt9k { ? iH?q ?ᶆf?T {{ ɊHs v?y ?s C? ᶑf?Tkc
ᶆrjt9k ?u ᶆHMfkHR {{
ᶑzkHr {{ ɊvPy Hs ⱠfTc {{
ᶑjzlq?m {{ Ƚidr {{ ɂudqh ᶆfTc {{ C? v? Ⱳfqzl? ᶆkdrmy { zmc Ɋqdfi?k? ᶑoq?Tfqdr ᶆsdrsr {{
?m vh ɂN9kr?T { okdHc ȽfdHly {{ ɊCzs v?y ᶑfqdHs {{
ᶑzkHr {{ ɊvPs ᶑrN9s ?u ᶆfdHly {{
ᶑjzlq?m {{ ɂfdrHM ᶆfdHly e?q Hfᶆy@9lok {{ ? ⱲrHlok ᶆfdHl { Hy C? ᶑazf ᶆfdHl {{
ɊvUm Ɇfqt9o { gzy ? …aHf Ⱳazf { ?m Ch ⱳUC? ᶆfqt9o { fdrHy vPsr 7Hm
C? ᶆazf {{ Hsr ? …fTc ᶅfdHl ?s C? aHⱲfHmHM { s? Ɋfds s? 7m?T h9sR ᶆUC? {{
ᶑzkHr {{ cHcYt Ɋfds s? Ɇm?T { Ch …UC? ᶅrsit9cmsr Ⱳvdk {{
ᶑjzlq?m {{ Ƚidr {{ Hs …vPyms ? ⱲaHf ᶆfqt9o {{ `Hu e?ɊfPsm Hfᶅyzjskh g`T ᶑldmh {{
vh ɊfPs Pm ᶅudqh ᶑvdk { s?ⱠfdC? {{

The Semantic Model
The traditional approach was seen as little flexible by some authors, such as Bolinger (1986). He believed
that the decisions that govern intonation choices spring from the speaker, not from the grammatical
structure. He introduced the concept of the relative semantic weight of words: those elements that the
speaker views as semantically heavy will be accented, while those elements that are viewed as
semantically light will not. This allows speakers to downplay elements.
The Discoursal Approach
Brazil’s (1980, 1994) approach highlights that there is nothing inherent in the text: the intonation choices
are made by each speaker, who canpresent information and project a context of interaction in different
ways. He adopts a different terminology, but his terms normally have an equivalent in the traditional
approach. For instance, he considers that each tone unit (i.e. each intonation phrase) has an obligatory
prominence (i.e. accent): the tonic syllable (i.e. the nucleus). If there are more prominences, the first one
is the onset syllable and the last one is the tonic syllable. He believes that the relevant choices are realized
in the tonic segment that starts at the onset syllable and finishes at the tonic syllable. Speakers judge
which syllables in each tone unit will be prominent according to the context of interaction. In other words,
speakers take into account what he/she thinks he/she shares with the interlocutor, etc.
Each tone unit presents syntagmatic choices (the horizontal syntactic organization of a text). By way of
illustration, the IPI went to Cuba is made up of four “slots” that are syntagmatically connected as subject,
verb and complement. Each syntagm (each slot) can also be exploited paradigmatically. That is, each word
is chosen from a subset of other possible words that could work in that combination. When a speaker
chooses one word to fill a slot he/she has decided not to choose any other word. This is a meaningful
choice. Some slots present more options than others (e.g. Cuba can be replaced by thousands of places,
but the word tois the only option here, as it is the only item the verb went allows). The linguistic paradigm
is made up of all the combinations that are grammatically possible, while the existential paradigm consists
of all the combinations that are true in the real world.
Slot
Explanation
1 2 3 4
at ÁCuba. This is not a valid linguistic paradigm: at does not collocate.
Á thens.
A These are all possible options in the linguistic and existential paradigm.
I !went
to New ÁYork. By choosing Cuba, the speaker is not choosing any other place.
ÁHogwarts. This is not a valid existential paradigm outside Harry Potter’s world.
Contrastive Focus
Contrast can break all rules. Cruttenden (1997, 82) states that “an informal definition of ‘contrastive’
would refer to it as involving comparison within a limited set.” The most common type of contrast is
binary, which can be formulated as “X not Y” (E.g. “I want an apple, not an orange.”Apple vs. Orange). In
this case, the contrast was made explicit. Some other times, the contrast is presented in an implicit way. If
somebody says “I love you” the listener is expected to recover the referent against which youis contrasted
(e.g. “I love you, not my wife.”) Finally, it is possible to find a contrastive set that is not binary. For
instance, Cruttenden exemplifies this point by referring to traffic lights: “The lights were red” means that
they were neither green nor yellow.
Track 20 – Listen to the recording. Focus on the contrasts. (Hancock 2003, 107)
Exams
JAMES: I won’t pass.
TED: You will pass.
JAMES: You’ll pass.
TED: I don’t know.
JAMES: You won’t fail.
TED: I might fail.
JAMES: I | will fail.
TED: The exam’s |not hard.
JAMES: It’s very hard.
TED: But not too hard.
JAMES: Too hard for me.
TED: But you’re very clever!
JAMES: You’re | the clever one.
TED: Yes, | I suppose you’re right.

Ch Hf88yzl {{

8cYdHly {{ `H …v?Tms to@9r {{
v?Tm
8sdc {{ it 7vHk ddo@9r {{
8cYdHly {{ rit9k do@9r {{

o@9r {{
8sdc {{ `H …c?Tms ym?T {{

c?Tm
8cYdHly {{ it …v?Tms redHk {{

v?Tm
8sdc {{ `H tl`Hs
l`Hs dedHk {{
8cYdHly {{ u`H { vHk

{ vHk wedHk {{
8sdc {{ yzly { …mPs tg@9c {{

Ch Hf5yzly
8cYdHly {{ Hsr 7udqh

h dg@9c {{
8sdc {{ a
a?s mPs rst9 dg@9c {{
Ê ?s mPs
…
8cYdHly {{ st9 g@9
st9 g@9c e? ylh9 {{
8sdc {{ Êa?s iN9 udqh 8jkdu? {{

iN9 udqh
8cYdHly {{ uit9 { ? C?
? C? tjkdu? dvUm {{
8sdc {{ iidr {{ `H r
{{ `H r?2o?Ty iN9 iq`Hs {{

Highlighting: Communication activity

Adapted from Bradford (1988, p 51 & 55)
Student A:
You are a customer in a small restaurant and are ready to order. The menu is quite limited, but there are different
kinds/flavours of each thing. Student B is the waiter/waitress and will ask you for your order.
1. Choose from the menu what you would like for each course.
2. Ask the waiter/waitress for more information.
3. Choose from the selection of thins you are offered.
Starters:
Soup
Salad
Main course:
Meat
Pasta
Dessert:
Cake or pie
Ice-cream
Hot beverages
Student B:
You are a waiter in a small. The customer’s menu is quite limited and student A will need more information about the
kinds/flavours of the things in each course before he/she can order.
1. Ask the customer to choose something.
2. Give more information about the thing he/she chooses.
3. Do these two activities for each course.
Menu: Friday 12th

Starters
Salad: Caesar – steamed vegetables – fresh vegetables
Soup: tomato – vegetable – chicken
Main course
Pasta: spaghetti Bolognese – mac and cheese - vegetarian
Meat: steak – chicken schnitzel – grilled salmon
Dessert:
Ice-cream: vanilla – chocolate – strawberry
Cake: cheesecake – chocolate cake – red velvet cake
Hot beverages: tea – coffee (with or without milk)
Tone variants
At times, it is very hard to distinguish one tone from another one.. Why is this so? There are several
variants of each tone. Although we do not normally mark these features, there are three major choices:
tone direction, width and pitch height.
height
Tone
Direction Pitch height Width Distribution
Falls Non-falls High Narrow Glide
Fall Rises Level Mid Wide Step
Rise-fall Rise Low
Fall-rise
a) Pitch direction:: Does the pitch go up or down? Does it stay level? The distinction made
between falls and non-falls
falls is related to the meanings they convey, a topic that will be
nit 4 in greater detail. Tones are defined in terms of their end point: the
developed in unit
falling tones (i.e. fall and rise-fall)
rise fall) end in a fall, the rising tones (i.e. the rise and the fall-
fall
rise) end in a rise, and the level remains at the same pitch height.
b) Pitch height:: This topic is dealt with in further detail in the next course. Some authors
refer to this as key.. The normal relative pitch height seems to be mid. A high tone is
contrastive (the attitudinal approach maintains that this expresses surprise or liveliness)
livelines
and a low tone is normally equative (the attitudes conveyed may be glossed as matter-of-
matter
factly, bored, uninvolved).
c) Width: Wide tones are more easily detected than narrow tones. A very wide tone
normally shows greater involvement, while a very narrow tone
tone may sound casual.
d) Distribution:: If the nuclear syllable contains a long vowel that is not clipped, there tends to
be a marked glide.. If the nuclear syllable is made up of a short vowel, especially followed
by a voiceless sound, there tends to be steps in the tail.
Track 21
Example of different kinds of falls
The Interlinear Tonetic Notation
Before embarking on a detailed description of the English nuclear tones, a full description of the interlinear
tonetic notation is presented here:
• The upper line indicates the upper range of a particular speaker’s speaking voice.
• The lower line indicates the lower range of a particular speaker’s speaking voice.
• Each syllable is represented by a dot.
o A large black dot indicates that the syllable is stressed.
o A large empty dot indicates that the syllable is prominent, generally because it
contains a strong vowel.
o A small dot indicates that the syllable is unstressed and non-prominent.
The Stave
In suprasegmental phonetics, unlike music, we’re not interested
interested in the absolute pitch of notes. Although
we do not speak the way we sing, it is useful to train our ears and voices at the outset of this course to be
able to use “relative pitch” at will.
Low, mid and high levels
Pre-head and head
Static high head
Stepping head
Falling head
Rising head
Practise:
Draw the stressed and unstressed syllables corresponding to each intonationally marked phrase:
1) There were some 1men at the 7bar. 5) …Can I areally alet them ago to the rloo?
2) 1Why did you deacide to aleave 7them. 6)1Underastanding ɊEnglish proɊnunci8ation.
3)7Peter is dcoming to dsee us todmorrow. 7) Don’t be asuch a aselfish 7fool.
4)She was getting avery asympa7thetic. 8)He can be …quite ananoying aguy, rtoo.
The Fall
Awareness raising:
Listen to the prologue to The Lord of the Rings. What sort of text is it? What’s its
purpose?
Track 22 – Focus
ocus on form:
The pitch goes from a higher note to a lower note. The starting point may vary; therefore the key of the
tone may be high, mid or low. If the nucleus is not followed by a tail, then the fall takes place on this
syllable. If there is a tail, two possibilities are available:
• A falling glide on the nuclear syllable (especially if the vowel is long). All the syllables in the tail
remain low.
• A step down from the nuclear syllable (especially if the vowel is short and followed by a voiceless
sound) to a succession of low syllables in the tail.
Semantic criterion: the fall sounds

complete, like a statement or an
Focus on meaning: exclamation.

ɊThis is your ᶑparcel. ᶑGo
ᶑ ᶆnow!
The Fall: Basic Meanings & Uses

School of London School of Birmingham
• Statements • New information
My Ɋname is ᶑBond. ɊThis is a 8pronoun.| wPronouns
Pronouns | reɊplace
8nouns.
• Exclamations
That’s Ɋabsoᶅlutely 8brilliant!
• Wh- questions • Find-out questions

ɊWhat are you 8doing? ɊWhat’s your ᶅfavourite 8subject?
subject?
• Commands
ɊClose the 8door. • Divergence (separateness)
8Oh, | you’re 8back.
• Major information (independent)
She’s Ɋgoing to re8sign | I’m awfraid
fraid.
Task 1: Types of Fall (Track 23)

1 \Now!!!
2 Now!
3 ᶑNow.
4 ȼNow.
Task 2: Fall (Track 24)

Just focus on the general fall of the pitch, disregard all its variants.
1 ᶑThree 10 ᶑCome 19 ᶑBoo

2 ᶑGo 11 ᶑStop 20 ᶑSuper
3 ᶑFour 12 ᶑFirst 21 ᶑCrazy
4 ᶑStay 13 ᶑRight 22 ᶑNever
5 ᶑSure 14 ᶑSix 23 ᶑSplendid
6 ᶑBad 15 ᶑWow 24 ᶑRubbish
7 ᶑNine 16 ᶑGosh 25 ᶑNonsense
8 ᶑGood 17 ᶑGreat 26 ᶑMarvellous
9 ᶑSing 18 ᶑCheers 27 ᶑWonderful
Task 3: Enlarging a tone unit (Track 25)

Listen and repeat. Focus on the onset and the nucleus:
Group A Group B
Riᶑdiculous! In ᶑcredible!
ɊHow riᶑdiculous! ɊHow inᶑcredible!
But that’s ri ᶑdiculous! That’s inᶑcredible!
How Ɋabsolutely riᶑdiculous! How Ɋutterly inᶑcredible!
I think that’s Ɋreally ᶅquite riᶑdiculous! They’re going to find it Ɋutterly inᶑcredible!
Group C
You’re Áright!
You’re ᶑright, you /know!
You’re Ɋabsoᶅlutely ᶑright!
I think you’re Ɋabsoᶅlutely ᶑright!
You’re going to be proved Ɋquite ᶑright!
Group D
She Ɋlives in ᶑKent.
She Ɋlives in ᶑKenton.
She Ɋlives in ᶑKensington.
She Ɋlives in ᶑKettering, you ᶆknow.
Task 4: Single Intonation Phrases (Track 26)

1 ɍEnglish Intonation. An Introᶑduction. By 27 ɊYou’ve got ᶑbetter. But ɊI ᶑhaven’t.
ɊJohn ᶑWells. ɊCambridge Uniᶅversity ȼPress
2 ɊWhat do I ᶅdo ᶑnow? 28 The Ɋtrain was ᶑcrowded. So we Ɋcaught a ᶑlater
ᶆone.
3 We’re Ɋplanning to Ɋfly to ᶑItaly. 29 “ɊWhere are you ᶑfrom?” (ᶆ) ᶆBill asked ᶆJim.
4 We’re Ɋplanning to ᶑfly to ᶆItaly. 30 He Ɋhad a ᶑheart attack ᶆlast year. It Ɋhasn’t
ᶅstopped him ᶑsmoking, ᶆthough.
5 We’re ᶑplanning to ᶆfly to ᶆItaly. 31 You’ve Ɋgot to slow ᶑdown a bit.
6 ɊThis is a ᶑpen. 32 I’d like Ɋfour ᶑtickets, ᶆplease.
7 I’m deɊlighted to ᶑmeet you. 33 He’ll be Ɋoff ᶑsoon, I imᶆagine.
8 We’re Ɋall ᶑhere. 34 It’s Ɋjust not ᶑgood enough.
9 They’re Ɋwaiting outᶑside. 35 ɊWho are you ᶑwaiting ᶆfor?
10 It’s Ɋhalf past eᶑleven. 36 ɊWhat are you ᶑlooking ᶆat?
11 I’ll Ɋgo and get some ᶑmilk. 37 ɊTake your ᶑshoes off. ɊTake them ᶑoff.
12 So there were ᶑthree of them. 38 ɊBring your umᶑbrella with you. ɊBring it ᶑwith
you.
13 So we’ll be Ɋfree by ᶑsix, then. 39 ɊPick the ᶑboxes ᶆup. ɊNow put them ᶑdown
again.
14 ᶑHi. ɊI’m ᶅCathy ᶑPomeroy. I’m a Ɋcustomer’s 40 ɊHow’s the ᶑhomework ᶆgoing?
ᶑservice agent.
15 ɊWho’s ᶑthat? 41 I’ve Ɋstill got an ᶑessay to ᶆwrite.
16 ɊWhich is the ᶑshift key? 42 He Ɋought to ᶅkeep his ᶑmouth ᶆshut.
17 ɊWhat’s your ᶑname? 43 You Ɋneed to ᶅkeep the ᶑbrush ᶆwet.
18 I’ll Ɋpick you up toᶅmorrow ᶑmorning. 44 ɊTell me ᶅwhat to ᶑdo.
19 What ᶑtime? 45 ɍWait and ɍsee which Ɋway the ᶑwind is
ᶆblowing.
20 I’ll Ɋask you once ᶑmore. 46 Helᶑlo! ɊThis is ᶑJimmy ᶆspeaking.
21 ɊWhat a surᶑprise! ᶑWasn’t it! 47 ᶑThank you | ᶑvery much | inᶑdeed.
22 What an Ɋinteresting ᶑlecture that ᶆwas! 48 It’s Ɋnearly ᶑready.
23 ɊStand ᶑup when you ᶆanswer. 49 Well Ɋmake up your ᶑmind.
24 ɊWhat are you ᶑlooking at? 50 He said “you must Ɋmake up your ᶑmind.”
25 ɊWho was she ᶑtalking to? 51 I Ɋwent over to ᶑKaren’s ᶆhouse | but it was her
ᶑfather | who Ɋanswered the ᶑdoor.
26 I reɊceived a ᶑletter ᶆfrom him.
Task 5: Exchanges (Track 27)

1 A: ɊHow ᶑlong | have you been Ɋfrightened of B: I’ve ᶑalways been ᶆterrified of ᶆspiders.
ᶑspiders?
2 A: ɊWhy don’t you try Ɇkeeping | a Ɋspider as a B: I’ve Ɋalways been ᶑterrified of ᶆspiders.
ᶑpet?
3 A: Is Ɋthere anything that Ɇreally | ᶑfrightens B: I’ve Ɋalways been ᶅterrified of ᶑspiders.
you?
4 A: I’ve Ɋjust finished Ɇreading | ɊHomebush B: ᶑThat’s the ᶆbook I ᶆwanted.
ᶑBoy.
5 A: I Ɋcouldn’t ᶅget you The Colᶑlector,| so I B: ɊThat’s the book I ᶑwanted.
Ɋbought The ᶑMagus | inᶑstead.
6 A: ɊWhose is ᶑthis? B: ᶑMine.
7 A: ɊWhose is ᶑthis? B: ᶑYours.
8 A: ɊWhere do you ᶑcome from? B: ᶑSpain.
9 A: ɊWhere do you ᶑcome from? B: ᶑFrance.
10 A: We’ve Ɋjust got enᶑgaged! B: ɊHow ᶑmarvellous!
11 A: She’s had a Ɋbaby ᶑboy! B: But Ɋthat’s ᶑwonderful!
12 A: ɊNow they ᶅwant us to ᶅreᶑregister. B: ɊWhat a paᶑlaver!

13 A: I’ll be Ɋthere by ᶑfive. B: ᶑGreat.
14 A: It’s …nearly Ⱳeight... B: ᶑGoodness! I’m Ɋgoing to be ᶑlate!
15 A: He’s from ᶑFrance. B: From ᶑGermany.
16 A: She said her ᶑfoot was ᶆhurting. B: Her ᶑarm.
17 A: Do Ɋsell ᶑstamps? B: ᶑYes, | we ᶑdo.
18 A: Do you Ɋknow ⱠPeter? B: Of ᶑcourse. | ᶑYes, | I ᶑdo.
19 A: Do you Ɋknow ⱠPeter? B: Of ᶑcourse I know ᶆPeter.
20 A: It Ɋlooks like ᶑrain. B: It ᶑdoes, | ᶑdoesn’t it?
21 A: ⱲMummy, | Ɋcan I have some Ⱡcake? B: We’ll Ɋhave to ᶑsee, | ᶑwon’t we?
22 A: ɊWhy did I ᶅonly get a ᶑC? B: Because you made a Ɋlot of miᶑstakes, |
ᶑdidn’t you?
23 A: I Ɋreally ᶑlike it ᶆhere. B: ᶑDo you? | I was aɊfraid you ᶑwouldn’t.
24 A: Her daughter’s Ʉawfully Ⱳclever... B: ᶑYes, | ᶑisn’t she?
25 A: ɊWill you be ᶅgoing to ᶅOak ⱠHill? B: ɊWill I ᶑheck!
26 A: ɊUnscrew the ᶑcylinder ᶆhead. B: ᶑRight. | I ᶑwill.
27 A: ɊWho does she ᶑwork for? B: ɊE & ᶑQ.
28 A: ɊWhat’s your ᶑnumber? B: ɊTwo seven ᶑnine.
29 A: ɊDid ⱠJames ᶄanswer the ᶄphone? B: ɊNo, ᶑNikki did.
30 A: ɊWill NaⱠtasha ᶄread the ᶄlesson? B: ɊNo, ᶑJake will.
31 A: ɊWhere shall we ᶅhave our ᶑtea? B: In the ᶑsitting ᶆroom.
32 A: ɊWhere’s ᶑJim gone? B: He’s Ɋoff on a ᶑtraining ᶆrun.
33 A: ɊWhat are they ᶑsuffering ᶆfrom? B: ᶑFood poisoning.
34 A: ɊWhat are they ᶑsuffering ᶆfrom? B: ɊAthlete’s ᶑfoot.
35 A: ɊWhat are they ᶑsuffering ᶆfrom? B: ᶑWhooping ᶆcough.
36 A: Do you obɊject to Ⱡdogs? B: ɊNo, I aᶑdore ᶆdogs.
37 A: Shall we have the Ɋbeef Ⱡcurry? B: ᶑNo. | ɊLet’s have the ᶑprawn curry.
38 A: Do you Ɋlike Ⱡwhisk? B: ᶇOh, I like ᶑmost ᶆcard ᶆgames.
39 A: ᶇHave you Ⱡhurt yourᶄself? B: ɊYes, I’ve ᶑcut myᶆself.
40 A: Did you say Ⱡfifteen | or ᶑsixteen? B: ᶑFifteen.
41 A: He’s a Ɋpsychoᶑtherapist. B: ɊNo, a ᶑphysioᶆtherapist.
42 A: I need Ɋten ᶑmilligrams. B: You mean Ɋten ᶅmilliᶑlitres.
43 A: Do you Ɋwork Ⱡhard? B: Of ᶑcourse I ᶆdo!
44 A: ᶑGod! I was Ɋso ᶑangry! B: I ᶑbet you ᶆwere!
45 A: ᶑJason was to ᶆblame. B: ᶑWas he?
46 A: ᶇDo you Ⱡsmoke? B: I ᶑdo.
47 A: ɊWho likes ᶑspinach? B: ᶑI do.
48 A: ɊHow ᶑare you? B: ᶑFine, thanks. ɊHow are ᶑyou?
49 A: Where’s your ᶑpassport? B: ɊI haven’t ᶑgot one.
Why are you ᶅlooking ᶑworried? I’ve Ɋgot an eᶑxam this ᶆafterᶆnoon.
50 A: B:
51 A: ɊEverything OᵽK? B: It’s a Ɋbit ᶑhot in ᶆhere.
52 A: You’ve left Ɋthis Ɇline | ᶑblank. B: (Well, Ɋthose Ɇdetails) | Ɋweren’t ᶑasked for!
53 A: What’s the ᶑmatter? B: The ᶑbaby’s ᶆcrying.
What’s the ᶑmatter? My ᶑarm ᶆhurts.
54 A: B:
55 A: Will Ɋyou be ᶅleaving on ⱠThursday? B: Oh, I Ɋhaven’t deᶑcided ᶆyet.
56 A: ɊAre you ᶅready to ᶅhand in your Ⱡessay B: No, I Ɋhaven’t quite ᶑfinished it ᶆyet.
ᶄnow?
57 A: ᶇWas the Ⱡcheese ᶄstill OᶄK? B: It had Ɋgone ᶑmouldy | ᶑnaturally.
58 A: ɊWho’s ᶑNikki? B: She’s my Ɋsister who ᶅlives in ᶑCanada.
59 A: Who’s ᶑNikki? B: She’s my ᶑsister | who Ɋlives in ᶑCanada.
60 A: ɊWhat are you ᶑlooking ᶆfor? B: ɊWhere’s the ᶑnewspaper I was ᶆreading?
61 A: ɊWho are you Ⱡtalking to? B: Oh, Ɋthat’s ᶑWinston. The Ɋman I was
ᶑtelling you aᶆbout.
62 A: ɊWhat’s Ⱡthat? B: It’s a ᶑspatula, | for Ɋcleaning the ᶑbowl with.
Task 6: In the classroom!

1 ɊNice ᶑwork! 15 ɊGo to ᶅpage eᶑleven.
2 ɊWell ᶑdone, kids! 16 ɊOpen you ᶑbooks.
3 ɊTen out of ᶑten. 17 ɊTurn your ᶑphones off.
4 ɊJust in ᶑtime. 18 ɊDon’t ᶑrush.
5 ɊThat’s a ᶅgreat ᶑquestion! 19 ɊDon’t ᶑpull.
6 ɊKeep ᶑgoing! 20 ɊTime’s ᶑup.
7 ɊDon’t give ᶑup! 21 ᶑSilence, ᶆplease.
8 ɊWay to ᶑgo! 22 ɊListen to the reᶑcording.
9 ɊWhat’s the ᶑanswer? 23 ɊCome to the ᶑfront.
10 ɊNice ᶑtry! 24 ɊTurn on your comᶑputers.
11 ɊNice atᶑtempt! 25 ɊWhat’s the ᶑdate toᶆday?
12 ɊTry aᶑgain. 26 ɊWhat do you ᶑcall this?
13 There’s Ɋno ᶑhurry. 27 ɊWhat the ᶑweather ᶆlike?
14 ɊNever ᶑmind. 28 ɊClean the ᶑboard, ᶆplease.
Task 7: Simon says!

Get together in groups. Let’s play “Simon says”. Make sure you can build long intonation phrases whose
head is static and whose nuclear tone is a fall.
E.g.: Speaker: ɊSimon says “ᶅstand ᶑup”.

Speaker: ɊTouch your ᶑnose.
Speaker: ɊSimon says ᶅclose your ᶅright ᶑeye.
Task 8: Long heads

1 We Ɋhaven’t ᶅheard from him for 8ages, you dsee. 11 When Ɋever will he ᶅget a ᶅchance like 8that!
2 I Ɋdon’t think he ᶅhad the ᶅchance to e8scape. 12 You can Ɋtake the ᶅfirst ᶅturning on the 8right.
3 I Ɋguess she ᶅmay be ᶅfree on ᶅSunday after8noon. 13 Take the Ɋwhole iᶅdea with a ᶅpinch of 8salt.
4 I guess she Ɋmay be ᶅfree on ᶅSunday after8noon. 14 ɊKeep the ᶅjacket for as ᶅlong as you 8like.
5 I Ɋfirmly beᶅlieve you’ll be ᶅbetter ᶅoff wi8thout him. 15 This is a Ɋpresent from my ᶅUncle 8Jonathan.
6 I Ɋcan’t quite ᶅmake up my 8mind aᶆbout it. 16 What Ɋhorrible ᶅweather for ᶅlate Ju8ly.
7 But Ɋwhy can’t he ᶅkeep his 8mouth ᶆshut. 17 What a Ɋlovely ᶅsunny ᶅday for our 8picnic!
8 We Ɋbrowsed aᶅround in the ᶅbackstreet 8shops 18 Just Ɋleave the ᶅwhole afᶅfair to ᶅPeter and 8me.
9 When Ɋare you ᶅgoing to ᶅlearn to be 8careful. 19 When Ɋwill you ᶅdate a reᶅspectable young 8man?
10 Can I Ɋsee him if I ᶅcome back in the 8evening? 20 Your Ɋreport card ᶅleaves ᶅmuch to be de8sired.
Task 9: Long tails

1 ɊUncle 8Duncan is ᶆcoming to ᶆsee us toᶆmorrow. 11 ɊHow much 8milk do you ᶆwant in your ᶆtea?
2 “It’s Ɋup to 8you, sir,” deᶆclared the ᶆsecretary. 12 Your 8zip has ᶆcome unᶆdone again, ᶆHunter.
3 “I Ɋdon’t think that’s 8fine,” he ᶆsaid ᶆcautiously. 13 My 8elbow has got ᶆsomething ᶆwrong with it.
4 There’s a 8bug in my ᶆvegetable ᶆsalad. 14 I 8knew she would ᶆnever ᶆmarry our ᶆson.
5 ɊHow aᶅbout going to a 8restaurant, for a ᶆchange. 15 ɊEven your 8husband can apᶆpreciate ᶆbeauty.
6 I guess she’ll Ɋnever be 8glad, as a ᶆmatter of ᶆfact. 16 ɊLeave the 8door open, ᶆplease, my ᶆsweety ᶆpie.
7 It’s 8obvious, I would have ᶆthought. 17 ɊPass the 8pepper, ᶆwill you, ᶆplease, ᶆPercy?
8 I Ɋhate the 8T-shirt that ᶆJimmy is ᶆwearing. 18 I 8do like the iᶆdea that she’s ᶆjust introᶆduced.
9 ɊWhat’s the 8point, I’d ᶆlike to ᶆknow. 19 ɊWhat 8courses have you ᶆtaken so ᶆfar, ᶆShawn?
10 ɊWhich 8flavour do you preᶆfer? 20 He’ll 8have to ᶆlet you ᶆtravel with your ᶆboss.
Pitch height: high, mid & low

Key Context Example Analysis
Contrastive Peter’s problem is | that he’s married. “married not single”
“Titanic not the rest” (e.g.
High
As Good as it Gets / The
Particularizing And the winner is | Titanic.
Full Monty / Good Will
Hunting / LA Confidential)
Mid Additive Look for the icon | ᶑclick on it. “and then wait a bit”.
Equative Phone Mr. Brown | the ȼheadmaster. “Mr Brown = Headmaster”
“He was unfaithful so she
Cause-Effect He was unfaithful | she ȼdumped him.
Low dumped him”
“She dumped him because
Effect-Cause She dumped him| he was unȼfaithful.
he was unfaithful”
Task 10: listen to these contrasts (Track 28)

1 Wonderful!
2 ȼWonderful.
3 Wow!
4 Great!
5 Cheers
6 Splendid!
7 Marvellous!
8 Wonderful!
9 It was great!
10 Then we’ll ᶆsee what ᶆhappens.
11 I ɍcan’t beᶄlieve he did ᶆthat!
12 ɊWhat a pity!
13 I Ɋneed some ᶅnew running ᶆshoes.
14 ɊGood for you!
15 ɊBully for you!
16 We Ɋdidn’t ᶅhear a thing.
17 I Ɋwon’t ᶅtell anyone.
18 I Ɋwonder ᶅwhen it would be.
19 ɍWho’s that?
20 I’m singing, | too!
21 ɍNice to see you aᶆgain, ᶆHumphrey.
22 I had an ɍunexpected letter ᶆyesterday.
23 I’ve Ɋgot some work to ᶆdo.
24 I love you. I adore you. I Ɍthink you’re wonderful.
25 ɍBetter than ever!
26 Well, ɍmake up your mind!
27 ɊHe Ⱡsays | we’re Ɋtoo ᶑyoung, | but we’re not too ᶆyoung!
28 ɊHe Ⱡsays | I Ɋcan’t afᶑford it,| but I can afᶆford it!
29 ɊHe Ⱡthinks | we’ll Ɋstay out ᶅtoo ᶑlate, | but we won’t stay ᶆout too ᶆlate.
30 He ᶑsays | we’ll make Ɋtoo much ᶑnoise | in the hoᶑtel, | but we won’t make ᶆtoo much ᶆnoise.
31 ɊHe Ⱡthinks | I Ɋhaven’t got a ᶑpassport, | but I have got a ᶆpassport.
32 He says I Ɋdon’t work ᶑhard eᶆnough | for ᶑschool, | but I do ᶆwork ᶆhard!
33 ɊHe Ⱡsays | I’ve got ᶑschoolwork to ᶆdo, | but I haven’t got any ᶆschool work to ᶆdo.
34 ɊHe Ⱡthinks | we Ɋcan’t look ᶑafter ourᶆselves, | but we can look ᶆafter ourᶆselves.
35 A: We’re Ɋgoing on an outing | toⱡday. B: ɍWhere to?

36 A: I ɍneed you to ᶄgive me a ᶑlift. B: ɊWhere ȼto?
37 A: ɍWhy don’t you ᶄwant to go? B: Well, it’s raining, | isn’t it?
38 A: ɍWhy don’t you ᶄwant to go? B: Well, it’s ȼraining, | ȼisn’t it?
39 A: I Ɋdon’t know ᶅwhat to ᶑdo! B: Can I help you at ᶆall?
40 A: I Ɍdon’t know Ɍwhat to ᶑdo! B: Can I ȼhelp you at ᶆall?
41 ɍCome and have dinner with us!
42 ɊCome and have ȼdinner with us!
Task 11: contrast high, mid and low
1 Brilliant.
2 ᶑBrilliant.
3 ȼBrilliant.
4 That’s gross!
5 That’s ᶑgross!
6 That’s ȼgross!
7 You should Ɋcome back at ten.
8 You should Ɋcome back at ᶑten.
9 You should Ɋcome back at ȼten.
10 She was Ɋquite late, you ᶆsee.
11 She was Ɋquite ᶑlate, you ᶆsee.
12 She was Ɋquite ȼlate, you ᶆsee.
13 Her brother’s ᶆsent an ᶆemail.
14 Her ᶑbrother’s ᶆsent an ᶆemail.
15 Her ȼbrother’s ᶆsent an ᶆemail.
16 ɊDon’t look back.
17 ɊDon’t look ᶑback.
18 ɊDon’t look ȼback.
19 It’s Ɋrather dark outᶆside at the ᶆmoment.
20 It’s Ɋrather ᶑdark outᶆside at the ᶆmoment.
21 It’s Ɋrather ȼdark outᶆside at the ᶆmoment.
22 There’s a leak on the ᶆroof.
23 There’s a ᶑleak on the ᶆroof.
24 There’s a ȼleak on the ᶆroof.
25 It was Peter who ᶆdumped you.
26 It was ᶑPeter who ᶆdumped you.
27 It was ȼPeter who ᶆdumped you.
28 I knew she was ᶆgoing to reᶆsign.
29 I ᶑknew she was ᶆgoing to reᶆsign.
30 I ȼknew she was ᶆgoing to reᶆsign.
The Rise
Awareness raising (track 29):
Task 1:
(Brazil 1994, p.18)
Task 2:
(Brazil 1994, p.18)

Focus
ocus on form (track 30):
The pitch goes from a lower note to a higher note. The starting point may vary; therefore the key of the
tone may be high, mid or low. If the nucleus is not followed by a tail, then the fall takes place on this
syllable as a rising glide. If there is a tail, the rise is spread through the tail in a gradual way. If a high rise is
followed by a long tail, the syllables after the nucleus do not step up abruptly; it is the last syllables that
complete the effect by means of a steep
ste jump up.
Semantic criterion: the rise sounds

like a checking question.
Ɋone Ⱡtime | at Ⱡband ᶄcamp.
Focus on meaning:
The Rise: Basic Meanings & Uses
• Yes/NO questions • Old information
Can I Ⱡhelp you? ɊLook at the ᶑboard. The Ⱡboard
board | is ᶑnew.
• Echo questions • Checking questions

ɍWhen am I going to ᵽVegas? Can you Ⱡhear me ᶄwell?
• Repeat questions • Convergence (togethernes

togetherness)
ᵽWhere did you ᶄsay? ⱠOh, | I Ɋsee you ᶅgot an ᶑA
A.
• Minor information (dependent) • Linguistic control

It Ɋnever ᶑsnows | in this Ⱡcity. (Trailing) ɊOnce upᶅon a Ⱡtime
time | in a Ɋfar away Ⱡland |...
In this Ⱡcity, | it Ɋnever ᶑsnows.
snows. (Leading)
• Politeness
ɊHave a Ⱡseat, ᶄplease.
• Continuation
We Ɋneed Ⱡflower, | Ⱡsugar, | Ⱡmilk...
Ⱡ (Listing)
Do you preɊfer Ⱡtea | or ᶑcoffee?
coffee? (Alternatives)
(
ɊMr ⱠSmithson | has Ɋtwo ᶑsons.
sons. (Topic)
Task 3: (track 31)

Listen to these contrasts.
1 I’m ᶑsure. 2 I’m Ⱡsure? 3 I Ɋthink it was riᶑdiculous. 4 I Ɋthink it was riⱠdiculous.
Task 4: (track 32)

Listen to what was happening at the end of Mandy and David’s conversation. (Brazil 1994, p.21)
MANDY: Now Ɋlet me ᶅsee if I’ve ᶅgot it Ⱡright. I need the Ɋright hand Ⱡlane…
DAVID: ⱠYes, | Ɋright hand Ⱡlane…
MANDY: ⱠYes…
DAVID: By the ɊShell Ⱳservice ᶆstation…
MANDY: ⱠYes…
DAVID: ɊCollege ⱠLane…
MANDY: ⱠYes, | Ɋpast the Ⱳtechnical ᶆcollege…
DAVID: ɊPast the Ⱳtechnical ᶆcollege, | Ɋpast the Ⱡprimary ᶄschool…
MANDY: ⱠYes…
DAVID: AɊnother Ⱡjunction…
MANDY: ⱠYes…
DAVID: ɊPark Ⱡroad,| Ɋturn Ⱡright…
MANDY: ⱠYes, | take the Ɋfirst Ⱡexit…
DAVID: ɊFirst Ɇexit | Ɋat the ᶅmini Ⱡroundabout…
MANDY: And Ɋthat’s ᶅPark ᶑClose.
DAVID: ɊThat’s ᶑit!
Task 5: (track 33)

Listen to the answers. Are these checking questions (rise) or finding out questions (falls).
1 A: ɊBill could ᶅask a ᶑfriend. B: Who?

Task 6: (track 34)

Listen to these different types of rises.
1 ⱡWonderful
2 ᵽWonderful
3 /Wonderful
4 A: ɊHave you got the ⱡdetails?
B: I ⱡhave.
5 A: You’ve forɊgotten your gloves. B: I ᵽhave?
6 A: You haven’t Ɽpaid for the coffee! B: /I have!!!
Task 7: (track 35)

Listen to these intonation phrases and imitate them.
1 /Now 33 ɊHaven’t they ᶅdone eⱠnough?
2 ⱡNow 34 ɊDidn’t you ᶅbring an umⱠbrella?
3 ᵽNow 35 ɊCouldn’t you ᶅsend a Ⱡtext ᶄmessage?
4 /Now 36 ɊIsn’t she Ⱡready ᶄyet?
5 ⱠNow 37 ɊAren’t you ᶅgoing to ᶅintroⱠduce us?
6 ⱠThree 38 ɊWon’t it be a ᶅbit Ⱡcold?
7 ⱠPlay 39 ɊWasn’t she ᶅhere Ⱡlast ᶄweek?
8 ⱠGo 40 ɊHasn’t he Ⱡfinished ᶅyet?
9 ⱠWhy 41 ɊDon’t you feel a ᶅbit overⱠdressed?
10 ⱠBad 42 ɊCouldn’t we ᶅask for some Ⱡmore?
11 ⱠMine 43 Have you Ɋfinished your Ⱡessay?
12 ⱠYours 44 ɊDid you reᶅmember to Ⱡtell her?
13 ⱠGood 45 ɊCan you speak ⱠFrench?
14 ⱠTime 46 Are you Ɋgoing to comⱠplain?
15 ⱠNice 47 Is the Ɋwater Ⱡhot eᶄnough?
16 ⱠStop 48 ɊDid he aⱠpologize?
17 ⱠRight 49 Was she Ɋpleased to Ⱡsee you?
18 ⱠThanks 50 ɊWere the Ⱡchildren ᶄthere?
19 ⱠTest 51 ɊHave you ᶅvacuumed the Ⱡcarpets?
20 ⱠAlways 52 ɊDon’t Ⱡworry.
21 ⱠThousands 53 You could Ɋhave Ⱡcoffee, | or Ⱡtea...
22 ⱠThis one 54 Is Ɋthat my Ⱡlibrary ᶄbook?
23 ⱠCarrots 55 ɊCan I Ⱡget you ᶄanything?
24 Are you Ɋready to Ⱡanswer? 56 ɊCould you give Ⱡme some, ᶄplease? As Ⱡwell?
25 You Ɋwant to ᶅtalk to Ⱡwho? 57 ɊCould I ᶅborrow some Ⱡsugar?
26 ⱠAll of us? 58 “ᶇAre you Ⱡsure?” she ᶄasked.
27 ⱠWhat did you ᶅsay her ᶅname was? 59 ⱠChocolate, ᶄanyone?
28 You’ll be Ɋcoming to Ⱡdinner? 60 ɊDid you ᶅsee Big ⱠBrother on ᶅtelevision ᶅlast ᶅnight?
29 You Ɋtook his Ⱡpassport? 61 ɊThis is ᶅhow to Ⱡclose it.
30 ɊWhat’s your Ⱡname? 62 Is Ɋthat your Ⱡpartner?
31 ɊWhen did you arⱠrive? 63 ɊThat’s the Ⱡend of the ᶄweather ᶄforecast.
32 ɊWhat’s the Ⱡtime?
Task 8: (track 36)

Listen to these exchanges. Imitate the drill, i.e. B’s part.
1 A: ɊThis ᶅmoney is ᶑJohn’s. B: ⱠJohns?
2 A: ɊThis ᶅmoney is ᶑJohn’s. B: ⱠWhose?
3 A: I’d Ɋlike some ᶑchicken, ᶆplease. B: ⱠChicken?
4 A: I’d Ɋlike some ᶑchicken, ᶆplease. B: ⱠGrilled?
5 A: She was Ɋreading the ᶑTimes. B: ᶇThe ⱠTimes?
…
6 A: You oughtn’t to ᶅeat that Ⱳpie... B: You Ɋmean it’s Ⱡpoisonous?
7 A: So there were ᶑthree of them. B: Are you Ⱡasking me, | or ᶑtelling me?
8 A: Do you Ɋsell ᶑstamps? B: We Ⱡdo.
9 A: You haven’t Ɍbrought the ᶑmilk. B: I Ⱡhave.
10 A: It was ᶑbrilliant! B: It Ⱡwasn’t.
11 A: You haven’t ᶅbrought the ᶑmilk. B: ᶑYes, | I Ⱡhave!
12 A: It was ᶑbrilliant! B: ᶑNo, | it Ⱡwasn’t!
13 A: ɊHave a ᶅcup of ᶑtea. B: That’s Ɋvery Ⱡkind of you.
14 A: ɊAny ᶅproblems with the Ⱡbuilders? B: I Ɋdon’t Ⱡthink so.
15 A: ɊAny ᶅproblems with the Ⱡbuilders? B: ɊNot Ⱡreally.
16 A: ɊAny ᶅproblems with the Ⱡbuilders? B: No, Ɋeverything’s OⱠK.
17 A: ɊGot the Ⱡkeys? B: ɊAre you Ⱡready? Is Ɋthat the Ⱡtime?
18 A: ɊWhat did you ᶅthink of my ᶑsong? B: Do you Ⱡalways ᶄsing as ᶄflat as ᶄthat?
19 A: What a Ɋlovely ᶑdress! B: You ᶑlike it,| Ⱡdo you?
20 A: I’m ᶑthinking |of Ɋtaking a ᶑbreak. B: ⱠAre you?
21 A: She won’t be at ᶅall Ⱳpleased... B: ⱠWon’t she?
22 A: They Ɋfinished the ᶑjob. B: ɊFinished the Ⱡjob?
23 A: I was Ɋtalking to ᶅJames ᶑSmith. B: ⱠJames | ⱠSmith?
24 A: She Ɋtook a ᶑtonga. B: She Ɋtook a Ⱡwhat?
25 A: I …do find this Ⱳdifficult... B: ɊDon’t Ⱡworry, | it’s Ɋnearly Ⱡover...
26 A: I’ve got Ɋsomething to ᶑtell you. B: ɊGo Ⱡon.
27 A: ɊUnᶅscrew the ᶑcylinder ᶆhead. B: ⱠRight, | and Ɋwhat ᶑnext?
28 A: I’m ᶑoff | Ⱡnow. ᶇGoodⱡbye.
29 A: I’ve Ɋjust been into ᶑtown. B: UⱠhum.
30 A: ɊWhat can I ᶑdo for you, ᶆsir? B: I’d Ɋlike this ᶑtie, | Ⱡplease.
31 A: ɊAnd for Ⱡyou, ᶄmadam? B: Some ᶑpaper, | if you’d Ɋbe so Ⱡkind.
32 A: I’m Ɋgoing to ᶑSheffield. B: ⱠReally? My ᶑmother’s | from ⱠSheffield.
33 A: ɊLike a ᶅcup of Ⱡcoffee? B: No, I Ɋdon’t ᶑdrink coffee, | myⱠself.
…
34 A: It’ll be ready toⱲmorrow. B: ⱠWill it?
35 A: I …can’t ᶅstand Ⱳprawns... B: ⱠCan’t you?
36 A: ɊMr. ᶑSmith! ɊHow ᶑare you? B: ɊI’m ᶑfine, Ms. ᶆJones.| And Ⱡyou?
37 A: I’d like a Ɋpound of ᶑapples, ᶆplease. B: ɊHere you Ⱡare, ᶄsir.
38 A: I Ɋwant a ᶑtaxi. B: ɊHere you Ⱡare, ᶄmadam. There’s Ɋone ᶑwaiting.
39 A: ɊRed or ᶑwhite? B: I’ll Ɋhave the ᶑwhite, | Ⱡplease.
40 A: Would you like Ⱡcoffee | or ᶑtea? B: ᶑTea, | Ⱡplease.
41 A: ɊWhat are you ᶑdoing toᶆnight? B: I’ve got a ᶑmeeting, | Ⱡactually.
42 A: ɊWhat’s ᶅRupert’s ᶑdriving ᶆlike? B: ɊPretty ᶑpoor, | if you ɋask Ⱡme...
43 A: ɊWhat can I ᶑget you? B: One of those deɊlicious ᶑcakes you ᶆmake, | Ⱡplease.
44 A: We Ɋought to be ᶑgoing | Ⱡsoon. B: There’s Ɋplenty of Ⱡtime, ᶄisn’t there?
45 A: We could Ɋset off at aɆbout | ᶑseven. B: We Ɋdon’t ᶅneed to be there Ⱡearly, ᶄdo we?
46 A: ⱠYes, | Ɋwhat Ⱡis it? B: ɊKeep the Ⱡnoise ᶄdown, would you ᶄplease?
47 A: ɊCould I ᶅborrow your Ⱡpen? B: If you Ⱡmust...
48 A: Do you Ɋever ᶅeat in the ᶅcanⱠteen? B: ⱠSometimes...
Task 9: (track 37)

Predict whether a fall or a rise is more suitable for each intonation phrase. Then, compare your choices
with the recording.
An ɊInviᶑtation
JANICE: !Why don’t you ‡come and see us?
JOHN: !Where do you live?
JANICE: In an !old house | by the river.
JOHN: I’d !probably ‡come by train.
JANICE: It’s only a !short w
‡ alk from the station.
JOHN: And if I !came by bus?
JANICE: It’s !five minutes | from the bus stop.
JOHN: It’s in !Mill Lane, | isn’t it? !Where e xactly?
JANICE: The !first ‡house on the left.
Task 10: (track 38)

Predict whether a fall or a rise is more suitable for each intonation phrase. Then, compare your choices
with the recording.
ɊGossiping at ᶅUniᶑversity
JOHN: !Who’s that over /there?
JILL: It’s Jim, | I think.
JOHN: !What’s he like?
JILL: Oh, he’s !one of our ‡best students.
JOHN: !What’s he studying?
JILL: !Modern languages.
JOHN: Which /languages?
JILL: English, | French | and Spanish.
JOHN: That | sounds interesting!
Task 11: (track 39)

Listen to the text. Mark the onsets, nuclei and tones in each tone unit.
Central Station
You’ll arrive | at Central Station. Wh en you get off the train | turn left |
along the platform. At the end | o f th e platform | there’s an escalator.
Go up it | and you’ll be in the main square. There’s a fo untain |
in the square |and I’ll be waiting for you there.
Task 12: (track 40)
ɊConfusing ᶑSurnames
JOHN WATT: ɊHelᶑlo. ɊAre you ᶑthere?
WILL KNOTT: ᶑYes. ɊWho’s ᶑthat?
JOHN WATT: ᶑWatt.
WILL KNOTT: ɊWhat’s your ᶑname?
JOHN WATT: Watt’s my /name.
WILL KNOTT: ᵽWhat?
JOHN WATT: My Ɋname’s ɍJohn ᶑWatt.
WILL KNOTT: ɊJohn ᵽWatt?
JOHN WATT: Yes. That’s ᶑright. ɊAre you Jones?
WILL KNOTT: No,| I’m ᶑKnott.
JOHN WATT: Well, Ã tell me your name, /then.
WILL KNOTT: ɊWill ᶑKnott.
JOHN WATT: Why not?
WILL KNOTT: My Ɋname’s ᶑKnott.
JOHN WATT: ɊNot ᶑwhat?
WILL KNOTT: À
Not ⱲWhatt,| ᶑKnott!
Pitch height: high, mid & low

Task 13: high rises in repetition questions (nucleus on interrogative)
1 A: I think Ɋthis is ᶅJames’s ᶑIPod. B: ᵽWhose?
2 A: ⱠGulliver | Ɋwent to ᶑLaputa. B: ᵽWhere?
3 A: We’ll Ɋneed a ᶑdozen | at ᶑleast. B: ᵽHow ᶄmany?
4 A: ɊThat was ᶅPrat ᶑGay. B: ᵽWhat was his ᶄname?
5 A: He Ɋflies on the ᶅthirty ᶑfirst. B: ᵽWhat ᶄdate does he ᶄfly?
6 A: That’s ɊBilly’s ᶑcousin. B: ᵽWhose ᶄcousin did you ᶄsay that ᶄwas?
7 A: She’s Ɋhome by ᶑfive, in ᶆgeneral. B: ᵽWhat ᶄtime is she ᶄnormally ᶄhome?
8 A: His Ⱳarm’s ᶆbroken, | so he Ɋcan’t ᶑplay. B: ᵽWhy ᶄcan’t he ᶄplay?
9 A: I Ɋlike my Ⱡtea | at Ɋfive ᶑsharp. B: ᵽWhen do you ᶄlike your ᶄtea?
10 A: ɊThese Ⱡroses | are for Graham. B: ᵽWho are they ᶄfor?
Task 14: high rises in echo questions

1 A: ɊWhat ᶑis it? B: ɍWhat ᵽis it? Well, it’s a ᶑmemory ᶆstick.
2 A: ɊHow many ᶑchildren has he ᶆgot? B: ɍHow ᵽmany? Seven.
3 A: ɊHow ᶅold is his ᶑwife? B: ɍHow ᵽold, did you ᶄsay? ɍYounger than his daughter!
4 A: We Ɋstart toᶅmorrow ᶅafterᶑnoon. B: You ɍstart toᶄmorrow ᶄafterᵽnoon?
5 A: ɊMark’s quite ᶑtired these ᶆdays. B: ɍMark’s quite ᵽtired, did you ᶄsay?
6 A: The Ⱡchildren | Ɋtook what they ᶑwanted. B: They ɍtook what they ᵽwanted?
7 A: ɊIs it Ⱡraining? B: ɍIs it ᵽraining? Of course it is.
8 A: Does your Ɋshop ᶅopen at weekⱠends? B: Does my ɍshop ᶄopen at weekᵽends? It’s always ᶆopen.
9 A: ɊWhat’s that ᶑbowl ᶆfor? B: ɍWhat’s it ᵽfor? It’s for the cream you’re ᶆwhipping.
10 A: ɊWhat’s the ᶅrabbit ᶑlooking ᶆat? B: ɍWhat’s the ᶄrabbit ᵽlooking ᶄat? Your carrots!
Task 15: contrast high, mid and low

1 ᵽReady?
2 ⱠReady?
3 ⱡReady?
4 Is it ᵽclear?
5 Is it Ⱡclear?
6 Is it ⱡclear?
7 ɊCan I ᶅclean the ᵽboard?
8 ɊCan I ᶅclean the Ⱡboard?
9 ɊCan I ᶅclean the ⱡboard?
10 Have you Ɋall ᵽfinished?
11 Have you Ɋall Ⱡfinished?
12 Have you Ɋall ⱡfinished?
13 Is Ɋthat the ᶅdirect ᵽobject?
14 Is Ɋthat the ᶅdirect Ⱡobject?
15 Is Ɋthat the ᶅdirect ⱡobject?
16 ɊCan I ᶅgo to the ᵽtoilet?
17 ɊCan I ᶅgo to the Ⱡtoilet?
18 ɊCan I ᶅgo to the ⱡtoilet?
19 ɊCan I ᵽhelp you?
20 ɊCan I Ⱡhelp you?
21 ɊCan I ⱡhelp you?
Task 16: Long tails & low head

1 ⱡHow long are you ᶄplanning to ᶄkeep it? 11 ɊWho on ɋearth ᶆtold him to ⱡcome ᶄhere?
2 ⱡDid you ᶄfinish ᶄfirst, in ᶄfact? 12 ɋWhere did you ᶆget that iⱡdea ᶄfrom, ᶄNathan?
3 ⱡI’m not reᶄsponsible for ᶄany of ᶄthat. 13 I think it ɋmay have been ⱡyou who ᶄdid that.
4 ɊIs this ⱡseat free ᶄnow, ᶄmadam? 14 We ɋmight as well ᶆtry to ⱡdo it ᶄfor them.
5 ⱡWhy, may I ᶄask? 15 As ɋlong as it is conᶆvenient for you ⱡall.
6 ⱡWe didn’t ᶄlet him ᶄdown. 16 ɋCouldn’t it be ⱡcancelled, you ᶄsilly ᶄfool?
7 ɊEven ᶄJonathan can ᶄsee through ᶄthis. 17 ɋWouldn’t it be ᶆbetter to ⱡwait a bit ᶄmore?
8 ɊWhat ⱡnumber did you ᶄphone in the ᶄend? 18 They ɋdon’t let us ᶆdown ⱡoften, ᶄdo they?
9 ɊWhat ⱡseeds did you ᶄplant, my ᶄdarling? 19 She ɋcan be a ᶆbit more ⱡinteresting, you ᶄsee.
10 ɊMaybe ⱡSam can ᶄgive you a ᶄhand with ᶄthat. 20 ⱡTwelve, |ⱡthirteen, | ⱡfourteen, | ⱡfifteen, |
ⱡsixteen, | ⱡseventeen, | ⱡeighteen, | ⱡnineteen,
| ᶑtwenty.
Task 17: First sight reading
Decide whether a fall or a rise would be more suitable in each intonation phrase.
ɊText 1: ɊSad news.
JENNIFER: Hi. ɊHow are you doing, Sandy?
SANDY: Hi, | Jennifer. I’m great, | thanks. ɊHow are you?
JENNIFER: Well, | I’m a Ɋbit tired, you see. ɊLast Monday | my son came
back. His wife, | Susan, | has deɊcided to split up.
SANDY: ɊWhat happened? They’ve Ɋalways looked so happy together.
JENNIFER: As a Ɋmatter of fact, | she Ɋnever quite liked my son. In Ɋmy
o pinion, | she was Ɋafter his money.
ɊText 2: ɊProblems at work.
MIRANDA: ɊCan I talk to you for a second?
JOAN: Yes,| Ɋcome in, Miranda. ɊHow can I help you?
MIRANDA: I’ve been Ɋquite worried lately, you see. I have Ɋchecked the
records we have | and some money is missing. It’s Ɋquite a
lot of money, | I’m a fraid.

JOAN: Oh, | that is serious. ɊWhose ac counts are affected?
MIRANDA: AcɊcording to my info, | there are Ɋfour clients involved: ɊRobert
Brooks, |ɊCliff Howard, |ɊSteve Green | and ɊKimberly
Quinn.
Communicative activities!
Task 18: (track 41)
ɊOperating
Operating a ᶑprinter
FIONA: ɍClose the Ⱡbox,
box, |Ɋthat’s
| Ⱡright. ᶑRight. ɍNow
Now you can ᶄclose the
ᶄwhole ᶑprogramme.
programme. I Ɋthink we’re onᶑline | Ⱡnow. Now,
 | Ɋtype the
dress | in the Ɋbox at the ᶑtop. ɍNow Ɋlook

adⱠdress look at the ɍwhole Ⱡpage |
and see if it ᶅlooks

looks OᶑK.
O ɊOᵽK? Now you can print!
print!
Task 19:
Get pairs and choose one appliance or technological device. Instruct your partner on how to do something
with it. Make sure you rise and fall at will ☺
The Fall-Rise
Awareness raising (track 42):
Task 1:
When you meet and old friend, the conversation is often about the people and places you both
used to know, and you like to find out about what has changed. Several years ago, Tony left the
office where Sue works, so when they happen to meet one day, there is a lot of catching up to do.
Listen to part of their conversation.
Conversations like this one can be a bit confusing for anyone who isn’t in the know. For instance,
it is sometimes difficult to keep track of the names of other people’s friends! Complete the table
below with what you can remember about each of the people mentioned in the conversation.
A senior member of staff who is rather secretive and

Arthur
set in his ways.
Jane
Ted
Mary
Sarah
Jane Harrison
Angela
John Fellows
(Brazil 1994, p.30)

Focus
ocus on form (track 43):
4
The fall-rise in detail
If there is no tail, the fall-rise

rise glide occurs within the nuclear syllable. If there is a tail made up of
unstressed syllables, the nuclear syllable may be a falling glide (especially if the vowel is long) and the rise
will spread through the tail.. If there are prominent syllables in the tail, the rise will start on the last
prominence. The normal onset before a fall-rise
fall rise is a falling head. This consists of a narrow glide on the
onset syllable followed by stepping syllables in the head. This glide is not as marked as a falling nuclear
tone.
Focus on meaning:
The Fall-Rise:
Fall Basic Meanings & Uses
• Implicational (statement) • Old information
I’m …quite Ⱳhungry.
hungry. (I.e. Let’s eat!) ɊGo is a ᶑverb. ⱲVerbs | Ɋtend
tend to ᶅshow ᶑactions.
• Minor information (dependent) • Checking questions

ⱲSometimes, | I Ɋcheat at eᶑxams.
xams. (Leading)
(Lea Can you …give me a Ⱳhand,
hand, ᶆplease?
I Ɋcheat at eᶑxams | Ⱳsometimes.
sometimes. (Trailing)
• Convergence (togethernes
togetherness)
• Politeness (e.g. corrections) ⱲWell, | conɊgratuᶅlations
lations on your ᶅnew ᶑbaby!
A: Paris is the capital of Canada.
B: It’s the …capital of ⱲFrance.
• Continuation
…
Our ᶅuniⱲversity | is Ɋone
one of the ᶑbest.
• Contrast
I ⱳwas ᶆsingle, | but ɍnow
now I’ve ᶄgot ᶄtwo wives!
Semantic criterion: the fall-rise

sounds like something is fishy
(“but...”), or too obvious.
He’s Ⱳgorgeous… | (but stinks!)
ⱲDuh
Task 2: (track 44)

Listen to these two texts. Think whether a fall or a fall-rise would be more appropriate in each of the
boxes. Why?
TONY: There was the Ⱳpost room | Ɇand | Ɋthen there was Arthur’s ᶆplace.
ɆAnd | there was the photocopying room.
Where’s Arthur | ᶑnow?
SUE: … …
At the top of the Ⱳstairs | was the coffee room | and opposite
…
Ⱳthat | was the photocopying ᶆroom. Just beyond Ⱳthere |
was the post room | and Arthur’s ᶆroom | was about Ɋthree
doors aᶑlong.
Task 3: (track 45)

Contrast: fall, rise & fall-rise.
1 ᶑChair. ⱠChair? ⱲChair…

2 ᶑMonkey. ⱠMonkey? ⱲMonkey…
3 It was reɊmarkably ᶑgood. It was re…markably Ⱳgood…
4 You Ɋmustn’t ᶑworry. You Ɋmustn’t Ⱡworry. You …mustn’t Ⱳworry.
Task 4: (track 46)

1 ⱲMine… 61 I …won’t tell Ⱳanyone…
2 ⱲNearly… 62 They’re …not ⱲChinese, | they’re Japanese.
3 ⱲProbably… 63 It …wasn’t ᶅreally Ⱳred, | just Ɋreddish.
4 ⱲPartly… 64 She …hasn’t ᶅdone very Ⱳwell, | ᶑhas she?
5 ⱲTrue… 65 The …trouble Ⱳis, | that we’re broke.
6 ⱲSoon… 66 She …doesn’t Ⱳsmoke. Not Ⱳnowadays, |
ᶑanyhow.
7 ⱲNo… 67 If you’re …feeling ᶅunⱲwell, | just say ᶆso.
8 ToⱲday… 68 She …felt that her Ⱳmother-in-ᶆlaw | Ɋalways
looked ᶑdown on her.
9 AⱲgain… 69 I Ⱳsaid | “Ɋpick them up.”
10 ⱲVertually… 70 ⱲThis ᶆtrain | Ɋterminates at ᶑEdgeware.
…
11 ⱲHappily… 71 When I say “Ⱳstop”, | ᶑstop.
12 ReⱲgrettably… 72 ɊThat’s the ᶅend of the Ⱳweather ᶆforecast |
Ɋnow we ᶅgo on to the news.
…
13 ReⱲportedly… 73 Bill Ⱳthreatened ᶆJim |and Ɋthen he ᶑhit him.
…
14 AlⱲlegedly 74 Bill Ⱳthreatened ᶆJim |and then ɍhe ᶑhit him.
…
15 I Ⱳthink so… 75 Bill Ⱳthreatened ᶆJim |and then ɍhe hit him.
…
16 I Ⱳwish I was ᶆrich… 76 You and ⱲI | could Ɋsort it out quickly.
…
17 I’ll Ⱳtry… 77 Bill told ⱲMary | and then Ɋshe told ᶑJennifer.
18 She Ⱳmight… 78 The Ⱳweather | will Ⱳprobably | be ᶑawful
aᶆgain.
19 They Ⱳcould… 79 We …need some ᶅmore Ⱳrain…
20 He Ⱳsays so… 80 I’m Ⱳnearly | ᶑready.
21 I Ⱳhope so… 58 You …may have Ⱳstarted your ᶆessay, |but have
…
22 Do be Ⱳcareful… you finished your ᶆessay?
…
23 Not at the Ⱳmoment… 59 ⱲYou’ve | Ɋgot ᶑbetter, | but ⱲI | ᶑhaven’t.
…
24 I’m awfully Ⱳsorry… 60 ⱲYou’ve ᶆgot ᶆbetter, |but ⱲI ᶆhaven’t.
25 Well, …make up your Ⱳmind… 81 They’re Ⱳvirtually | Ɋindiᶑstinguishable.
…
26 Don’t forᶅget the Ⱳsalt… 82 I’m …sure he’s Ⱳwrong.
27 I …don’t think it’s Ⱳmine… 83 ⱲFortunately, | I was ᶑwrong.
…
28 I’ve re paired the Ⱳwindows… 84 ⱲThen | I Ɋsaw a ᶑdog.
…
29 You can try the Ⱳsalmon… 85 ToⱲday, | we’re Ɋgoing to do ᶑgrammar.
30 He was …only Ⱳjoking… 86 Mrs ⱲAston | will be Ɋtaking the ᶑchildren.
… …
31 They’re only ᶅstaying for ᶅten Ⱳminutes… 87 As for Ⱳyou, | I’ll Ɋdeal with you ᶑlater.
32 It …wasn’t ᶅreally Ⱳbad… 88 Be…fore you ᶅjump to conⱲclusions, | Ɋlisten to
33 I’m …free toⱲday… what I ᶅhave to say.
34 She could …read a Ⱳbook… 89 ɊI Ⱡthought | the science eᶆxam would be
35 I can …let you have Ⱳtwo… ᶆhard, | but it was the Maths | that I found
…
36 They could go on Ⱳfoot… Ⱳdifficult.
37 Will you be ᶆable to ᶆwrite a Ⱳreference ᶆfor me? 90 I …didn’t deᶅcide not to ᶅbuy the ᶅhat because it
38 I …don’t supᶅpose you’d ᶅlike to Ⱳbuy one… was ᶅtoo exⱲpensive, | I just didn’t Ɋlike the
39 You …couldn’t ᶅdo me a Ⱳfavour… ᶑcolour.
…
40 Do you want to ᶅborrow my umⱲbrella? 91 I didn’t Ⱳbuy the ᶆcar | beɊcause it was ᶑcheap
…
41 Couldn’t you come aⱲnother ᶆday? | so I ᶑguessed | it Ɋwouldn’t be reᶑliable.
…
42 Can I open the Ⱳdoor ᶆfor you? 92 She didn’t …fail the e…xam beᶅcause she was
…
43 She didn’t ᶅdo it beᶅcause she was Ⱳtired… Ⱳlazy |she was Ɋreally ᶑill | on the ᶑday.
44 She …didn’t Ⱳdo it | beɊcause she was ᶑtired. 93 The Ɋfigures I’ve preᶅsented so Ⱳfar, |Ɋand will
45 I …don’t ᶅwant to sound Ⱳrude, | but is Ɋthat go Ⱳon to preᶆsent, |Ɋshow that the Ɇcompany
your Ⱡdog? is | in a ɍstrong finᶄancial poᶑsition.
… …
46 She didn’t say she Ⱳwould ᶆdo it, |she Ɋsaid 94 Some of our Ⱳmajor ᶆexports | ᶑcoffee, | for
she ᶑwouldn’t. eⱠxample, | Ɋwould be hit ᶑbadly | by ᶑclimate
47 She Ɋsaid that she ᶑwouldn’t’ ᶆdo it, | …not that ᶆchange.
she Ⱳwould… 95 ɊLearning aᶅbout proᶅnunciᶑation, | in
…
48 After Ⱳlunch, | we could Ɋcall on ᶑMary. particular ⱲEnglish proᶆnunciᶆation, |Ɋcan be a
49 If …I were Ⱳyou, | I’d reᶑject it. ᶑdifficult | ᶑjob.
50 On the Ⱳtable, | you’ll Ɋfind a ᶑjug. 96 Pro…fessor ᶅDavid ⱲCampbell, | the …famous
51 If …I were Ⱳyou, | I’d Ɋwait and ᶅsee what hiⱲstorian, |will be Ɇgiving | ɍnext week’s
ᶑhappens. ᶑlecture.
52 UnⱲfortunately, | I’ve Ɋlost your ᶑletter. 97 ⱲLima, | as I’m …sure you Ⱳknow, | is the
53 ⱲAndy ᶆisn’t the ᶆonly one ᶆinterested, | ⱲNeil’s ᶑcapital | of Peᶑrú.
ᶆinterested, | too. 98 If a comⱲplaint is ᶆmade, | Ɋand there’s no
54 If ⱲMartha wants to ᶆcome, | as Ⱳwell, |we’ll ᶑcertainty | at the Ⱳmoment | that this Ⱳwill be
need a Ɋbigger ᶑcar. the ᶆcase, | Ɋwe will ᶅtake it ᶑseriously.
…
55 ɊWhy not ᶅgo for a ᶑwalk? That’s what ⱲMary 99 I’d Ɋrather meet at ᶑten, | if you can Ⱳmake it.
ᶆdoes.
56 The made the …outhouse into a Ⱳbathroom |
and inɊstalled ᶅrunning water.
57 We’ve …solved ⱳthat ᶆproblem.
Task 5: (track 47)

In these examples, B partially agrees with something A has just said and then goes on to add more
information.
1 A: It’s important to get it right.

B: Of COURSE it’s important to get it right, | but it’s VERy difficult!
2 A: We don’t agree with you.
B: I KNOW you don’t a gree with me, | but I’M right!
3 A: The island’s beautiful.
B: Of COURSE it’s beautiful, | but it’s TOO far.
4 A: She likes diamonds.
B: Of COURSE she likes diamonds, | but they COST a fortune!
5 A: This hat’s a bargain!
B: I KNOW it’s a bargain, | but I DON’T need it!
6 A: He’s a difficult person to work with.
B: Of COURSE he’s a difficult person to work with, | but he’s VERy famous!
Task 6: (track 48)

In these examples, the same words are used as responses to two different contexts. First listen to each
context, predict the answer and contrast it with the audio.
1 There’s a very good fish restaurant where we could have dinner tonight.
I HAD fish | for lunch.
2 We won’t have time to eat later. So I hope you’ve had something already.
WELL I had fish | for lunch.
3 My cousin’s coming to stay in April. I’d like you to meet him.
I’M going to France | in April.
4 So – you’re going to France and Italy for your holidays next year. Paris is lovely in
May and June.
I’m GOing to France | in April.
5 I always meet John when I go to the swimming pool. He must go there every day, I
think.
He’s TAKen up swimming | to KEEP fit.
6 I don’t know how Alan is going to keep in shape, working such long hours at the
office.
He’s TAKen up swimming | to KEEP fit.
7 I think I should write to the managing director but I don’t know where to send the
letter.
The FIRM’S head office | in London.
8 I complained to the shop in the High Street but the letter I got in reply came from
London.
The FIRM’S head office | in London.
9 His exam results were good. What did he do when he got them?
He apPLIED for uni versity | when he KNEW he had passed.
10 So, he’s hoping to go to university. Has he applied yet?
He apPLIED for uni versity | when he KNEW he had passed.
Task 7: (track 49)

Listen to the following utterances, which you will hear twice. In each case, mark the onsets and tones in
the transcript and decide which of the questions, (a) or (b), provides a suitable context for what you hear.
1 I met Robert | this morning.

A: Who did you meet today?
B: When did you meet Robert?
2 He told me | he was in love.

A: What did he tell you?
B: How do you know he was in love?
3 She started to worry | a bout her e xams.

A: How does Sue feel about her exams?
B: What is Sue worrying about?
4 I learned Spanish | at school.

A: Where did you learn to speak Spanish?
B: Did you learn any languages at school?
Task 8:
Carl is trying to persuade Brenda to go out for a drink but Brenda has something arranged every night and
can’t accept. Choose the appropriate tone in Brenda’s answers. The onsets have been capitalized and in
bold.
(track 50) Busy Brenda.

CARL: How about coming out for a drink on Tuesday?
BRENDA: Un fortunately, | I’ve got some letters to write | on Tuesday.
CARL: Why don’t we go on Wednesday, then?
BRENDA: I’m aFRAID I have to go to a meeting | on Wednesday.
CARL: Can you go on Thursday?
BRENDA: Sorry, | I’ve GOT to do some homework | on Thursday.
CARL: Well, let’s go on Friday, after work.
BRENDA: I can’t! I’ve GOT to wait for a phone call | on Friday.
CARL: Could you manage Saturday, then?
BRENDA: I’m aFRAID not! I’m GOING to the theatre | on Saturday.
CARL: Oh, dear. Sunday, perhaps?
BRENDA: It’s im possible! I’m GOIng to visit my sister | on Sunday.
CARL: Well, that just leaves Monday!
BRENDA: Sorry, | I’ve GOT things to do | on Monday. I need | some time
| for my self!
Task 9:
Carl and Brenda have finally arranged to meet. What they don’t know yet is what to do. Whatever Carl
suggests Brenda has either done already or is going to do soon. This time, choose the appropriate onset
and tone. Then check your answers against the recording.
(track 51) Busy Brenda.

CARL: Let’s go to the theatre.
BRENDA: I’m going to the theatre | on Saturday.
CARL: Let’s go to the sports centre, then.
BRENDA: I’m going to the sports centre | to morrow.
CARL: Would you like to see a film?
BRENDA: I’m going to the cinema | this evening.
CARL: Shall we visit Janet? She keeps inviting us…
BRENDA: I’m going to visit Janet | next Monday.
CARL: We could try the new Italian restaurant.
BRENDA: I went there | last Saturday.
CARL: Why don’t we drive to the coast?
BRENDA: We drove to the coast | on Thursday.
CARL: Well, let’s just stay in and listen to some music.
BRENDA: We stayed in | last night! That’s what we always do in the
end.
Task 10:
Decide on the type of onset and tone.
(track 52) ᶑTea time

GLENN: What can we ᶅhave for tea.
BOB: We’ve got some strawberries.

GLENN: So, what’s the problem?
BOB: We haven’t ᶅgot any cream.
(track 53) ɊCancelᶑlation

SARAH: I’m not really sure, | but I think I may ‡have to
cancel our /meeting.
IAN: Oh, I’m sorry about that. What’s the trouble?
Has something come up?
SARAH: Well, actually, | it’s my mother. She needs to ‡go into
hospital | and she wants me | to take her /there.
(track 54) ᶑCornwall
PAUL: Planning to go a way this year?

TILLY: We’ve just been away. We had a Week in Cornwall.
PAUL: And how was it?
TILLY: Oh, we had a marvellous time. The only problem | was
the weather. Un fortunately, | it rained most of the time.
PAUL: So what did you do during all this rain?
TILLY: Well, the great at traction | was the Eden Project. I found
it utterly fascinating.
Task 11:
Listen to this text. Provide the intonation marks needed.
(track 55) Bel Ami’s

WAITER: Welcome to Bel Ami’s restaurant, ladies and gentlemen. I’m
your waiter this evening and I’d like to go through the menu
with you. The first course offers a wide choice of starters. I’d
particularly recommend the angels on horseback, the pumpkin
soup, or the celery soup. For the main course, we have steak,
lamb or fish – or also a vegetarian alternative. I believe the
rump steak is particularly good tonight.
Task 12: The fall rise in the classroom!

1 ⱲListen, | Ɋwhy don’t we (…) 13 Any Ⱳquestions?
2 ExⱲcuse me, | (…) 14 Can I …go to the Ⱳtoilet?
3 Can you reⱲpeat, ᶆplease? 15 Can you …lend me your Ⱳpen?
4 ⱲSorry, | but (…) 16 Is this Ⱳright?
5 ToⱲday, | (…) 17 Is this OⱲk?
6 ⱲFirst, |(…) and Ⱳthen, |(…) ⱲFinally, |(…) 18 Can you …speak Ⱳlouder?
7 ⱲLast ᶆclass, |(…) 19 Can I …have your atⱲtention, ᶆplease?
8 Is it Ⱳclear? 20 Any volunⱲteers?
9 Have you Ⱳfinished? 21 ⱲNext ᶆweek, | (…)
10 ⱲReady? 22 ⱲCareful…
11 Are you Ⱳready? 23 Are you Ⱳsure?
12 Does it …ring a Ⱳbell? 24 Is that corⱲrect?

TEXT 1 On the road
BENJAMIN: The road to her house is on the left.
STELLA: Not left, right.
BENJAMIN: I don’t want to argue, but I am absolutely sure.
STELLA: Don’t you remember that cottage?
BENJAMIN: It was after that cottage!
STELLA: You know it wasn’t…
BENJAMIN: All right – if you say so…
TEXT 2 Double checking

SALLY: Andy, did you say 10.30?
ANDY: Yes, Sally. Why?

SALLY: Nothing, really. I thought it was at 11.30.
ANDY: Not as far as I know, but you can never be too sure.
SALLY: Do you think Mary will know?

ANDY: You can ask her, but she’s quite forgetful.
TEXT 3 On the phone

TELEPHONIST: Dr. Smithson is not in, I’m afraid.
MS NEWELL: I understand that, but is he coming back today?
TELEPHONIST: I’m sorry, I don’t know.
MS NEWELL: Well, let me think. Can I leave a message for him?
TELEPHONIST: By all means.
TEXT 4 Raising funds

CLAIRE: In my opinion, we should charge for participation.
WILLIAM: Are you sure that’s a wise idea?
CLAIRE: As you know, we have to cover our costs.
WILLIAM: I agree with you, but there are other ways.
CLAIRE: For example?
WILLIAM: Like asking for contributions, that sort of thing.
TEXT 5 Warm, not hot…

TOBY: Well, you told me to soak it in hot water…
CHARLES: I never said that!
TOBY: I even wrote it down, Charles. Look!
CHARLES: I said nothing about hot water. What I told you was to dip it in warm
water.
TOBY: That’s exactly what I did!
CHARLES: That’s not what you did. Warm is not a synonym for hot!
TEXT 6 Wrong solution

ROSE: You told me to leave them in the solution, and that’s what I did.
SYBIL: I didn’t tell you to leave them in the solution.
ROSE: You know you did!
SYBIL: I certainly did not. What I told you was to leave the first lot in the
solution, not these ones.
ROSE: That’s what you think you said, but that’s not what you actually said.
SYBIL: Let’s agree to disagree.
TEXT 7 Footing the bill

HUGH: Well, what’s it come to? Was it expensive?
TONY: Hm? Oh, no – leave it to me. I insist.
HUGH: No – please. It was my idea.
TONY: Doesn’t matter. It’s on me today.
HUGH: Look, I can’t possibly let you pay it all. Let’s split the bill.
TONY: Well… if you’re absolutely sure. Thank you very much.
Task 14: Communication activity
Student A:
You’ve just come back from holiday in the south of Spain. You meet Student B who you know has been on
holiday in Italy. Ask your friend about his/her holiday – assuming that he/she did the same sort of activities
as you.
E.g. You stayed in a hotel, so ask about student B’s hotel.
You travelled by air, so ask what his/her flight was like.
Using the information below, answer A’s questions about your holiday. Do not offer information until
you’re asked about that part of your holiday.
Information:
You travelled by air – It was a charter flight and was crowded and uncomfortable.
Your holiday lasted two weeks – you got home yesterday.
You stayed in a big hotel – It was new and didn’t have much character.
The hotel was near the beach – You spent all your time sunbathing and swimming.
You didn’t do any sightseeing – In fact, you didn’t travel at all while you were there.
You didn’t eat any local/traditional food – the hotel gave you ‘international tourist’ food.
You enjoyed a really good night lifee – varied and exciting.
Now, you have no money left.
Student B:
You’ve just come back from holiday in the south of Italy. You meet Student A who you know has been on
holiday in Spain. Ask your friend about his/her holiday – assuming that he/she did the same
s sort of
activities as you.
E.g. You did part of the journey by boat, so ask him/her if the sea was calm.
You visited lots of interesting places, so ask student A about the paces he/she visited.
Using the information below, answer A’s questions about your holiday. Do not offer information until
you’re asked about that part of your holiday.
Information:
You made the journey by boat and train – and took your bicycle.
You were away for three weeks – arrived back last week.
You camped in a small tent which you took with you.
You stayed in a different place every night – always somewhere quiet.
You spent all your time visiting places of historical interest – your special interest is art.
You ate good country food – enjoyed the regional specialties.
You were not at all interested in any night life – you spend the evenings reading about the places you
planned to visit.
Now, you feel fit and healthy – you spent very little, so you have a lot of money left.
The Level
Awareness raising
Focus on form (track 56):
The level tone in detail
If there is no tail, the nuclear syllable is lengthened. If there is a tail, all its syllables remain at the same
level as the nucleus.
Focus on meaning:
The Level: Basic Meanings & Uses
Birming
• Continuation & Minor information Oblique orientation (shift from attention
(dependent) from the listener towards the language)
ɆSometimes, | I Ɋwant to ᶑkill
kill you. (Leading) • Pre-coded discourse
We ɍgot Ɇup, | we ɍhad Ɇbreakfast,
breakfast, | we ɆReady, |Ɇsteady, |ᶑgo!
ɍgrabbed our Ɇstuff, | and Ɋwent
went to ᶑschool. I deɆclare you | Ɇhusband
husband | and ᶑwife.
• Boredom, lack of involvement • Hesitations
ɊOɆk. I would Ɋlike to Ɇorder | Ɇum…
um… | Ɇer… | some
ɊDo as you Ɇwish. ᶑsushi.
• Building up suspense • Continuation (avoidance of R tones)
tone
The Ɇwinner is… | The ɊBig ᶑBang
Bang Theory.
Theory ɊHow Ɇlong | do you Ɋthink
think that the Ɇpresident
| will Ɋspend aᶑbroad?
Semantic criterion: the fall-rise

sounds like a robot.
ɆStop it…
ɊOh, Ɇno…
ɆMaybe…
Task 1: (track 57)

1 I Ɋcan’t Ɇstand it.
2 ɍWhat do I do Ɇnow.
3 ɊOh, ɆLord | ɍopen thou our Ɇlips.
lips.
4 ɊAre you ᶅready to Ɇanswer.
5 ɊSilly old ɇfool.
6 ɍThere he Ɇsat,| ɍdrinking his Ɇbear
bear, | …
7 He ɍonly Ɇplays
plays | when there’s a ɍlot of ᶑprize ᶆmoney.
8 ɍFirst we have Ɇone thing,| ɍthen
then we have another!
a
9 ɋThat’s the ᶆend of the Ɇweather
weather ᶅforecast, | Ɋnow we ᶅgo on to the ȼnews.
10 And the Ɋname for this Ɇprocess
process is | Ɋelecᶑtrolysis.
11 I’d …like you to ᶅnote parⱲticularly
ticularly | the Ɋspelling of the Ɇword | deᶑfinitive.
12 ɆEr… |Ɇemmm… | Oh, | Ɇer...
er... | a ɍcheese Ɇsandwich, ᶅplease, Chriᶅstina?
13 ɊOne ᵽbeef ᶄsandwich, | two
two | Ɇcheese ᶅsandwiches, | ⱨand | ɍthree ᶑteas.
14 ɍHi, ɆGina. ɍHi, ɆBill.
15 We’ve ɍgot Ɇthese | ɍthree ᶄfree ᶑtickets
ᶑ |
16 It’s aɆbout | the ɍsix Ɇbest | Oᶑlympic
lympic | gymᶑnastic
gym ᶆcompeᶆtitions.
17 The ⱨhistory | of ɍEnglish cricket.
cricket.
18 ɊThere was Ɇthis | Ɇer… | Ⱡsmelly
ly | Ɋanchovy and ᶅsalad ᶑsandwich | you Ɋleft
left on your ᶑdesk,
ᶆAaron.
19 She says ɍyou creɆɆate | a Ɋbad ᶑatmoᶆsphere.

20 You ɍhave to ᶄkeep your Ɇdesk | ɍspick and span.
21 ɆThis is | ᶑAntony. ɆI | Ɋhave to Ɇcontact you | aɊbout the ᶑmaps.
22 She Ɇsaid | ɍyou Ɇhad it | Ɋon ᶑSaturday.
23 ɆI | Ɋhave to let you Ɇknow | what’s ᶑhappened | at the ᶑtravel ᶆagency.
24 ɍSend a Ɇmessage | with your ᶑfax ᶆnumber.
25 ᶇI ɍwant a holiday | from this ɍhorrible Ɇjob | of Ɋwashing ᶑsocks.
26 ɆWell, | Ɋit was ᶑawful.
27 ɍCould you Ɇtell me | where you’ve Ɋput my Ⱡbook, ᶄBronwen?
28 ɍI’m going to Ɇput | ɍall my Ɇbooks | in a ⱳbox | Ɋand ᶑlock it.
29 The ⱨtwo | ɍrudest ᶄstudents in the ᶑschool.
30 ɍCould you Ɇtell me | …where I can ᶄget some Ⱳshoe ᶆlaces?
31 ɍCan you Ɇbuy | ɍsomething for Ɇme | at the Ⱳnewsagent’s?
32 ɆWell, | Ɋwhat do you ᶑwant?
33 Some Ⱳchocolates, | and a Ɋtin of Ɇsweets, | Ɋand an adᶑdress book.
34 ɆSnow | Ɋin Ocᶑtober.
35 ɍWhat Ɇis it, Joᶅanna?
36 ɍHave you Ɇlooked | Ɇcarefully | Ⱳeverywhere?
37 ɍUpɆstairs, | Ɇdownᶅstairs, | everywhere!
38 ɊPassports, ⱨplease.
39 ɊI Ɇthink | I’ve Ɋlost the ᶑpassports.
40 Perɍhaps you Ɇput them | in the Ɋplastic ᶑbag.
41 ɍPut the Ɇthings | in the Ɋplastic ᶑbag.
42 I Ɋwant to Ɇbuy | a Ⱳskirt…
43 ɍWhere can I Ɇget | some ɊThai ᶑfood?
44 The ɍnext Ɇcounter | on your ᶑleft.
45 ɍCould you Ɇtell me | Ɇwhere the… | Ɇer… | Ⱳtravel ᶆagent’s ᶆis?
46 ɍPlease, leave a Ɇmessage | and ɍwe’ll get ᶑback to you.
47 ɍGive us a Ɇcall, | ᶂbye!
48 ɆNews | ᶑUpdate!
49 ɍCharles Ɇtold me | Ɋtwo ᶑjeeps | crashed on it | in January.
50 ɍI Ɇsaw | ⱳWilliam aᶆgain on ᶆWednesday.
51 ɍI ᶄwant to Ɇbuy | the Ɋhat in the ᶑwindow.
52 Do Ɋyou want the Ɇone | with the ᶑfeathers?
…
53 I’m going to the Ⱳbar | to Ɋorder some Ɇmore | ɊGerman ᶑbeer.
Task 2: (track 58)

Compare these two texts related to the covering of a football match. Mark the onsets and tones you hear:
TEXT 1:
In Barce lona today, | sup porters clashed | when England played | their
World Cup match | a gainst Spain, | the present cup holders. England
had held the champions | to one- one | until half time, | but soon after play
was re sumed | a penalty was awarded | a gainst them. Ac cording to our
re porter, | Jim Bullock, | the de cision caused | uproar | among a group
| of England fans, | and this in turn | triggered an angry response | from
some op posing supporters | in an ad joining | section of the stand.
Text 2:
Sup porters clashed | during play | in the World

ld Cup match | here
to day. England | had held the champions | to one- one | un til half time,
| but soon | after play was re sumed | a penalty | was a warded a gainst
them. The de cision | caused uproar | a mong a group | of England fans.
And this in turn | pro voked | and angry re sponse | from some op posing |
sup porters | in an adjoining section | of the stand.
Task 3: (track 59)

Listen to this recording. Provide the intonation of the sections in bold.
ɊFlight to ᶑBirmingham
ᶑ
VERNON: I’d ɍlike to reᶄserve
serve a Ɇseat | on the ɍten thirty Ɇflight | to ⱲBirmingham, |
on ᶑThursday.
Thursday. My Ɋname is ᶑVernon.
ASSISTANT: Thursday May the twenty first? Certainly, sir. There’s a seat
in the third row.
VERNON: ɍThat’s ᶑfine. …And I’m reⱲturning | on ɊMay the ᶅtwenty
twenty ᶑthird.
ASSISTANT: The …first Ⱳflight
flight | ɍleaves ɆBirmingham | at Ɋeight ᶑthirty.
thirty.
VERNON: ɊThat’s a bit ᶑearly.
early.
ASSISTANT: Or there’s… twelve thirty, or four thirty.
VERNON: ɊFour Ɇthirty’s

rty’s | Ɋtoo ᶑlate. ⱲTwelve ᶆthirty, ᶆplease.
ASSISTANT: On the Ɇtwelve
twelve | …
thirty Ⱳflight | on …
May the ᶅtwenty
twenty Ⱳthird, | there’s
ɍonly a Ɇseat ᶅfree
free | in Ɇrow | thirⱲteen.
VERNON: ɊRow thirɂteen?
teen? ⱲNo, ᶆthanks. ɊI’ll go at ᶑeight ᶆthirty.
Task 4: Proverbs
erbs and sayings
1 ɍToo many Ɇhands | ____________________________________________
2 ɍJack of all Ɇtrades

trades | ____________________________________________
3 ɊOne man’s Ɇmeat

meat | _____________________________________________
4 When the ɍgoing gets Ɇtough

tough | __________________________________
5 ɍHope for the Ɇbest

best | ____________________________________________
6 If it ɍain’t Ɇbroke
broke | ______________________________________________

TEXT 1 Lord’s Prayer
Our Father who art in i heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us,
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from
f evil.
TEXT 2 Humpty Dumpty

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall,
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
All the king's horses and all the king's men
Couldn't put Humpty together again.
TEXT 3 US Presidential Oath

I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute
xecute the Office of President of
the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect
and defend the Constitution of the United States
TEXT 4: UK Sworn Testimony Presidential Oath

I swear by Almighty God that the evidence I shall give shall be the truth,
the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
TEXT 5: Solomon Grundy

Solomon Grundy,
Born on a Monday,
Christened on Tuesday,
Married on Wednesday,
Took ill on Thursday,
Grew worse on Friday,
Died on Saturday,
Buried on Sunday.
That
hat was the end,
Of Solomon Grundy.
Sequences of tones: leading and trailing tones

LEADING TONE MAJOR INFORMATION USE
Minor info - Dependent Major info - Independent Tone
Topic Comment
1 ⱲArchibald,
2 Ⱡ Archibald, Ɋwhere are the ᶑtowels I’ve just ᶆbought? Topicalization
3 Ɇ Archibald,
4 À
Last ⱲSunday,
5 ɊLast ⱠSunday, my Ɋwhole ᶅfamily ᶅvisited ᶑGranny. Fronting
6 ɊLast ɆSunday,
MAJOR POINT OF INFORMATION TRAILING TONE USE

Independent tone Dependent tone
1 À
last ⱲSunday.
Separate IP
2 My Ɋwhole ᶅfamily ᶅvisited ᶑGranny Ɋlast ⱠSunday.
Non nuclear time marker
3 ᶆlast ᶆSunday.
as tail.
Task 1:
Decide which part of B’s intervention is the major point of info and which are leading or trailing tones. Choose the
leading tone you like and ask your partners to say what tone it was. Each nucleus is already undelined.
1 A: ɊWhat was your weekᶑend like? B: Saturday | was Ɋabsolutely fantastic | you know.
2 A: I’m Ɋmost ᶑgrateful for your B: If Ɋthat’s all, | I Ɋthink I’ll be going.
/help.
3 A: So you ᶑdid go to their /house. B: Yes and Ɋwhen I arrived, | there was Ɋnobody in.
4 A: I Ɋthought of ᶅgoing for a ᶑwalk. B: ɊI’ll come too, | if I may.
5 A: ɊWho was the ᶑbest? B: Graham, | in my opinion.
6 A: IɊmagine going ᶅout in ᶑthis B: ɊRain or shine, | they always go out on Sunday
/weather! afternoon.
7 A: I …don’t really Ⱳtrust him... B: !Whether you trust him or not, | we’ve just Ɋgot to
believe him.
8 A: ɊWhat’s the ᶑweather gonna /do? B: It’s gonna rain | according to the forecast.
9 A: He’s sup…posed to be back B: If he’s Ɋnot here in a ten minutes, | I’ll Ɋleave
Ⱳsoon... without seeing him | I’m afraid.
10 A: ɊHow much did ᶑGeorge /know? B: Nothing | his brother says.
11 A: ⱲI think | ᶑJames /broke it. B: If Ɋthat’s so, | Ɋwhat can we do about it now?
12 A: ⱲSorry, | he’s ᶑout, I’m a/fraid. B: ɊWhen he comes back, | please Ɋtell him I phoned.
13 A: Shall I Ⱳfetch them? B: If you’re Ɋsure you don’t mind | Ɋgo ahead.
14 A: What a Ɋdreadful ᶑsummer. B: January | was terrible. It was Ɋnice in February |
though.
15 A: ɊWhose fault ᶑwas it, /then? B: Dad says | it was yours | as a Ɋmatter of fact.
16 A: Can I Ɋlend you a Ⱡhand? B: I’ve Ɋjust finished, | thank you very much.
17 A: It Ɋlooks like ᶑrain, | I’m aⱠfraid. B: Then Ɋlet’s stay at home | in that case.
18 A: ɊWhich one can I ᶑtake? B: You can take both, | as far as I’m concerned.
19 A: Is she Ɋstill Ⱡmarried? B: ɊYes she is, | as far as I know.
The Rise-Fall
Awareness raising (track 60)

• Who’s talking to whom?
• What’s the problem?
• How does the speaker feel?
• How does she make you feel?
• Why?
Focus
ocus on form (track 61)
The rise-fall in detail
Cruttenden (2008, p. 275) states that a “fall may be reinforced by an introductory rise, being realized as a
continuous glide.” The different variants are:
• If there is no tail, the nuclear syllable is manifested as a rise-fall

rise fall glide.
• If the tail consists of one syllable, there are two possibilities:
o the nucleus may be heard as an accented syllable followed by
b a falling glide that
starts on a higher pitch level.
o the nucleus may be heard as a rising glide followed by a low syllable.
• If the tail consists of more than one syllable, the nucleus may be an accented syllable on a
mid-level
level pitch, the first syllable in the tail is higher than the nucleus and the remaining
syllables are pitched low.
Focus on meaning:
The Rise-Fall:
Rise Basic Meanings & Uses
• A reinforced variety of fall • Information that is new to listener
• The speaker may be impressed AND SPEAKER
Her Ɋhouse is ɂhuge! It’s like a ɂpalace!
palace! This bag is full of gold!
• The speaker may be challenging • Linguistic control

He can Ɋthink what he ɂlikes. I Ɋknow
know I’m You’re ɂlate. ɊTell me ᶅwhere
where you’ve
you ɂbeen.
ɂbetter than him. • Divergent (separateness)
ɂWell, | so you Ɋfinally deᶅcided
cided to ᶅturn ᶑup.
Task 1 (track 62)
Think about these two phrases. What punctuation marks would you use? Why?
Justin
Dudley
¡ɂTodos!
dos! (Julieta Prandi)
¡Corɂrecto!
recto! (Susana Giménez)
NOTE:
There are two allotones in English, each of them
corresponds to a different phonological tone in Spanish.
Spanish
Be careful!!!
¡Susana!
¿Susana?
Use this tone with care (if at all)!
Greatest source of interference (L1 > L2)

Task 2 (track 63)
1 ɂNow! 30 ɊTake Ƚtwo!

…
2 ɂNice! 31 It’s an eⱲlectric | Ƚcuckoo ᶆclock!
3 ȽHeavens! 32 It’s Aɂmerican!
4 ɂAwesome! 33 It was ᶑvery | exɂpensive.
5 ȽWonderful! 34 ɊSo you’re in ɂPortugal!

…
6 Bill Ⱳthreatened /Jim | and then ɍhe hit Ƚhim. 35 SurⱲprises | in the ɂpost ᶆoffice.
7 ɂWe are ᶆplanning to ᶆfly to ᶆItaly. 36 ɍThis Ⱡparcel | conɆtains | Ⱳsix | Ƚmice!
8 ɊWhat a surɂprise! 37 But the Ⱳsheets | have Ƚshrunk!
9 He Ɋthought I’d Ƚfinished the /essay. 38 ⱠOh, | ɂyes!
10 But Ɋhow do you ᶅwant to Ƚpay for it? 39 ⱠOh, | ɂdear!
11 So Ƚwill you /do it? 40 ɊWe just ɂlove ᶆliving ᶆhere.
12 ɊWhat do you ᶅthink it ɂwas? 41 ɂWilliam aᶆgain!
13 ɂPatients | are ɍnow en Ɇcouraged | to Ƚexercise | 42 ɊOh, ɂno!

inɊstead of ᶑrest.
14 But in ᶑfact, | Ɋhe’s from ɂCanada. 43 ɂYes!
15 ɂKarl’s | Ɋgiven up his Ƚcollege /course! 44 There’s been a Ɋhorrible ɂaccident.
16 ɊHow emȽbarrassing! 45 ɍWhat’s Ƚhappened?
17 ɊHow Ƚcool! 46 ɍHow Ƚawful!
18 The Ɋview is ᶅmagᶑnificent | ɂisn’t it? 47 I Ɇthought | he was a mathemaȽtician!
19 I Ɋdon’t like ɂanyone ᶆborrowing my ᶆbike. 48 SaⱲmantha ᶆgave me | Ƚnothing to ᶆdrink!
20 I’ll be Ɋstaying for a ɂmonth! 49 ɊWhat’s that ɂbanging ᶆnoise, ᶆSharon.
21 ⱲOnwash | is Ɋso ɂpopular! 50 ȽNo!
22 It’s Ɋon the ᶑfloor | Ɋnext to your ɂfoot! 51 She’s Ⱳrunning | to Ɋour Ƚhouse!
23 ɂMmm! 52 ⱳNow she’s ᶆringing | Ɋour Ƚbell!
24 I’ll be late | for my apȽpointment! 53 ȽYou’re very ᶆearly | for Ⱡlunch.
25 ɊWake Ƚup, ᶆJoe! 54 It’s Ƚonly | eɊleven o’Ⱡclock.

…
26 His Ⱳbeard | has Ⱳnearly | ɊdisapȽpeared ᶆinto 55 ɊBe ɂsensible, ᶆPaul!
his ᶆbeer.
…
27 ɊSomebody Ⱡgave me | this Ƚblouse for my 56 Oh, Ⱳno. ɂRoland | is a ɂpilot, ᶆLara.
ᶆbirthday.
28 It’s Ɇgot… | Ɇmmm… | Ɇer... | blue ɂbutterflies 57 ɂWonderful!
on it.
29 ɆSo… | ɆI… | Ɇer… | deɍcided to stay at Ƚhome!
Task 3 (track 64)

1 A: She came ɍtop of the class. B: ɂDid she ᶆjust! ɊWell ɂwell!
2 A: I paid ɍfifty dollars ᶆfor it. B: ɂFifty!
3 A: ɍJane’s ᶄleft her husband. B: ɂTerrible, | ɂisn’t it?
4 A: ɍSally’s ᶄjust had triplets. B: My ɂgoodness!
À
5 A: I don’t want to ᶅanⱲtagonize her. B: But you’ve ɍgot to be ɂfirm.
6 A: I Ɋneed a ɂbreak. B: ɊDon’t we ɂall!
7 A: ɊWhat ᶑcolour shall I ᶆchoose? B: ɊPlease youɂrself.
À
8 A: I don’t want to take Ⱳchemistry. B: Take ɂphysics, ᶆthen.
9 A: ɊMay I ᶅtake this Ⱡnewspaper? B: ɂDo.
10 A: The ⱨboss | Ɋwants the re Ɇport | by B: Toɂmorrow?
toᶑmorrow.
11 A: ⱲKaren says | she Ɋwants to be a vet. B: ɂReally?
12 A: ɊThey’ve got Ƚdiamonds in them. B: ȽDiamonds!
13 A: I’m Ɋgoing to Ɇread | The ᶑRiders | ᶑnext. B: ɊThat’s the ᶅbook ɂI ᶆwonted.
14 A: ⱲJane | has Ɋleft ᶑAdam. B: You’re ɂkidding.
15 A: ᶇHe’s bought a Porsche. B: A ɂPorsche!
16 A: ⱲDan got | the ɂjob. B: ȽGreat!
17 A: It’s inᶑcredible | to Ɇthink that it’s | over a B: AȽmazing!
Ɋhundred years ᶑold.
18 A: ⱲJacks just /bought | a Ɋnew ᶑcar! It’s ᶑpink. B: ȽPink?
19 A: ᶇThis ⱡcheese | is frozen! B: ȽFrozen?
20 A: You Ɋlove my ᶑcousin. B: ɂJustin?
21 A: ⱠNo, | his ᶑbrother. B: ȽDudley?
22 A: The ᶑforwards. B: The ɂforwards?
Task 4 (track 65)
My Ɋbrother’s ᶑbirthday
DEIRDRE: !What can I Ɋgive my ᶑbrother | for his ᶑbirthday?
ANGUS: ɊWhat does he ᶅdo for a ᶑliving?
DEIRDRE: He’s a ᶑvan ᶆdriver.
ANGUS: Give him some Ƚdriving ᶆgloves.
DEIRDRE: He Ɋdoesn’t wear ᶆgloves | when he Ⱡdrives, | not even in ᶑwinter.
ANGUS: ɊWhat does he ᶅdo as a ᶑhobby?
DEIRDRE: In w
; arm ᶆweather,| he Ɋgoes ᶑswimming.| ɍAnd he ᶄplays ᶑgolf.
ANGUS: Give him some ɂgolf clubs!
DEIRDRE: He’s alⱲready got a ᶆbag | Îfull of ᶆgolf ᶆclubs.| His ⱳgolf ᶆbag | is …so Ⱳheavy |
he can Ɋhardly Îmove it.
ANGUS: ɊWhat does he ᶅdo in the ᶑwinter?
DEIRDRE: He beɆlongs | to a football ᶆclub. | But he Ɋspends ᶅmore ɂtime | Ɋdrinking
ᶅbeer in the Ƚbar | than …playing Ⱳfootball.
ANGUS: ɋThat Ɋsolves your Îproblem! | Give him a Ɇbig | Ɋbottle of ᶑbeer!
Task 5 (track 66)
I …haven’t Ⱳseen you | for ᶑages

SOPHIE: ⱠMike? I’m ɍover here.
MIKE: ȽSophie! You Ɋlook Ƚgreat! You Ɋhaven’t Ɇchanged | a ɂbit!
SOPHIE: ⱠOh, | I …don’t Ⱳknow… It’s been over ɍten Ƚyears! I’m …definitely Ⱳolder, | if
…
not Ⱳwiser…
MIKE: ᶑWell, | you look …just the ᶅsame to Ⱳme.
SOPHIE: ᶑAw…
MIKE: ɊCome ᶑon, | we’ve got over Ɋten Ƚyears | to ɋcatch up Ⱡon, | and ᶑnot | a Ɋlot
of ᶑtime. My Ɋplane Ɇleaves | at ᶑseven | this ᶑevening.
SOPHIE: …
Tell me about ⱳyou, first. How ɍlong have you been Ɋworking in Maɂdrid?
ɍWhat are you ɂdoing ᶆthere?
MIKE: ⱠWell, | ɊI Ɇwork | for a ɍbig interᶄnational IᶑT ᶆcompany. …And at the
Ⱳmoment, | I’m ᶑbased in Maᶆdrid. ɍI’ve been Ɇthere aᶅbout | eighɊteen
ᶑmonths, | Ⱡnow.
SOPHIE: ɂWow! That Ɋsounds imⱠportant! Are Ɇyou… | enᵽjoying it?
MIKE: ᶑYeah, | ɋvery ɇmuch. ɊBut there’s a ᶑchance | that I’ll Ɋhave to ᶅmove to
Germany | in ɋthree Ⱡmonths. ɊThat’s where the ᶑheadquarters ᶆare.
SOPHIE: That Ⱳsounds interesting, | Ƚtoo!
MIKE: ⱲYeah, | Ɇbut… | ɊI have a ᶅSpanish ᶑgirlfriend, | Ⱡnow.
SOPHIE: ȽAhhh! I Ƚsee! ɊWhat’s her ɂname?
MIKE: ɂRosa. You’d Ƚlike her! She’s …great Ⱳfun… | ɍWe’ve been going Ɇout | nearly a
ᶑyear | Ⱡnow.
SOPHIE: ɂWhoa! ɊThat ᶅsounds ɂserious! ɊDoes Ɇshe | speak ⱲEnglish?
MIKE: ɊOh, ȼyes. ɊHer ɆEnglish | is …much ᶅbetter than my ⱲSpanish. I ɍstarted
Ɇgoing | to ɊSpanish Ɇlessons | six Ⱳmonths aᶆgo, | Ɇbut | I Ɋstill Ɇfind |
…
Spanish proᶅnunciⱲation’s | …really ᶑdifficult.
SOPHIE: ɆMmm. I ᶑknow.
MIKE: ɂOh, | yeah, | you …studied Ⱳlanguages, | ɂdidn’t you?
SOPHIE: ȽYes, | I studied ɊFrench and ᶑGerman | at uniⱲversity | ⱳbut, | I’ve Ɋalso been
ᶅtrying to learn ɂSwedish | for the Ɋlast few Ⱡyears.
MIKE: ȽSwedish! ⱠWhy? Come Ⱡon, | …now is Ⱳyour turn, ᶆSophie. ɊTell me about
ᶑyou.
The Rise-Fall tone in River Plate Spanish:
The Greatest Source of Tone Interference
Do you think we use the rise-fall in River Plate Spanish? Probably you don’t think so, although the very title
of this article states the opposite. We actually do use this tone, and a lot!!! We are totally unaware of this,
as usual. Remember that we are normally aware of the existence of sounds because we have been trained
at school to relate what we hear to what we write, but we have never been trained to listen to intonation
in an analytical way.
First of all, I want to test you! Read out the following phrase in a colloquial way. Let’s imagine that you are
talking to a friend of yours:
¿Susy, ya terminaste toda la tarea?
Can you read the following chunks, please?
¿Susy| ya terminaste| toda la tarea?|
You are likely to have used three rise-falls. The first and second tone units may take a leading tone that
shows continuity. The last tone unite may take another rise-fall to show that this is a checking question
(this is typical of yes-no questions).
¿ ÎSusy| ya termi Înaste| toda la ta Îrea?|
Now… which tone would you use in its English counterpart?
Suzie| have you finished | all your homework?
Definitely, a rise-fall would be out of the question. If the speaker does not want to sound divergent and
dominant (see Brazil), or challenging (see O’Connor) a rise-fall would be wrong. Maybe a fall-rise is a nicer
option. Actually, we may say that many times a rise-fall in River Plate Spanish is the equivalent of a Fall-
Rise in Standard British English.
2 ;Suzie| have you ;finished | all your ;homework?
Where is the danger?

We don’t always use a rise-fall in Spanish. We only use this tone in paroxytone words (i.e. palabras graves)
or pro-paroxytone words (i.e. palabras esdrújulas) when they bear the nucleus. In other words, the rise-fall
emerges when there are syllables in the tail. We normally use this tone in checking yes-no questions or as
a continuative tone. In nuclear oxytone words (i.e. palabras agudas) we normally use a rise, as there are no
syllables in the tail to spread the rise-fall (this is similar in English).
E.g.
Spanish English
¿ Â Sí? Â See?
¿Venís por Â mí? Is that for Â me?
¿Está al re Â vés? Is that for Â Bess?
¿Conocés a ÎBetty? Do you know Â Betty?
¿Termi Înaste? Have you Â finished?
¿Sabés lo Î último? Is that your Â uniform?
Also, we may use this same tone to express surprise or irony (this use is similar in English).
Think of Antonio Gasalla. When he becomes ‘the old lady’ and talks to Susana Giménez he is likely to use:
Declaratives: Su Ásana.
Yes-No Questions: ¿Su Îsana?
Exclamations: ¡Su Îsana!
Negative Transfer
Make sure that you do not use a rise-fall in English unless you know that you really want to.
E.g.
You should say You should avoid
Are you òready? Are you Îready?
Have you òfinished? Have you Îfinished?
;Billy| do you underòstand this? Î Billy| do you under Îstand this?

Unit 3: Nucleus Placement in Detail

Cruttenden (1997) discusses the different focusing devices that are available in the language. It is
interesting to note that this point presents marked differences between Spanish and English. These
focusing differences are manifested phonologically in the choice of tonicity. Each language makes use of
the intonation, grammar and lexis to show focus:
1. Intonational focusing – The focus structure of an intonation phrase is manifested by the
placement of the nucleus.
2. Grammatical focusing–Certain grammatical structures are used to handle the focused

material in specific ways. For example, the passive voice, cleft sentences and pseudo-cleft
sentences are used to bring material into focus. In general, the nucleus is placed on the
focalized elements.E.g.:
!Granny was ac‡costed by a po Áliceman. (Focus on the agent)

It is pho Ánetics that drives us crazy. (Focus on the real subject)
What you !need is a ‡good Árest. (Focus on the object)
3. Lexical focusing – Some words can be used to bring material into focus. These words
govern the placement of the nucleus. E.g.:
Even: The nucleus falls on the item it governs

!Even J
Á esus had /enemies.
Too: It is always nuclear if it is in final position. Optionally, it can be chunked off.

!I want ‡holidays, Átoo. / !I want Áholidays, | Átoo.
If Spanish and English syntactic structure is compared, it will become evident that Spanish has a greater
freedom of constituent mobility. The nucleus tends to fall on the last lexical item in Spanish almost
exclusively because this syntactic flexibility allows many elements to be in nuclear final position. In English,
however, the number of syntactic constraints has an impact on the phonological nucleus: the more
restricted the syntactic freedom, the freer the placement of the nucleus. To illustrate this, let’s compare
the behaviour of event sentences:
Es!tá so ‡nando tu celu Álar. Is !ringing your Áphone.
Your Áphone is /ringing.
The noun phrase can be placed at the end of the intonation phrase in Spanish, but not in English.
Therefore, Spanish allows most items to be move to the end to take the nucleus. English, on the other
hand, keeps the order fixed but moves its intonation focus, which is manifested as an early nucleus.
The intonation device to signal focus is always at work. As every intonation phrase needs a nuclear syllable,
it is evident that there will always be an intonational manifestation of focus. However, there may also be
other focusing devices at play at the same time:
Á ou who /let the /dog out. (Grammatical focusing + intonational focusing)

It was y
!Even y
Á ou can be of /use. (Lexical focusing + intonational focusing)
Broad and Narrow Focus

Semantically, an intonation phrase contains different elements. These elements are linked to the whole
text and the context. The interplay between these relationships and the intonation phrase has a bearing on
the focus domain (i.e. the scope of the focus). In the next example, the question is too open to restrict the
answer in any way:
A: What happened?
B: [I have !just had a Ábath.]
All the items in the answer are new. The whole intonation phrase is in focus. In other words, this IP is in
broad focus.
Now, the next context is different:

A: Who has just had a bath?
B: [ ÁI] have /just had a /bath.
This time, only part of the answer is in focus. The nucleus falls on the only new item, the pronoun. Narrow
focus occurs when only part of the information is in focus: generally, the last new item in the focus
receives the nucleus while the elements that are old remain out of focus and are deaccented.
Old Information
Old (or given) information is normally left out of focus. The big question is, then, what information can be
categorized as old information. In real-time native speech, this question does not present much difficulty:
each speaker discriminates between new and old information according to what they think that their
interlocutor knows or ignores at that very instant. A word of caution is called for here: a speaker can
choose to present information as old or new, even if it is not like that (just like politicians!). The greatest
stumbling block, however, becomes evident when speakers need to analyze a ready-made
ready text, for they
have to act it out.. In real life, participants are aware of contextual information (i.e. time, place,
relationships between the participants, etc.),
etc.), but in reading aloud, the speaker has to infer what is new and
what is old in that particular context.
Ortiz Lira (1998) provides the following

following taxonomy of old information. The examples illustrate cases in
which the old information is out of focus:
(On a sunny day)

Situationally I [love] dry weather.
Repetition Synonymy
A: Are you glad? A: Are you a politician?
B: I'm [very] glad B: I´m
m [not] a criminal.
Linguistically
Hyponymy
A: Do you have a pet?
B: I[am allergic to] animals.
Sense relations
Converse
The cop was away | so the
[thieves] started to work.
Nucleus on Old Information

Sometimes, old information is made nuclear. First, if the whole chunk is old,, the nucleus will naturally fall
on old information (the focus will be broad,, as the whole of the IP has the same informational status).
Second, if there is contrast,, this may imply the accenting of information that has been given before. Finally,
when a statement is followed by a Wh-question,
Wh , the nucleus in the latter may fall on old information.
1.- Customer: I /want a !pizza
pizza and a Ábeer.
Waiter: [A !pizza
pizza and a Ábeer.]
2.- A: Do you !want Âtea
tea | or Ácoffee?
B: [ ÁCoffee, /please.]
3.- A: She’s a !good Ádoctor.
doctor.
B: She’s Ànot ‡really
really a ;doctor | she’s a Ánurse.
4.- A: I have !split Áup.
‡ plit Áup?] (In Spanish we would say [¿Por qué]
B: [!Why have you split
s Á ué] te sepa/raste?).
q
Exceptions to the Last Lexical Item Rule
Broad focus is realized phonologically by placing the nucleus on the last lexical item (LLI rule). In general,
the focus is narrow if this is not the case. For instance:
a-. The
he nucleus falls on a grammatical item.
E.g. f; rom] Rome, [!not
I’m [ from] [ Áin] Rome.
b-.. The nucleus falls on a grammatical item other than the last one.
E.g. Where’s your Ácar?]
A: [!Where’s
B: I [!don’t Áhave]
have] a car.
Exceptionally, there are intonation phrases in broad focus in which the nucleus does not fall on the last
lexical item. These exceptions to the LLI rule may (a) have the nucleus in an early argument (nouns, in
general); (b) end in items that are deaccented due to their low semantic weight.
Notice!
Most of the exceptions to the LLI imply that a noun is nuclear,, in spite of the following lexical items. For
some reason, nouns are preferred in English, while verbs may be preferred in Spanish. Be on the alert! A
practical memorable tip is to think
hink of “the
“ Supernoun”.
”. If you follow this “hero”, you will definitely
transcribe and use tonality satisfactorily.
Reading - Ortiz Lira (1998): Exceptions to the LLI (pages 59-68).

59
Exceptions to the LLI Rule

1. Nucleus on the last Noun
a. Event Sentences: The TEACHer’s arrived.
b. Noun (direct object) + Infinitives: We’ve got a TASK to finish.
c. Nouns + Adjectives: Leave the DOOR open.
d. Causative constructions: He’s hadhis HAIR cut.
e. Wh-questions
questions ending in a verb: What BOOK did you buy?
f. Final relative clauses: I like the SCARF you knitted.
g. Separable Phrasal Verbs: Put your TOYS away.
h. Subject + passive verb:
ver The MEETing’s been put off.
2. Final elements of low semantic weight

a. Final objects of general reference: GIVE me that thing.
b. Final vocatives: Hurry UP, honey.
c. Final reporting clauses: I’ll DO it, he said.
d. Final comment clauses: She’s not MARried, I guess.
e. Final adverbials:
i. General time adverbials: Are you FREE tonight?
ii. General place adverbials: It’s FREEZing out there.
iii. Of courtesy: I want a CHEESE burger, please. I’ll take the CALL,
CALL thank you.
iv. Downtoners: WAIT a bit.
v. Non-assertive
assertive proper
p functioning: Can you HEAR me well?
vi. Non-reinforcing
reinforcing sentence adverbials: We can LEAVE it, though.
Typically Non-nuclear Expressions

Gussenhoven (1986) discusses a class of “typically [-Focus] expressions”. Unlike Ortiz Lira (1998),
Gussenhoven believes that “the expressions concerned refer to aspects that are somehow inherently
present in the discourse model, like time, or the relationship with the interlocutor” (page 93). Since
opinion seems to be divided, you should not worry about whether these expressions are really in or out of
the focus domain. However, you should be aware of the fact that, regardless of their focal status, these
expressions are normally non-nuclear. Some have been discussed above (e.g. vocatives and time and
place markers) but others are more clearly defined by Gussenhoven.
1. Time-space markers
a. Time: they may refer to the idea of when something happened, its duration or its
frequency. These expressions are extremely frequently non-nuclear.
She’s Ácoming in a /minute.
!Let’s go Áout to/night.
She’s Áill from /time to /time.
She !stays at Áhome a /lot.
She was !walking by the Ápond the /other /day.
b. Space: Only very general space markers are non-nuclear (as opposed to the highly
frequent non-nuclear time-markers).
It’s !too Ádamp in /here.
I !can’t ‡find my Ábooks /anywhere.
2. Cohesion markers
They show the relationship between the content of the IP and the context in which it
appears.
a. Additive
It’s !tooÁlate, in /fact.
I’m !quiteÁhungry, as a /matter of /fact.
He’s !not very at Átractive, /really.
She’s !really Ámean, /actually.
You could !get a Ádiscount, for e/xample.
She may !call a Ádoctor, for /instance.
She’s !getting Átired of him, in /other /words.
b. Inferential
He !must be Ácoming, /then.
She !can’t be Áright, of /course.
c. Concessive
She !could have been Áhappy, /though.
d. Reinforcing
!Don’t ‡use that Álanguage, /thank you /very /much.
She’ll Áfail, of /course.
I’ll !take you Áhome, if /necessary.
e. Contrastive
Let’s !go to a Árestaurant, for a /change.
It’s Átime con/suming, on the /other /hand.
3. Hearer-appeal markers (or “solidarity modifiers”)

a. Softeners
It’s !pretty Áhard, you /know.
It !can’t be Átrue, I /mean.
!That’s e Ánough, /thanks.
!Pass the Ásalt, /please.
It’s a !bit ex Ápensive, you /see.
She !won’t Áflicker, /mind you.
b. Vocatives
;Hello, /Sandra.
It’s Áme, Dad.
ÁStop it,you /two.
!Don’t òworry,my ‡sweetie ‡pie.
4. Textual markers (or “parentheticals”)

a. Reporting clauses.
“You are w Á rong,” she /said.
“!Did you òdo that?” I‡asked.
“!How Áterrible!” he e/xclaimed.
b. Comment clauses.
She’s !not Áfollowing, I /think.
It !may be Ádifficult, I sup/pose.
!That’s Álife, I /know.
It was be!ginning to be Ádark, I /realised.
Is !that the Áend, I /wonder.
It !can’t be Átrue, I /hope.
She !must be Áglad, I i/magine.
5. Approximatives
I ;am, in a way.
She can !buy it for ‡twenty Ádollars or /more.
I’ll be a!round for a Áday or two.
She’s Ábusy or /something.
They’re !focused on the w Á edding and /all /that.
They !got >married, |!had a Ábaby and /so on.
Notice!
Veliz (2001) compares the post-nuclear patterns of Standard British English and Chilean Spanish. He finds
that the LLI is indeed preferred, but there are some exceptions anyway. Some points of contact have been
found.
1-.Final softeners: Por a Ácá, porfa/vor. Cf. !Over Áhere, /please.
2-.Final vocatives: !No Ágrites, Ma/má. Cf. !Don’t Áshout, /Mother.
3-.Some time markers: !Hizo ca Álor estos/días. Cf. It’s been Áhot these /days.
4-.Some place markers: !Hace ca Álor acá. Cf. It’s Áhot in /here.
5-. Cohesionmarkers: Es Ágrande, de /hecho. Cf. It’s Ábig, in /fact.
6-.Textual markers: Es!tá can Ásada, pa/rece. Cf. She’s Átired, it /seems.
Fixed Tonicity
Some cases of nucleus placement are more difficult to account than the previous ones. Many times, the
tonicity has become fixed as an idiomatic expression. Some other times, certain lexical items demand a
specific accentual treatment. In this section, a number of fixed expressions presented by Wells (2006) are
presented:
1. Pronouns in nuclear position

a. Verb TO BE + nuclear pronominal complement
It’s Áme.
That’s Áit.
This is Áit.
b. Nuclear pronouns that are not contrastive

!FollowÁme. !Get Áher! (= Look at her putting on airs)
!Good for y
Á ou! (genuine congratulation) !Bully y
Á ou! (sarcastic congratulation)
!What are y
Á ou doing here? !Blow Áme! (=I’m very surprised)
!What do ÁI care? !Search Áme! (I’ve no idea)
c. Nucleus + “of mine/his/hers/yours/theirs/ours”

She’s a Áfriend of /mine.
/his.
/hers.
/yours.
/ours.
/theirs.
d. Final nuclear demonstratives

!Look at Áthis!
I’d !like some of Áthose, /please.
e. Locative THERE.
!Hold it ‡right Áthere. (Nuclear: it refers to a new location and it is a complement.)
!Look at that Ádog there.(Non-nuclear: it works as a setting because it is an adjunct.)
f. Reflexive pronouns
!He did it ‡all by him Áself. (Nuclear: it is an emphatic reflexive – “porsimismo”)
Á ut him/self.(Non-nuclear: it is just a reflexive – “se cortó”)

He’s c
2. Operators in nuclear position: Short questions and short answers

A: òDid he? B: ÁYes, | he Ádid. / B: Yes, he Ádid.
B: òHas she? B: ÁNo, | she Áhasn’t./ B:No, she Áhasn’t.
3. Prepositions in nuclear position

a. Wh- word + nuclear preposition
!What Áof it? !What a Ábout it? !Who w
Á ith?
b. Wh- word + BE + pronoun + nuclear preposition

!What’s it Áfor? !What’s it a Ábout?
4. TOO, AS WELL, EITHER

When these occur at the end of a clause, they may alternatively be nuclear or take a separate
chunk.
I Álove you, | Átoo. I !love you, Átoo.
Can you òcome | as òwell? Can you !come, as òwell?
She !can’t Ásing | Áeither. She !can’t sing, Áeither.
5. ENOUGH
a. Nuclear adjective + ENOUGH
She’s !not Ásmart e/nough. Your !test wasn’t Ágood e/nough.
b. Nuclear adjectival or nominal ENOUGH

!That’s e Ánough. You !haven’t ‡studied e Ánough.
6. AGAIN at the end of an IP

a. Nuclear if it explicitly means “one more time”
You !have to ‡call her a Ágain.
b. Non-nuclear if it does not specifically mean “one more time”

I !haven’t Áseen her a/gain.
7. INDEED at the end of an IP

a. Nuclear reinforcing adverb
!That was ‡very good in Ádeed.
b. Non-nuclear comment
ÁHas he, in/deed?
8. TO BE in nuclear position
a. Wh- word + nuclear TO BE + pronoun / Wh- word + pronoun + nuclear TO BE
!How Áare you? !Tell me ‡how you Áare.
!Who w
Á ere they? !Tell me w
‡ ho they w
Á ere.
b. HERE + pronoun + nuclear TO BE

!Here they òare. !Here it òis. !Here you òare.
c. TO BE acting as a separable phrasal verb

The nucleus may fall on the object or the adverb
Is the òtelevision ‡on? Is the !television òon?
!What’s the Ábook a/bout? !What’s the ‡book aÁbout?
d. Fossilized expressions
The !trouble òis | that we !need more Ácash.
!problem
!thing
!difficulty
9. SOME in nuclear position to express a fossilized contrast

In ;some /cases | it’s !hard to j‡ ump to a con Áclusion.
For ;some /reason | this !doesn’t ‡seem to be a‡good so Álution.
10. ONE:
a. Not accented after an adjective
!Press the Áred one. !Bring me the Ábig one.
b. Nuclear in the following fixed expressions

( ‡right)
‡ rong)
( w
!Mary’s the ( ‡first) Áone.
( ‡last)
( ‡only)
!Which Áone?
11. Single stressed phrasal verb

TO !POUR DOWN It was !really Ápouring /down.
12. Double stressed prepositional verbs (they take long prepositions)

$LOOK !AFTER !Who are you ‡looking Áafter?
$DO WI!THOUT !What can you ‡do wi Áthout?
$BUMP !INTO !Who did you ‡bump Áinto?
13. Nouns in nuclear position

a. Fossilized idiomatic expressions
!Pizza ‡makes my Ámouth /water. !Don’t get your Áfingers /burnt.
She’s !got a Áscrew /loose. Let’s !wait for the Ádust to /settle.
!Keep your Áfingers /crossed. It !makes my Áhair stand on /end.
They’ll !get on ‡like a Áhouse on /fire. The !pot c
‡ alling the k
Á ettle /black.
He’ll !have his w
Á ork cut /out. !What’s Áthat sup/posed to /mean?
You can !say Áthat a/gain. Á here’s a /clever/boy.
T
They were Áat it. She !threw a Áspanner in the /works.
!What’s Áthat when it’s at /home? !Who let the Ácat /out?
You can !wait till the Ácows come /home.
!Wait and see w
‡ hich way the w
Á ind is /blowing.
She looked like !something the Ácat had brought /in.
b. Nuclear proper noun + BE UP TO

I !wonder what SaÁmantha’s /up to.
c. Nucleus on expected items

!Mary’s an in ‡telligent Ágirl.
!London is a ‡lively Ácity.
It’s a !beautiful Áday.
14. Repetition
a. Repetition of the same information for emphasis
I 1can’t ac Ácept it | I 1simply ‡can’t ac Ácept it.
b. Idiomatic expressions
It’s Ànot what he ;said | it’s the !way that he Ásaid it.
I’ll !see you when I Ásee you.
c. [X and X] or [X + preposition + X]
She !shouted ‡more and Ámore.
We !talked for ‡hours and Áhours.
She !does it a ‡gain and a Ágain.
Let’s !talk ‡face to Áface.
She got !fatter from ‡day to Áday.
We !walked for ‡miles and Ámiles.
She got !louder and Álouder
Reading
After reading Ortiz Lira (1998, pages 59-68), read Wells (2006, chapter 3). The two texts complement each
other: Ortiz Lira will give you a broader perspective that focuses on the needs of Spanish speakers learning
English intonation. Wells will give you a more detailed analysis with lots of idiomatic expressions. Also,
Wells provides you with plentiful activities.
Unit 4: Tone in Detail
The abstract and local meanings of the English tones

It is in the area of tone that the greatest differences between the School of London and the School of
Birmingham become evident. As you might have realised in the previous chapter, the Discoursal approach
to nucleus placement is perhaps too broad. The selection of prominences based on the speaker’s
assumption of what is part of the common ground and what is not does not seem to account for the whole
range of possibilities and constraints available in the tonicity subsystem. It is clear that the more
prescriptive rules presented by the traditional approach may be more beneficial for a foreign learner of
English. However, the contributions of the discoursal approach to the analysis of tone are thorough and
extremely useful.
Traditionally, the choice of tone is accounted for by two major factors: the grammatical structure of an
intonation phrase and the attitudes conveyed. For instance, yes/no questions are expected to take a rise –
a low rise is thought to be neutral, while a high rise is thought to be more casual or livelier. The
circumscription of tone choices to grammatical categories such as statement, yes/no question, wh-
question, etc., may at first be interesting for a learner because this would entail a matching exercise.
However, as the system unfolds, the list of combinations becomes endless and cumbersome. Also, the
attitudes conveyed by the tones may even seem contradictory as they are normally also connected to the
choice of lexis.
The discoursal approach has uncovered the phonological value of tone. In other words, the number of
contrasts has been reduced to the basic ones that can be systematized in a meaningful way. Therefore, the
more abstract meanings of each tone are presented. This means that instead of focussing on labelling the
attitude a falling tone conveys in one particular utterance, this model focuses on the meaning that a falling
tone has when applied to any utterance.
All in all, the attitudinal approach is useful to understand the local meanings of tones (i.e. the meaning
that is exploited in a particular context where both the intonation and the lexis are taken into account)
while the discoursal approach comes in handy to comprehend the abstract meanings of tones (i.e. the
more general meanings that can be applied to all occurrences of a tone).
The School of London – the traditional approach
The starting point is the study of the model presented by Wells (2006). First, Wells (2006) describes the
tone choices in intonation phrases that are made up of one chunk. From this analysis, he derives the rules
that govern statements, questions, commands, interjections, etc. After having worked at the IP-level, he
moves on to discuss the behaviour of IPs that are closely connected – he calls this sequences of tones.
TONE
1. Independent
a. Fall
i. “The Definitive Fall”
1. Statement /answer My!name’s Her ‡mione ÁGranger.
2. Wh- question !Whose Ápen is /this?
3. Exclamation !How inÁcredible!
4. Command !Sit Ádown, /please.
5. Interjection ÁSure.
6. Greeting !Good Ámorning.
ii. Insistent
1. Yes/no question
a. Full Is it Áfar?
b. Elliptical You !want to ‡leave me aÁlone?
c. Tag She’s Áleaving,| Áisn’t she?
iii. Reinforcing adverbial (You must Ásue them,)| of Ácourse.
b. Fall-Rise
i. Implicational
Uses: implication, contrast, reservation, tentative, polite correction, partial statement, negative,
warning
1. Statement You may ;phone. (But…)
À
2. Command Take ;care.
c. Rise
i. Encouraging
1. Statement You !look òwonderful.
2. Wh-question !Where’s your òglass?
3. Command !Come òin.
4. Interjection òRight.
5. Greeting !Good òbye.
ii. Non-supportive
1. Statement You $should have /known òbetter.
iii. Yes/no
1. Full question Is òMary ‡coming?
2. Tag question (You’re !travelling to ÁGreece,)òaren’t you?
3. Elliptical question You are òbusy?
4. Pardon question ÂWhat did you ‡say?
iv. Uptalk My !name’sòLilly.
2. Dependent
a. Leading ;Sometimes, (I feel gloomy.)
b. Trailing (The !weather will imÁprove,) I òguess.
c. Lists/Alternative questions
i. Open We need òtea,|òcoffee,|òsugar.
ii. Closed Do you Âneed me| or can I Áleave?
Sequences of Tones
On average, a tone unit normally takes up to seven syllables. A 7-syllable-long chunk will surely be
manageable for you in terms of sounds and intonation, without sacrificing your fluency.What can you do if
you think that one tone unit is meaningfully complete but too long? Simple: you can chunk it. For instance,
non-nuclear expressions in the tail can alternatively be chunked off. Now, a new question arises: if you
have already decided on the tonicity and tone of the original chunk, what should you do with the resulting
one?
First of all, it is necessary to think about the information value of the tones. When a long intonation phrase
is chunked into two parts or more, you should focus on what type of information is important and what is
not as important. You should normally use a falling tone on the major point of information and a non-fall
on the dependent tone unit.
Leading tones:
If the tone unit that contains a minor point of information precedes a tone unit that has a major point of
information, then the first tone unit takes a ‘leading tone’ (a dependant non-fall). The most frequent
leading tone is a fall-rise; a rise is possible too, as well as a level tone.
E.g.
LEADING TONE MAJOR INFORMATION USE

Minor info. Major info.
Dependent Independent Tone
Topic Comment
;Charlie
òCharlie !where are the Átowels I’ve just /bought? Topicalization
>Charlie
À
Last ;Sunday
!Last òSunday my!whole ‡family ‡visited ÁGranny. Fronting
!Last >Sunday
Long subjects (or any subject that you want to highlight) may be topicalized – i.e. they may be chunked off.
When final elements, such as adverbs, are fronted the same may happen. These are typical examples of
minor points of information that take a leading tone.
Trailing tones:
If the tone unit that contains a minor point of information follows a tone unit that has a major point of
information, then the final tone unit takes a ‘trailing tone’ (a dependant non-fall). The most frequent
leading tone is a rise; a fall-rise is possible too. The level tone is ruled out as it cannot normally be final.
Minus-focus tails may be granted a separate tone unit provided they take a dependent non-fall.
E.g.
MAJOR POINT OF INFORMATION TRAILING TONE USE

Independent tone Dependent tone
À
last ;Sunday.
Separate IP
My !whole ‡family ‡visited ÁGranny !last òSunday.
Non nuclear time marker
/last /Sunday.
as tail.
The Intonation of Questions in Detail

A more detailed description of the intonation of questions is found in Lee (1963). This author classifies the
different types of questions according to their grammatical form.
1. Yes/No Questions: They normally take a rise.
Would you !like some òcoffee?
Have you òfinished?
Are you òready ‡now?
2. Tagquestions:
a. Fall: This is not really a question. The speaker suggests that the listener will agree with
him/her. Still, the listener may agree or disagree.
A: It was !very Áinteresting,| w
Á asn’t it? (B: !Yes, it w
Á as.) (Optional)
b. Rise: This is a type of Yes/no question. The speaker thinks the listener will agree, but he
wants to check whether this is true.
A: It was !very Áinteresting,| òwasn’t it?
B: !Yes, it w
Á as.
3. Wh-questions: They normally take a fall. A rise may also be possible, especially if the speaker
wants to show a deferential attitude towards the hearer.
!What’s your Áname? (Normal)
!What’s your òname? (Deferential)
4. Choice questions: These are also called alternative questions (Wells, 2006). The speaker
demands limited information. The hearer has to choose from the options given by the speaker.
The final element takes a fall, while the initial element (or elements, for that matter) normally
takes a rise (see notes on Sequences of Tone). It is possible, also, to have only one tone unit
where the initial element is the onset. These questions seek for one of the items offered to be
chosen.
A: Is that òtea| or Ácoffee? B: Á ea.
T
A: Is that !tea or Ácoffee? B: Á ea.
T
A: Is he òFrench| or òGerman| or ÁDutch? Á rench.

B: F
A: Is he !French or !German or ÁDutch? B: ÁFrench.
5. Example questions: They look like choice questions, but they do not seek for one item to be
chosen as the answer. They demand a yes/no answer to the whole thing. The question can
take a sequence of the same tone (e.g. all falls, or all rises).
A: So, you’ve !visited ÁParis. Did you !see the òLouvre,| the !Eiffel òTower,| !Notre
òDame? (i.e. ‘Did you go to all the famous places?’)
B: òYes,| I Ádid.
A: Did you !finish it last w

Á eek| or Á esterday? (i.e. ‘Have you finished it?’)
y
B: ÁNo. I’m a!fraid I òhaven’t.
6. Repeated Questions: A question of any type (be it a wh-question or yes/no question) may be
repeated if the speaker has not heard properly, or has forgotten it, or because he is surprised.
The repetition does not need to be verbatim. The nucleus is normally placed on the first
stressed syllable (normally the wh-word or the operator). They are said on a rise.
A: How Áold is your /wife?
B: Four Áteen.
A: ÂHow old did you ‡say she w
‡ as?
B: Four Áteen.
7. Echoed questions: The speaker may echo a question he has just been asked by repeating the
same words or making a slight change of words. The original nucleus is kept, but the tone is
almost invariably a rise. These questions are normally used to gain time to think, as well as
when the speaker needs time to evaluate the content of the question.
A: !When are you ‡going to ‡buy me a òwedding ‡ring?
B: !When am I ‡going to ‡buy you a wÂ edding ‡ring?
8. Rhetorical questions: They are similar to exclamations. The answer is normally obvious, so
they do not need an answer. They take a fall.
!Don’t be a Áfool. !How can a Ádead man /chase you?
A Ástalker /started to /follow me – and !was I Øscared?
Notice! Tone and style

According to Davy (1968, cited in Gussenhoven 1986), the choice of tone changes depending on whether
the speaker is reading or talking. These are the percentages he found:
Fall Fall-rise Rise Level Rise-Fall

Reading 50.5% 16.6% 24.9% 5.5% 2.1%
Conversation 58.9% 12.5% 16.3% 8.0% 4.2%
The School of Birmingham – the discoursal approach
Brazil (1980, 1994) 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. These choices take
place in real time as the conversation unfolds. At this point, two functions of intonation come in handy: the
transactional function and the interactional function. The transactional function is concerned with the
exchange of information, while the interactional function is connected with the social side to
communication. These functions will first be analyzed in the discussion of tone selection for statements.
Transactional function of intonation: the general meaning of tones

When two participants interact, their worlds meet. The intersection between these two worlds is the
common ground, which is made up of whatever they share. This is the area of convergence of their
worlds. The area of divergence between these participants consists of what they do not share. For
example, the first time I meet students in class they are likely to know that we are members of an
institution, my name and surname, the fact that I am male, and other physical data. However, they are
likely to ignore other bits of information, such as my address, marital status, favourite colour, etc.
We can base our analysis on the world that the speaker and hearer build together. They may talk about
events that are already part of their ‘common ground’: i.e. what they share. The speaker may ‘refer’ to this
material. The speaker may also decide to introduce a new topic, something he presumes the hearer does
not know, so he ‘proclaims’ something that is new to his hearer. As he does so, their common ground
becomes larger because they share more. When the information is presented as new, the speaker will use
a proclaiming tone (a fall or a rise-fall). When the information is presented as shared, the speaker will use
a referring tone (a fall-rise or a rise).
Let’s imagine that you are presenting a topic in a class. If the information is new, you will step forward in
the conversation ( ): you will proclaim this information.
Teacher: !This is a Ágnat.
The moment an item is proclaimed, it becomes part of the common ground. Once you have established
this topic, which is part of the common ground now, you can refer to it. When you refer to something
already shared, you do not step forward in the conversation, you just loop in the same place ( ).
Teacher: ;Gnats | are !very small Áinsects.
Compare:
;Sally | will be at Áschool | this ÁSaturday.
We both know her. I’m telling you about time and place, which I presume you ignore.
;Sally | will be at ;school | this ÁSaturday.

We both know who she is, and that she is at school. I’m telling you when she’ll be there, which I presume
you ignore.
;Sally | will be at Áschool | this ;Saturday.

We both know who she is, and that we are talking about this Saturday. I’m telling you where she’ll be there,
which I presume you ignore.
Interactional function of intonation: the social meaning of tones

Some of the things people say are not informative. Their function is just to show social interaction. The
speaker may choose different tones to express togetherness or detachedness from his hearer. We can
show convergence (i.e. togetherness) with a referring tone (fall-rise or rise). We can show divergence (i.e.
separateness) with a proclaiming tone (fall or rise-fall). This is all the more evident in semantically empty
elements like “oh, hm, well,” etc.
ØOh | (so your Ámother’s /coming to/night, /Love.)

‘Oh’ isn’t informative. Yet, it shows I am detached.
òOh | (my !little Ábaby’s /here at /last!)

‘Oh’ isn’t informative. Yet, it shows I am showing solidarity.
Linguistic control: dominance

Some speakers can exploit linguistic dominance in the conversation. These speakers are in control because
they may perform a social role of authority (such as a doctor, a judge, a teacher, a parent) or they may
have greater knowledge about something (such as a shop assistant when you need their help to get
something you want). They have the greater freedom to use both dominant (+ tones: p+, r+: rise fall and
rise, respectively)and non dominant tones (p, r: fall and fall-rise, respectively). A non-dominant speaker is
supposed not to use the dominant tones. However, a non-dominant speaker may claim dominance anyway
(e.g. a naughty child talking to the head of the school, etc.). The dominant role may change in a
conversation: for example, a shop assistant may be dominant when he/she offers help and assists the
customer, but the customer is dominant when it comes to the final decision of choosing to buy an item or
not.
This chart summarizes the treatment of statements from a discoursal perspective. Follow the different
paths that will guide you to a deep analysis of the text.
New Is the speaker claiming

linguistic dominance?
No Fall.
Sense Selection What’s the status of Yes Rise-Fall.
the information?
Is the selected Is the speaker claiming

Shared linguistic dominance?
material informing? No Fall-Rise.
Togetherness
Yes Rise.
Social Selection What bond does the

speaker show? Is the speaker claiming
linguistic dominance?
No Fall.
Separateness Yes Rise-Fall.
The intonation of questions

Again, Brazil does not focus on the grammar structure of a question to determine its tone.
He is interested in the function of these questions: is the speaker checking a presupposition or does he
really need to find out what the answer is, as he has not got a preconceived idea on his mind? Is this
question triggered by a social need for convergence?
Although this view seems to contradict the traditional approach, this is not really a contradiction. Very
often, speakers ask yes-no questions when they want to confirm whether they are right in thinking that a
certain state of affairs is true. In other words, yes-no questions tend to originate when a speaker wants to
check whether his/her idea is right. Conversely, when a speaker feels there is a gap of information, and
he/she needs to find out something he/she ignores completely, he/she is likely to ask a wh-question – this
wh- element seeks for an answer that is informative.
• Checking questions to make sure

“[T]he meaning of the referring tone is something like this: the speaker expects that what the other person
will say in reply will not be new to the speaker.” (Brazil 1994, page 41) In other words, the speaker has a
presupposition in mind which he/she expects to be confirmed by the listener.
E.g.: Let’s suppose you meet a girl at a party. You look at this person and pass judgment on her
appearance. If she is wearing lots of black items of clothing, you may infer that black is indeed her
favourite colour. You can check that presupposition by means of a making sure question. Either of these
will have the same effect:
A: !What’s your ‡favouriteòcolour? B: ÁBlack.
A: Is òblack your ‡favourite ‡colour? B: ÁYes.
• Questions to find out

Brazil (1994, 43) states that “[i]f we use a proclaiming tone when we are asking, we expect the reply will
be new to us. We use proclaiming tones to find out.” To, put it differently, when a speaker does not have a
preconception in his/her mind there is nothing to check. On the contrary the speaker wants to fill that gap
of information with new material. For example, if you phone your bank because there is a problem with
your credit card the assistant will ask find out questions to learn what has gone wrong.
A: !What was the Áproblem, /sir?
B: My Ádebit card /doesn’t /work.
A: !When did this ‡error Ástart?
B: !Yesterday Ámorning. I Àfound an AT ;M | but I !couldn’t Áoperate.
A: Has this !happened be Áfore?
B:ÁNo. I Àdon’t ;think so.
This chart summarizes the treatment of questions from a discoursal perspective. Follow the different paths
that will guide you to a deep analysis of the text.
No: r tone (fall-rise)
Is the speaker claiming linguistic dominance?

TO CHECK
What’s the purpose of this Yes: r+ tone (rise)

question? No: p tone (fall)
Is the speaker claiming linguistic dominance?

TO FIND OUT
Yes: p+ tone (rise fall)
Notice!
Brazil (1994, 44) “[I]n informal ‘social’ conversations ... [w]e quite often ask questions in order to be
friendly, rather than because the answer is of any real importance, or even interest, to us. When we do
this, it is usually better to seem to be ‘making sure’ than to seem to be ‘finding out’.” This means that we
show convergence in many social questions.
/mə
/mək ɑvǺ
ɑvǺtiz ə rÁ ǺdȢənl
Ȣənl ∆
Ǻn ;ǺŋǱlənd { wi ɑhæv Álaʊzi { Øweðə ∆ bət ðə ;ǱǬəlz { ər ɑǤəlweǺz ‡hɑəf ÁneǺkǺd ∆
ɷwi òlǺv | Ǣn ən ÁaǺlənd ∆ bətʃu ;Ǳet /ðeə { !baǺ ÁtreǺn ∆
ɷwi Ãhæv ə Ákwiən ∆ bət hə ;hȜzbəndz { Ãəʊnli ə ÁprǺns ∆
!wi9 >bǺlt { ðə !jʊərəòpiəən ƒ kə Ámjuənəti ∆ bət $Ǻn ði >end { ɷwi Ãkep(t) ðə Ápaʊnd ∆
wi həv ;dǢmǺneǺtǺd { ðə ÁwǬəld ∆ bət ÁǤəlsəʊ { ɷwi òlaǺk { tə bi ØdǢmǺneǺtǺd ∆
!wi9 Ǻn ÁventǺd { ØfʊtbǤəl ∆ bət a9ə Ànæʃnl ;tiəm { Ǻz ;rȜn { baǺ ən Ǻ Átæljən ∆
ɷwi Øhæv { ðə ɑməʊst rǺ ;dǺkjələs { pəɑliəs ØjuənǺfǤəmz ∆ bət ;sȜmhaʊ { ɷǺt Ãsiəmz tə
ÁwǬək ∆
wi ÀlȜv ə wel ‡teǺləd ;suət { bət wi ;Ǥə(l)səʊ /lȜv { ə ɑwel ‡teǺləd Ádres ∆
ɷwi Ãdəʊn(t) nəʊ ‡haʊ tə Ákʊk ∆ bət wi >meǺk | !Ǳʊd ØbǺskǺts /

1 ɅwȜns əpǢn ə ⱲtaǺm | Ǻn ə ɊfɑərəweǺ ᶑlænd | ə ɊjȜŋ ᶑprǺns | ɋlǺvd Ǻn ə ɊʃaǺnǺŋ

2 ᶑkɑəsl || ǤəlɊðəʊ hi hæd ɍevriθǺŋ Ǻz ᶅhɑət dǺᶑzaǺəd | ðə ⱲprǺns wǢz | spǤǺld |
3 selfǺʃ | ən ɊȜnȼkaǺnd || bət ðen | wȜn ɊwǺntəz ᶑnaǺt | ən Ɋəʊld ⱲbeǱəwʊmən |
4 ɊkeǺm tə ðə ȼkɑəsl | ən ᶑǢfəd | ⱡhǺm | ə ɆsǺŋǱl | ⱳrəʊz | Ǻn rǺɅtǬən fə Ⱳʃeltə | frəm
5 ðə ɊbǺtə ᶑkəʊld |
6 rǺᶑpȜlst |baǺ hə ɋhæǱəd əȼpǺərəns | ðə ᶑprǺns | snǺəd | ət ðə ᶑǱǺft | ən ɍtǬənd ði

7 ᶄəʊld ᶄwʊmən əȼweǺ | bət ʃi w
᷉ Ǥənd Ǻm | ɌnǢt tə bi dǺᶁsiəvd | baǺ əꞌpǺərənsǺz |
8 fə Ƚbjuəti | Ǻz ɂfaʊnd | wǺðᶑǺn || ən Ɍwen hi dǺsᶅmǺst hər əᶑǱen | ði Ɋəʊld
9 wʊmənz ɆȜǱlǺnəs | ɍmeltǺd əweǺ |tə rǺɇviəl | ə ⱨbjuətəfl| ǺnᶑtʃɑəntrǺs ||
10 ðə ɋprǺns ɊtraǺd tu əⱡpǢlədȢaǺz | ɌbȜt Ǻt wəz ᶄtuə leǺt | fə Ɋʃiə həd siən | ðət ðeə
11 ɆwǢz | ɍnəʊ ᶑlȜv | Ǻn Ǻz ᶚhɑət | ən əz ɂpȜnǺʃmənt | ʃi ɊtrænsᶑfǤəmd Ǻm | Ǻntu ə
12 hǺdiəs | ᶑbiəst | ən pleǺst ə ɍpaʊəfl spel | Ǣn ðə ᶑkɑəsl | ən ɍǤəl hu ᶑlǺvd ðeə ||
13 əʃeǺmd | əv Ǻz ɊmǢnstrəs ᶚfǤəm | ðə Ɋbiəst kənᶑsiəld hǺmᶆself | ǺnɋsaǺd Ǻz ȼkɑəsl

14 | wǺð ə ɊmædȢǺk ᶑmǺrə | əz Ǻz ɍəʊnli wǺndəʊ | tə ði ɊaʊtsaǺd ȼwǬəld || ðə
15 Ƚrəʊzᶉ ʃi həd ᶆǢfəd | wəz Ʌtruəli ən ǺnɄtʃɑəntǺd ᶚrəʊz | wǺtʃ wʊd Ⱳbluəm | əntǺl
16 hǺz Ɋtwenti fǬəst ᶑjǺə || ɍǺf hi kəd ᶑlǬən | tə lȜv | əᶑnȜðə | ən ɋǬən ɂhǬə lȜv | Ǻn
17 rǺȽtǬən | baǺ ðə ɊtaǺm ðə ᵽlɑəst | Ɋpetl ᶑfel | ðen | ðə ᶚspel | wʊd bi ȼbrəʊkən ||
18 Ǻf ᵽnǢt | ɍhiə wʊd bi ᶑduəmd | tə rǺɊmeǺn ə ᶑbiəst | fər ɊǤəl ȼtaǺm ||
19 ɍæz ðə jǺəz ᶑpɑəst | hi fel | Ǻntə dǺᶑspeə | ən ɋlǢst ɊǤəl həʊp | fə huə | kəd Ʉevə
20 ⱲlǬən | tə ɆlȜv | ə Ƚbiəst ||
GALADRIEL: The ᶑworld | is Ⱳchanged. I ᶑfeel it | in the ȼwater. I Ɋfeel it in the ȼEarth. I smell it |
in the ᶑair. ɊMuch that ᶅonce ᶑwas | is ᶑlost, | for Ɋnone ᶅnow ɂlive | who reȼmember it.
It began | with the Ɇforging | of the ɊGreat ȼRings. ᵽThree | were Ɋgiven to the ᶑelves: | imᶑmortal,
| ᶑwisest |and ᶑfairest | of ɍall ᶑbeings. ⱲSeven | to the ᶑdwarf ᶆlords,|
Ɋgreat ᶑminers | and craftsmen | of the ᶑmountain ᶆhalls. And nine, | nine ᶑrings | were Ɇgifted
| to the Ɋrace of ᶑmen, | who above Ɋall ᶑelse,| deɊsire ȼpower. For wiɊthin these Ɇrings | was
Ɋbound the Ɇstrength | and ᶑwill | to Ɋgovern ɍeach ᶑrace. But they were ɂall of them | deɂceived, |
for aɂnother ᶆring |was ȼmade. In the Ɋland of ᶑMordor,| in the fires |
of ɍMount ᶑDoom,| the ɍdark ɊLord ᶑSauron | Ɇforged | Ɋin ᶑsecret | a master Ring |
to conɊtrol ɍall ᶑothers. And Ɋinto this ᶑRing, | he Ɋpoured his Ɇcruelty,| his ᶑmalice |
and his ɍwill to ᶑdominate | Ɋall ȼlife. ɍOne ᶑRing | to Ɋrule them ȼall. ɊOne by ᶑone, |
the Ɋfree lands | of ɊMiddle ᶑEarth | Ɇfell | to the ᶑpower | of the ȼRing.
But there were some | who reᶑsisted. A ɍlast alliance | of ᶑMen | and Elves |
ɍmarched against the Ɇarmies | of ᶑMordor. And on the Ɋslopes of ᶅMount ᶑDoom |
they ᶑfought | for the ᶑfreedom | of ɊMiddle ȼEarth.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
HERMIONE: Look! It´s Lupin! And Snape’s coming!
HARRY: And now we wait.
HERMIONE: And now we wait.
HERMIONE: At least someone’s enjoying himself.
HARRY: Yeah.
HARRY: Hermione,
HERMIONE: Yeah?
HARRY: Before, down by the lake, when I was with Sirius, I did see someone.
That someone made the dementors go away.
HERMIONE: With the Patronus? I heard Snape telling Dumbledore. According to

him, only a really powerful wizard could have conjured it.
HARRY: It was my dad. It was my dad who conjured the patronus.
HERMIONE: But Harry, your dad’s…
HARRY: … dead, I know! I’m just telling you what I saw.
HERMIONE: Here we come!
HARRY: You see Sirius talking to me there?
HERMIONE: Mhm?
HARRY: He’s asking me to come and live with him.
HERMIONE: That’s great!
HARRY: When we free him, I will never have to go back to the Dursleys. We´ll
just be me and him. We could live in the country. Some place you
can see the sky. I think he’ll like that after all those years in
Azkaban… Let´s go!
HERMIONE: Ow-ooooooo!!!
HARRY: What are you doing?
HERMIONE: Saving your life. Ow-ooooooo!!!

HARRY: Thanks! Great! Now he’s coming for us.
HERMIONE: Yeah, I didn´t think about that. Run!!
HERMIONE: That was so scary!

HARRY: Oof! Professor Lupin’s having a really tough night! Sirius! Come on!
HERMIONE: This is horrible.
HARRY: Don´t worry. My dad will come. He’ll conjure the Patronus.
Any minute now! Right there! You’ll see!
HERMIONE: Harry, listen to me: no-one’s coming.
HARRY: Don’t worry. He will! He will come! Serius!
HERMIONE: He’s dying. Both of you. Harry!
HARRY: Expecto Patronun!!!!!
HARRY: You were right, Hermione. It wasn’t my dad I saw earlier. It was me!!
I saw myself conjuring the Patronus before. I knew I could do it this
time because.. well, I’d already done it! Does that make sense?
HERMIONE: No! But I don´t like flying…!!!!!!!

How to go about FIRST SIGHT READING

You have already studied the Three T’s: Tone, Tonality and Tonicity. Now, it’s time to put them into
practice!
This guideline is useful for transcription practice as well as for reading practice. You will find an example at
the end of this document.
First things first: Go global

The first thing you have to do when you are going to work on a text is to get the gist of it. You can do
nothing unless you know what the text is about: reading it is essential! Do not think about intonation, just
read it for the sake of meaning. If you fail to understand a text you will surely not be able to work on its
intonation. Once you have the global picture, you will be able to analyze the following items:
1. What type of text is it?

As you may know, the genre of a text will affect the uses of intonation. Informal dialogues normally
contain a lot of prefabricated language (e.g. greetings, phatic questions) but they are not scripted.
Speakers don’t prepare conversation pieces in advance! This means that there may be false starts,
rephrasing of ideas, etc. The chunks are likely to be short, because the intonation phrase is thought
to be the unit of thought (i.e. we think in terms of one tone unit at a time, or two at a time if we
have already decided to contrast certain items).
Prose, for example, is much more loaded with descriptions and longer phrases. It’s more common
to find complex and compound sentences in literary prose, which is intended to fulfill an aesthetic
function. Good readers do not abound, and even those who are really gifted need to rehearse
before reading out! If you rehearse a text, you will get to know it well enough so as to use longer
chunks.
Warning: remember that the listener takes in the info one chunk at a time. You need to give
the listener time to process the info.
2. Does it start in medias res?

If a text starts in medias res you should imagine what has happened before. Remember that
discourse is built bit by bit, so you should try to picture what was going on so as to establish what
is shared and what is new.
3. Who are the participants?

Some pieces of discourse involve just one participant (e.g. monologues, soliloquies, speeches, etc.).
Some other times, there may be two or more participants. The relationship between them can
help you account for who holds the floor for a longer period of time, who decides on turn-taking,
and so on.
4. What roles may the participants take?

Some types of discourse involve a more rigorous interaction scheme. A doctor’s appointment
normally requires a dominant physician and a non-dominant patient. Now, a conversation among
friends may imply that the speakers are on an equal footing. You should try to picture what the
relationships between the speakers are like.
Warning: although we normally think that one speaker is linguistically dominant, you should not
forget that this means that this speaker can choose to use a dominant tone or not. They are not
forced to use dominant tones all the time! Also, sometimes dominance may switch from speaker
to speaker. When you go shopping, the shop assistant may be dominant when he offers a
customer his help and knowledge, but the customer will be dominant when he or she wants to pay
or complain about something.
5. What is the context like?

It is very important to imagine what the ‘when’ and ‘where’ are like. This will shed light on several
aspects that can build to the common ground. For example, people may refer to objects in their
vicinity which are evidently part of the common ground to them. That is to say, if the speakers are
in a hospital they may deaccent information that is given by the very context (e.g. [The
Áambulance is coming] is an event sentence that normally expresses that all the info is new, but
in a hospital ambulances are quite normal, so the focus is likely to be narrow: The ambulance
[is Ácoming]).
Tonality
The next step is to decide on how to chunk the material. You should bear in mind that according to the
context of interaction some items may need to stand out while some other things, which might be
predictable, may be sent to the background. Shared information can be part of tails or preheads, but
information that is highlighted may sometimes be granted a whole intonation phrase.
If you are transcribing a text, it is useful to chunk it and describe your choice.
Tonality:
a. Neutral or unmarked: one intonation phrase corresponds to one clause.

My name is Sam.| I am 25 years old.| I live in Bristol.|
I left my husband | to start my life again.
b. Marked: a clause is split into several IPs or two or more clauses are included in one IP.
(Marked Tonality) On Sundays| I normally go to church. (Neutral Tonality)
(Neutral Tonality)She’s a funny girl,| Rose. (Marked Tonality)
I think that my children will never succeed.| (Marked Tonality)
Tonicity:
Once you know the boundaries of the chunk you are dealing with, you need to focus on whether this fulfils
a transactional function or an interactional function (see notes on Brazil, The Discoursal Approach). If what
is at stake in the chunk is the information value of its elements, then you need to consider what info is new
and what is old. This is linked to the construct of Focus. Establishing the focus domain (i.e. what info is
new) will help you see where the nucleus should go because it normally signals the end of the focus
domain.
Tonicity:
a. Neutral or Unmarked: Last Lexical Item Rule

[I have always loved jazz.|] Broad Focus
[Have you seen the juice maker?] Broad Focus
b. Marked: The nucleus is placed in a lexical item that is not the last one or it may be placed
on a grammatical item.
[How could you] betray me? Narrow Focus (Context: ‘I understand why other may
betray me, but you of all people?’)
[Shall we buy] a flat in Miami? Narrow Focus (Context: ‘We can rent a flat in
Miami, but shall we buy one?’)
[Don’t talk to me, you fool.] Broad Focus (Context: A wife is angry at her husband
because he’s been foolish.)
Note: Marked tonicity does not necessarily imply narrow focus. Neutral tonicity does not necessarily imply
broad focus.
Tip: you should always analyze the chunk backwards! You should start on the very last word and decide
whether this is a suitable nucleus. If it is not, you go on doing this till you spot the right place for the
nucleus.
E.g.
Do you love me?
Not suitable: It’s a gramar Word.
Suitable: It’s the last lexical item.
‘Stop it, Charles,’ she said.
Not suitable: It’s a final reporting clause.
Not suitable: It’s a final vocative.
Not suitable: It’s a grammar word.
Suitable: It’s the last lexical item in direct

Onset Choice speech.
The choice of onset is not a straightforward process. In contrast with the placement of the nucleus, the
onset is not subjected to the same principles. It is true, though, that the first lexical item that is new tends
to be selected as the onset.
My !dog’s called Rusty. Rusty is !quite old now.

First new lexical item
Not suitable: It’s old information
Some grammar words may become the onset so as to contribute to special meanings. They can be
contrastive.
!You like dogs| but !we love kittens.
There are optional cases, too. For example, yes no questions may take a strong operator.
!Were you present when the accident happened?
Optional strong form
Were you !present when the accident happened?

Tone
The choice of tone is highly dependent on the context of interaction (see notes on the Discoursal
Approach). The first thing you need to think of is whether the nucleus is the result of a sense selection or a
social selection. Once you know that, you would be able to apply a referring or a proclaiming tone. A
referring tone may be used for shared information (sense selection) or convergence (social selection)
while a proclaiming tone may be used to show that the information is new (sense selection) or to create
divergence (social selection). You will be able to resort to another system according to the roles the
speakers take: you could choose a dominant or a non-dominant variant of referring or proclaiming
tones.
Sample Transcription
This is an example of the kind of analysis we want you to provide. You will be using this format in
your tests and transcription practice.
At the Shoe Shop

Assistant: Can I help you, madam?
Customer: Oh, yes. How much is this pair of shoes?
Assistant: It’s $120. These are really good shoes. This type of leather is of an exceptional
quality.
Customer: Have you got them in brown?
Assistant: Let me see. We don’t, I’m afraid.
Customer: That’s a pity. I liked this model, but I’ve already bought black shoes.
KEY:
Type of text: This is a short dialogue. The chunks are likely to be short because this is not rehearsed
speech. There is likely to be some formulaic discourse because this is a well-defined type of interaction (i.e.
there are fixed roles and expectancies in this routine situation).
Context: At the shoe shop. The country is not specified, and there’s no information about the time.
Speakers: A customer and an assistant. We don’t know if they are male or female. The assistant is likely to
be the dominant speaker because he knows about the items the shop has.
1. [At the ÁShoe Shop]

Tonality: Marked. This is a phrase, not a clause.
Focus: Broad. Nothing can be taken for granted. All the info is new.
Tonicity: Neutral. LLI rule. (shoe shop is an early stressed compound word).
Onset: There’s no onset. The first two words are not meaningfully rich.
Tone: A fall is likely. This is all new information that is being proclaimed (Brazil). This is a statement (O’Connor).
2. [!Can I òhelp you, madam?]

Tonality: Neutral. This is just one clause.
Tonicity: Marked. The nucleus falls in a lexical item that is not the last one. The word madam can’t be nuclear
because it’s a final vocative. The word you can’t be nuclear because it is a grammar word. The word help is nuclear
because it is the LLI before the vocative.
Onset: Yes/No questions always present a choice of onset. The auxiliary verb may be the onset, thus becoming a
strong form. The speaker may choose not to make the operator the onset, so it would be a weak form.
Tone: A rise is likely. The assistant presupposes that he will be able to help the customer, so this is a checking
question; he is using a dominant variant of the referring tone because he wants to show he can be in command of the
situation (offers of help tend to take a dominant tone because the speaker shows he is capable of helping) (Brazil).
This is a yes-no question (O’Connor, Lee, Wells).
Á es.]
3. [Oh, y
Tonality: Neutral. This tone unit corresponds to one clause. Yet, the interjection could have taken a separate
intonation phrase.
Tonicity: Neutral. LLI rule.
Onset: The speaker has chosen not to have an onset. However, this interjection may have been the onset.
4. [!How much is this pair of Áshoes?]

Tonality: Neutral. This tone unit corresponds to one clause.
Focus: Broad. Nothing can be taken for granted. All the info is new. Even though they may see the shoes, the speaker
is presenting this as new info.
Onset: The wh-interrogative word is likely to be the nucleus because it stands for the information gap.
Tone: A fall is likely. The customer wants to find out the price, he/she has no presuppositions about this (Brazil). This
is a wh-question (O’Connor, Lee, Wells).
5. It’s [a !hundred and twenty Ádollars.]

Focus: Narrow. The pronoun it replaces the idea of pair of shoes, which is old.
Onset: The word hundred is the first lexical item.
6. These are [really Ágood] shoes.

Focus: Narrow. The two items in focus show are the only new bits of information.
Tonicity: Marked. The word shoes is deaccented because it has already been mentioned. The nucleus falls on the last
new lexical item.
Onset: Not applicable.
Tone: A fall is likely. This is new information that is being proclaimed (Brazil). This is a statement (O’Connor).
7. […This type of ;leather]

Tonality: Marked. This is not a clause but a phrase. This topicalization may be useful to highlight the subject and to
break the original sentence into two chunks so as to ease pronunciation and to give more time to the listener to take
in the information.
Focus: Broad. All the info is new.
Onset: The demonstrative this carries meaning related to the here and now (deixis).
Tone: A fall-rise is likely. This is the typical tone used in topicalization. The info in this chunk is dependent on the next
chunk, so this is a minor point of information. This chunk is given a leading tone (Wells). The fall rise expresses
continuity (O’Connor).
8. [is of an ex!ceptional Áquality.]

Tonality: Marked. This clause lacks its subject.
Focus: Broad. Everything is presented as new info.
Tonicity: Neutral. LLI rule. The speaker has chosen to present the idea of quality as new, even though it may be
argued that he has already commented on the value of the shoes before (in tone unit number 6, the word good was
introduced).
Onset: the word exceptional is the first lexical item.
9. [Have you !got] them [in òbrown?]

Focus: Narrow. The pronoun them refers back to the word shoes, which is old information.
Tonicity: Neutral. LLI Rule.
Onset: The onset is the first lexical item. The word have might have been the onset because this is a yes-no question.
(See IP 2)
Tone: A rise is likely. The customer may presuppose that there may be brown shoes, so this is a checking question; he
is using a dominant variant of the referring tone because he is the customer and he wants to choose what to buy
(Brazil). This is a yes-no question (O’Connor, Lee, Wells).
10. [!Let me Ásee.]

Focus: Broad. All the info is new.
Onset: The word let is the first lexical item.
11. We [ Ádon’t, I’m afraid.]

Tonality: Marked. There are two clauses in this tone unit.
Focus: Narrow. The word we is old info because it refers back to the word you in IP 9.
Tonicity: Marked. I am afraid is a final comment clause, so it isn’t likely to carry the nucleus. The nucleus falls on the
word don’t because it is semantically rich: it carries the negative adverb, so this operator indicates polarity.
Onset: Not applicable. The word we is not likely to be the onset because of its low informational value.
Tone: A fall is likely. This is new information that is being proclaimed (Brazil). This is a statement (O’Connor).
12. !That’s [a òpity.]

Focus: Narrow. The expression that’s refers to the content of the previous sentence, so this makes it old information.
Onset: The word that is the first semantically rich item because it is a demonstrative. However, it might have been
unaccented if the speaker wished so.
Tone: A rise is likely. This tone unit does not contain much information: this may be a case where social selection
prevails. The speaker may want to create convergence, especially when he is aware of the fact that he won’t be
buying the shoes (this is what comes next in the text) (Brazil). O’Connor would say that a rising tone is used to express
kindness.
13. [I ;liked] this model

Focus: Narrow. The expression this model is old info because it refers to the pair of shoes that they can see in the
physical world. Besides, they have been talking about these shoes all the time.
Tonicity: Marked. The word model is deaccented because it is a kind of hyponym for the idea of shoes. The word this
is deaccented because this refers to the shoes that they have been talking about. The word liked is the last new lexical
item, so it will bear the nucleus.
Onset: Not applicable.

Tone: A fall-rise is likely. Brazil would argue that the speaker presents this information as shared: the fact that the
customer liked that model is evident because he has been trying to get a pair in brown. Wells and O’Connor would
say that a fall-rise can be used to express continuity – this is a leading tone, because the major point of information is
about to come. There is a kind of cause and effect relationship: even though the customer likes the design, he is not
buying the shoes because he already has another pair of black shoes. This is an implicational fall-rise which
anticipates an adversative construction (i.e. it anticipates a ‘but’).
14. [but I’ve al!ready Ábought] black shoes.

Focus: Narrow. The words black and shoes are old information.
Tonicity: Marked. The words black and shoes are shared information, so they get deaccented. The nucleus falls on the
word bought because it is the last new lexical item.
Onset: The word already is the first lexical item.
First sight reading

1 A: Can I see your boarding pass, please?
B: Certainly, officer.
A: How much luggage do you have?
B: I haven’t brought much. Just a carry on.
A: You’re travelling on business, I guess.
B: You’re right. I’ll get to Paris at six thirty a.m. and I will be
returning at six thirty p.m.
A: What airline have you chosen?
B: American Airlines.
A: All right, Mr. Brown. You can leave now. You have a plane to
catch.
2 A: Can I help you, Madam?

B: Can I see that DVD player? The silver one.
A: You can’t, I’m afraid. That’s just for display.
B: Oh, I’m sorry to hear that. What other models do you have?
A: The new Sony has just arrived. It’s a wonderful device.
B: How much is it? Very expensive?
A: It’s quite inexpensive, as a matter of fact. It’s just one hundred
dollars.
B: Do you take debit cards?
3 A: Are you there, Dad?

B: I’m here, darling. I’m free right now.
A: I need a hand with the camera I’ve just bought. I can’t take the
battery out.
B: Wait a second. You’d better read the manual first. Here it says
that you can’t open the lid when the red light is on.
4 A: Hi, Hillary. This is Emma speaking.

B: Hi, Emma. Is everything OK?
A: I’m at the bank at the moment. There’s some money missing.
B: That’s sounds bad, terribly bad. Is that the company’s money?
A: There’s a problem with the deposit you made.
5 A: The computer’s crashed.

B: It’s happened three times today. Have you had the system
checked?
A: I do want to have it checked, of course. I’ve found the IT guys,
but they never come.
B: I hate technicians. I think they enjoy our suffering. What does
your boss say?
A: He wants to have their manager fired.
6 A: Look, the paint is peeling off. And there’s a leak in that corner.
B: We should get the house painted. If not, we won’t be able to sell
the place.
A: How much money do we need?
B: It depends. Do you want to get a permanent or a temporary
repair?
A: I don’t care if the repairs don’t last. I just want to get rid of this
property.
FSR & Analysis: Snapshot Pre-Intermediate
1 Text 1: At the restaurant
2 MAN: Excuse me. I’ve got an early train to catch tomorrow morning.
3 Could I have breakfast at six o’clock, please?
4 NICOLA: I’m afraid that isn’t possible, sir. Breakfast isn’t served until seven.
5 MAN: But I only want coffee, toast and marmalade. Surely that’s
possible?
6 NICOLA: I’m afraid there’s nothing I can do about it, sir.
7 MAN: Oh, forget it!
8 NICOLA: Well, it’s not my fault!
9 MORRIS: Nicola, you’re expected to be polite and helpful to our guests at all
10 times. Is that clear?
11 NICOLA: Yes. Sorry, Morris.

1 Text 2: The Bully
2 TOM: Jamie, can you take this video back to the rental shop for me,
please?
3 JAMIE: Sorry, I’m reading my book.
4 TOM: You’ve been reading that book for days!
5 JAMIE: So? Anyway, I’m going to have a shower in a moment.
6 TOM: Oh, come on, Jamie! Do me a favour for once! It’s not far to the
shop.
7 JAMIE: No!
8 TOM: Why not?
9 JAMIE: Well, if you must know, I don’t want to go past Rick Ward’s house.
10 TOM: Rick Ward! That creep! Why?
11 JAMIE: Because he and his friends always pick on me when I go past.
12 TOM: What do you mean ‘pick on’ you?
13 JAMIE: They call me names and push me around.
14 TOM: How long has this been going on?
15 JAMIE: Since the beginning of term.
16 TOM: Would you like me to go and sort them out?
17 JAMIE: No, it’s OK. Give me the video. Shall I get another one for you?
18 TOM: No, don’t bother. Jamie, are you sure you’ll be all right?
19 JAMIE: I’ll be fine.

1 Text 3: You ought to try them
2 TOM: Well, what do you fancy to eat? What about hot dogs? We can grill
3 some sausages and we’ve got some rolls.
4 NICOLA: Yum! Sounds great! Can I give you a hand?
5 TOM: Yes, OK. Could you turn the grill on?
6 LOUISE: No hot dogs for me, thanks.
7 TOM: But these sausages are really nice. You ought to try them.
8 LOUISE: No, thanks. I’m a vegetarian. I’ll just have a cheese salad. Have you
9 got any grated cheese?
10 TOM: Yes, I think so. You should eat more, Louise. You’re too thin. Turn
11 the grill up higher, Nicola.
12 NICOLA: You shouldn’t have it too hot. The sausages will burn.
13 TOM: Relax! I know what I’m doing. Let’s go and watch TV.
14 A few minutes later
15 JAMIE: I’ve got hiccups. I must get a glass of water. Hey! What’s that
smell?
16 TOM: Oh, no! The sausages have caught fire!
17 NICOLA: Quick! Turn off the gas!
18 TOM: Pass me that tea towel!
19 NICOLA: Well, Jamie. I hope you like burn sausages.
20 JAMIE: I don’t. But at least my hiccups have stopped!

1 Text 4: He said he’d been away
2 BEN: Hello. Cliff Hotel. Can I help you? Yes. One moment, please. I’ll get
3 her. Louise, there’s a phone call for you!
4 LOUISE: Oh, thanks!
5 Some minutes later
6 LOUISE: That was my boyfriend Joe on the phone.
7 NICOLA: So what did he say? Why hasn’t he kept in touch?
8 LOUISE: He said he’d been away with his parents.
9 NICOLA: Why didn’t he phone to tell you?
10 LOUISE: He said he phoned before he went away, but he couldn’t get
through.
11 TOM: Oh, yeah? I bet! They always say that. He’s probably having a great
12 time without you.
13 LOUISE: Not at all. He said he was missing me and that he wanted me to go
14 up to Manchester to see him when I get back home.
15 NICOLA: And you said you would, of course.
16 LOUISE: No, I haven’t made up my mind yet. I said I’d tell him at the
weekend.
17 TOM: So you’re playing hard to get, are you?

1 Text 5: Someone had dropped it
2 NICOLA: This is a beautiful place for a theatre!
3 TOM: Yes. It’s great to hear the sea and the music at the same time.
4 LOUISE: And it was a great concert!
5 TOM: Yes. It was, wasn’t it?
6 NICOLA: Thanks for inviting us, Tom.
7 TOM: That’s OK. I enjoyed it, too.
8 NICOLA: Oh, no! I’ve left my jacket behind! I’ll just go and get it.
9 TOM: We’ll tell the driver to wait.
10 A few minutes later
11 NICOLA: Guess what! Someone had dropped a twenty pound note on the
12 steps. I found it on the way out. I gave it in at the box office.
13 TOM: What did they say?
14 NICOLA: They asked me to phone next week to see if anyone had claimed it.
15 If not, I can have it. So keep your fingers crossed!

1 Text 6: TV interview
2 NICOLA: You look very pleased with yourself.
3 MATT: I’ve just done a TV interview with Sue Turner.
4 NICOLA: What was it about?
5 MATT: Oh, the surf competition. And me, of course.
6 NICOLA: Fame at last! What did they ask you?
7 MATT: They asked me where I was from, how long I’d been surfing – you
8 know, just general stuff.
9 NICOLA: Next stop, Hollywood! Have you got your surfboard back, by the
way?
10 MATT: No, worse luck! I’m getting really worried.

1 Text 7: At St Michael’s Mount
2 TOM: Look! The tide’s going out. You can see the road.
3 LOUISE: Great. Let’s walk out to the island and climb up to the castle.
4 NICOLA: But it’s such a long way to walk!
5 LOUISE: No, it isn’t. Don’t be so lazy!
6 TOM: It’s really worth it, Nicola. There’s such an amazing view from the
top.
7 NICOLA: Can’t we go at the weekend instead?
8 TOM: No, now’s a good time because it’s a weekday. The place is so
9 crowded at the weekend that you can hardly move.
10 LOUISE: Is it that bad?
11 TOM: Yes, some friends of mine came last Sunday but there were such
12 long queues that they left.
13 NICOLA: OK, but can we buy an ice cream first?
14 TOM: No! you can get one at the castle. Let’s hurry before the tide starts
15 to turn!
1 Text 8: If I were you
2 NICOLA: You seem a bit fed up, Louise.
3 LOUISE: Yes, I am. I haven’t heard from my boyfriend Joe for ages.
4 NICOLA: Can’t you forget about him for a while?
5 LOUISE: That’s easier said than done! What do you think I should do?
6 NICOLA: If I were you, I wouldn’t do anything. Or… I’d go out with
somebody else, just to teach him a lesson.
7 LOUISE: Maybe I will.
8 NICOLA: Oh, no! Here comes Jake!
9 JAKE: Hi, Nicola! Did you enjoy the disco the other night?
10 NICOLA: Sorry, Jake, I must go. Bye, Louise. See you later.
1 Text 9: You’re Nicola, aren’t you?
2 TOM: Hi, Nicola! This is your first morning in the restaurant, isn’t it?
3 How’s it going?
4 NICOLA: It’s a disaster! I’ve already done something wrong!
5 TOM: What’s the matter? What have you done?
6 NICOLA: Look. I’m so clumsy! I’ve just spilt coffee on the sleeve of my
blouse.
7 TOM: Have you seen Morris yet?
8 NICOLA: No, I haven’t. He’s the deputy manager, isn’t he?
9 TOM: Yes. He’s quite fussy. You’d better go and change. Whoops! Too
10 late! Here he is now!
11 MORRIS: Morning, everybody! Hello, you’re Nicola, aren’t you?
12 NICOLA: Yes, that’s right.
13 MORRIS: Have you worked in a restaurant before?
14 NICOLA: No, I’m afraid I haven’t.
15 MORRIS: Well, we all work very hard, don’t we, Tom? Just a minute, Nicola.
16 That isn’t a stain on your blouse, is it?
17 NICOLA: Yes. I’m sorry. It’s only coffee.
18 MORRIS: Well, please go and change. I like my staff to look smart.

1 Text 10: Surfing in Newquay
2 NICOLA: Hello, Jake! Do you remember me – Nicola?
3 JAKE: Sure I do!
4 NICOLA: These are some friends from the hotel. Louise and Tom.
5 TOM: Hi! What’s the surfing like today?
6 JAKE: Ah, the waves are great! They’re much better than yesterday.
7 TOM: How long have you been here in Newquay?
8 JAKE: Since last Friday. I arrived the same day as Nicola.
9 LOUISE: How do you like it?
10 JAKE: It’s OK. But it’s not as lively as Cape Town. Have you ever been to
11 South Africa?
12 TOM: No, never. Is the surfing good?
13 JAKE: You bet! It’s got the best surfing beaches you’ve ever seen!
14 NICOLA: Are the beaches better than the ones in Hawaii?
15 JAKE: Yes, absolutely! Have any of you ever been to Hawaii?
16 TOM: No.
17 JAKE: Ah, it’s radical! The waves are the highest in the world and you
get...
18 TOM: Really? How wonderful! Does anyone fancy a hot dog?

1 Text 11: I’m here to work
2 JAKE: Excuse me. Which bus do I take to get to Fistral Beach?
3 NICOLA: You need a number fifty three.
4 JAKE: Are you waiting for the fifty three too?
5 NICOLA: Yes, I am. Are you a surfer?
6 JAKE: Yes, I’m here for the surfing championships.
7 NICOLA: Where do you come from?
8 JAKE: Cape Town. I’m in the South African surfing team.
9 NICOLA: Are you? Brilliant!
10 JAKE: What about you? Do you live here?
11 NICOLA: No, I live in London.
12 JAKE: Do you? Are you in Newquay on holiday?
13 NICOLA: No. I usually come here on holiday with my parents but this time
14 I’m here to work.
15 JAKE: Really? Hard luck!
16 NICOLA: I don’t mind. It’s a part-time holiday job at a hotel. My aunt’s the
17 manager there. Oh, here comes our bus!

Ear Training & Reading of Tonetic Marks

A) Read these IPs aloud.
A – Fall B – Rise C – Fall-Rise D – Level E – Rise-Fall

1 ÁBob òBob ;Bob ɆBob ȽBob
2 ÁSally òSally ;Sally ɆSally ȽSally
3 ÁActually òActually ;Actually ɆActually ȽActually
4 ÁNo he can´t òNo he can´t ;No he can´t ɆNo he can´t ȽNo he can´t
…
5 !Peter ÁAtkinson !Peter òAtkinson Peter ;Atkinson ɍPeter ɆAtkinson ɍPeter ȽAtkinson
…
6 !Ron bought the Ácar !Ron bought the òcar Ron bought the ;car ɍRon bought the Ɇcar ɍRon bought the Ƚcar
B) Read these sentences aloud. Then contrast them with the recording. Think of possible contexts for each one.
1. ÁI de/test snob /people.
2. I detest Ásnob /people.
3. I de!test Ásnob /people.
4. I de Átest snob /people.
5. I de ;test snob /people.
6. I deòtest snob /people.
7. I !detest Ásnob people.
8. I !detest òsnob /people.
↘
9. I detest ;snob /people.
10. The Áphone’s /ringing /now.
11. The phone’s Áringing /now.
12. The !phone’s Áringing /now.
13. The !phone’s ‡ringing Ánow.
14. The Áphone’s /ringing /now.
15. The òphone’s ‡ringing ‡now.
16. The ;phone’s /ringing /now.
17. The !phone’s ‡ringing Ánow.
18. The !phone’s ‡ringing ònow.
↘
19. The phone’s ‡ringing ;now.
20. Ms ÁScott has /bought the /tea for you.
21. ÁMs Scott has /bought the /tea for you.
22. Ms !Scott has Ábought the /tea for you.
23. Ms !Scott has ‡bought the Átea for you.
24. Ms !Scott has ‡bought the ‡tea for Áyou.
25. Ms ÁScott has /bought the /tea for you.
26. Ms ;Scott has /bought the /tea for you.
27. Ms òScott has ‡bought the ‡tea for you.
28. Ms !Scott has ‡bought the Átea for you.
29. Ms ÀScott has ‡bought the ;tea for you.
30. Ms !Scott has ‡bought the òtea for you.
31. Ms !Scott has ‡bought the ‡tea for Áyou.
32. Ms !Scott has ‡bought the ‡tea for òyou.
33. Ms ÀScott has ‡bought the ‡tea for ;you.
34. ÁEllen may /visit /Danny on /Tuesday.
35. ;Ellen may /visit /Danny on /Tuesday.
36. òEllen may ‡visit ‡Danny on ‡Tuesday.
37. !Ellen Ámay visit /Danny on /Tuesday.
À
38. Ellen ;may visit /Danny on /Tuesday.
39. !Ellen òmay visit ‡Danny on ‡Tuesday.
40. !Ellen ‡may visit ÁDanny on /Tuesday.
À
41. Ellen ‡may visit ;Danny on /Tuesday.
42. !Ellen may visit òDanny on ‡Tuesday.
43. !Ellen may visit ‡Danny on ØTuesday.
44. !Ellen may visit ‡Danny on òTuesday.
À
45. Ellen may visit ‡Danny on ;Tuesday.
C) Assign the intonation you hear – see the key below.

1. The bus is not dark red.
9. Simon Burns is in Paris now.
17. Sally’s son is a horror story writer.
Fall & Rise
1 Text 1: ɊInterviewing ᶑTony

2 INTERVIEWER: ɊWhat's your ᶑname?
3 TONY: It's ɊTony ᶑCooke.
4 INTERVIEWER: ɊHow do you ᶑspell ᶆCooke? ɊHas it ᶅgot an ⱠE?
5 TONY: ⱠYes. ⱠC | Ɋdouble Ⱡ0 |ⱠK | ᶑE.
6 INTERVIEWER: ⱠThanks. ᶑNow, | can you Ⱡdrive, ᶄTony?
7 TONY: ɊYes, I ᶑcan.
8 INTERVIEWER: Can you Ɋplay a ᶅmusical Ⱡinstrument?
9 TONY: ⱠYes, | I can play the ᶑsaxoᶆphone.
10 INTERVIEWER: Can you Ɋspeak any ᶅforeign Ⱡlanguages?
11 TONY: ᶑYes, | ⱠGerman | and ᶑSpanish.
12 INTERVIEWER: Can you Ⱡcook?
13 TONY: ᶑNo, | I ᶑnever ᶆcook!
14 INTERVIEWER: Can you Ɋplay any Ⱡsports?
15 TONY: ᶑYes, | I can play Ⱡfootball, | Ⱡtennis, | Ⱡgolf, |and ᶑrugby.
16 INTERVIEWER: Can you Ⱡswim?
17 TONY: ᶑNo, | I ᶑcan't.
18 INTERVIEWER: ᶑThank you, | ⱠTony.
1 Text 2: ɊMartin and ᶑJulia

2 We Ⱡlive | in a Ɋsmall ᶅold ᶑhouse | in ᶑOxford. ɊOur Ⱡhouse | is Ɋquite ᶅnear
3 the ᶑcentre. We’ve Ɋgot a Ⱡliving ᶄroom, | a Ⱡdining ᶄroom, | a Ɋsmall Ⱡkitchen,
4 | Ɋtwo Ⱡbedrooms | and a ᶑbathroom. And there’s a Ɋsmall ᶑhall. We’ve got a
5 Ɋbig front ᶑgarden. We preɊfer to be ᶅnear the city ᶑcentre – | it’s Ɋclose to the
6 Ⱡshops | and it’s Ɋvery conᶑvenient | for the ᶑcinema. We’ve Ɋgot a Ⱡcar | but
7 we Ɋhaven’t got a ᶑgarage – | we Ɋhave to Ⱡpark it | in the ᶑstreet.

Fall & Fall-Rise
1 Text 3: ɊMaking aᶑrrangements

2 JENNY: HelⱲlo. ɊJenny ⱲMills.
3 SECRETARY: HelⱲlo, ᶆJenny. I've Ɋgot the ᶑmanager ᶆfor you.
4 JENNY: ⱲOh, | ɊOᶑK.
5 MANAGER: …
ⱲJenny. We've Ɋgot a ᶅbit of a ᶑproblem. Can you ᶅgo to the
6
ᶅBAⱲG conference | on ⱲTuesday?
7 JENNY: The …BAⱲG conference? …Can't ⱲStephen ᶆgo?
8 MANAGER: …
ⱲNo, | I'm aɊfraid he ᶑcan't. He has to ᶅgo to ⱲSpain | on
9
ɊMonday ᶑnight.
10 JENNY: ⱲWell. ⱲTuesday? ᶑYes, | Ɋthat's OᶑK.
11 MANAGER: ᶑGood. ɊThanks very ᶑmuch, ᶆJenny.
Fall, Rise & Fall-Rise
1
Text 4: ɊMaking an aᶑppointment
2 RECEPTIONIST: ɊGood Ⱡmorning. ɊCan I Ⱡhelp you?
3 MR SMITH: ᶑYes, | …can I ᶅmake an apⱲpointment | with …
Doctor ⱲWall,
4
ᶆplease?
5 RECEPTIONIST: ⱠYes. ɊCan you ᶅcome at ᶅten to Ⱡthree | on ɊWednesday
6 ᶅafterⱠnoon?
7 MR SMITH: ⱲNo, | I'm Ⱳsorry. I ᶑcan't. ɊWhat aᶅbout the ᶑevening?
8 RECEPTIONIST: …Doctor ⱲWall | ᶑisn't here in the ᶆevening on ᶆWednesday, |
9 I'm aⱠfraid. I can …put you Ⱳin | at Ɋhalf past ᶑsix | on
10
ᶑThursday ᶆevening.
11 MR SMITH: ᶑYes, | Ɋthat's ᶑfine.
12 RECEPTIONIST: ɊWhat ᶑname is it, ᶆplease?
13 MR SMITH: It's ɊTom ᶑSmith.
14 RECEPTIONIST: ⱲThank you, Mr ᶆSmith. Goodᶑbye.
15 MR SMITH: GoodⱠbye.
1
Text 5: ᶑMargaret | the ᶑspinster
2 …
I live on my Ⱳown | in a Ɋsmall ᶅmodern ᶑhouse | in a Ⱳvillage | Ɋnear
3 Soutᶑhampton. I’ve got a Ɋbig ᶅliving room downⱠstairs | and a Ɋsmall
4 Ⱡkitchen | with a ᶑwashing maᶆchine. There …isn’t a Ⱳhall. There’s a
5 Ⱡbedroom | and a ᶑbathroom | upⱠstairs. I …haven’t got a ᶅvery big Ⱳgarden,
6 | but it’s ᶑvery ᶆnice. I Ɋreally ᶑlike | the Ⱡhouse. It’s Ɋvery ᶅnear to the
7 Ⱡshops, | and the Ⱳneighbours | are Ɋvery ᶑfriendly. …Now I’m Ⱳold | that’s
8 ᶑvery | imᶑportant.
1
Text 6: ɊCheap ᶑLabour
2 ɊSanjit ⱠRay | Ɋworks for a comᶑputer ᶆcompany | in ɊLos ᶑAngeles,

3 |ɊCaliᶑfornia. He …writes comⱲputer ᶆprograms, | but he Ɋdoesn’t ᶑgo to Los
4 ᶆAngeles | Ɋevery Ⱡday. In ᶑfact, | he Ɋdoesn’t ᶑlive | in the ɊUSⱠA. He Ⱳlives |
5 in ᶑIndia.
6 ᶑSanjit: “ɊEvery Ⱡday | I take the …bus into BomⱲbay | and I Ɋgo to an ᶑoffice
7 ᶆthere. The coⱲmputer ᶆcompany | Ɋsends inforᶑmation to me | by ᶑe-mail. I
8 Ⱳwork on the ᶆinforᶆmation | Ɋon the comᶑputer | and Ⱡthen | I Ɋsend the
9 ᶑprogram ᶆback | to ɊCaliᶑfornia.”
10 The coⱲmputer ᶆcompany | Ɋdoesn’t do the ᶑwork | in the ɊUSⱠA | because it

11 …
costs Ⱳless | to Ɋdo it in ᶑIndia. ⱲSalaries there | are ᶑlower. ⱠAlso, | ⱲIndia |
12 is Ɋtwelve ᶅhours aᶑhead | of ɊCaliᶑfornia. ᶑSo | the comⱲputer ᶆcompany |
13 …
sends inforᶅmation at the Ⱳend of the ᶆday | and ɊSanjit Ⱡworks on it |
14 when it’s ᶑnight time in the ᶆUSᶆA. When he …sends the ᶅprograms Ⱳback, |
15 they arɊrive in ᶅCaliⱠfornia | Ⱳbefore the ᶆcomputer ᶆcompany | Ɋstarts in the
16 ᶑmorning.
Fall, Rise, Fall-Rise & Level

1 Text 7: ɊKaren’s Week ᶑend
2 BEN: ⱲHi, ᶆKaren.
3 KAREN: ⱲHello, ᶆBen. ɊHow ᶑare you?
4 BEN: I'm Ⱳfine, ᶆthanks. And Ⱡyou?
5 KAREN: ⱠFine.
6 BEN: Were Ɋyou and Josh aᶑway | at the weekᶑend?
7 KAREN: ᶑYes, | we were at ᶑWOMAD.
8 BEN: ⱲWOMAD? ɊWhat's ᶑthat?
9 KAREN: ɆOh, | it's a ᶑmusic ᶆfestival: ɊWorld of ɆMusic, | ɆArts, | and ᶑDance.
10 BEN: Oh, I ᶑsee. ɊWhere was ᶑthat?
11 KAREN: It was in ᶑReading.
12 BEN: ᶑOh, | ᶑright. Was it Ⱡgood?
13 KAREN: ᶑYes, | it was Ɋfanᶑtastic. There were Ɇbands | and Ɇsingers | from Ɋall
14 over the ᶑworld. My Ⱳfavourite ᶆband | was from ᶑThailand. They were Ɋso
15 ᶑgood. And there was ᶑlots | of Ɋwonderful ᶑfood: | ⱠIndian, | ɊNorth
16 ɆAfrican, | ɆMexican, | ɊJapaⱠnese.
17 BEN: ɊDo you Ɇthink | that there were Ⱳloads of ᶆpeople ᶆthere?
15 KAREN: ⱲYes, | ᶑthousands of people.
19 BEN: It Ɋsounds ᶑgreat
20 KAREN: ⱠYes, | it ᶑwas – the Ɋonly Ɇproblem | was the ᶑweather!
21 BEN: ⱠWhy? ɊWhat was the ᶑweather ᶆlike?
22 KAREN: ᶑWet. ᶑToo ᶆwet.
23 BEN: Oh, Ⱳreally? It …
wasn't Ⱳtoo bad ᶆhere. It was a …
bit Ⱳcloudy, | but it was
24 ᶑdry.
25 KAREN: ɆWell, | it was ɊOɆK | on ɊSaturday ᶑmorning in ᶆReading,| ᶑtoo. It
26 …
wasn't ᶅvery Ⱳsunny, | but it was Ɋquite ᶑwarm, you ᶆsee. But then the
27 Ⱳrest of the ᶆtime | it was Ɋvery ᶑwet, | and ᶑcold, | ᶑtoo.
28 BEN: Oh, Ɋthat's a Ⱡpity.

29 KAREN: Yes, but at Ⱳleast | Ɋwe were in a Ɇcaravan, | so we were Ɋall ᶑright, | but
30 a Ⱳlot of ᶆpeople | were in ᶑtents, | so it …wasn't ᶅvery ᶅnice for Ⱳthem.
31 BEN: ⱲNo, | I Ɋbet it ᶑwasn't. Were you …there all weekⱲend?
32 KAREN: ⱠYes, | from ɊFriday Ɇevening | till ᶑSunday ᶆevening. And Ɋhow was ᶑyour
33 weekᶆend?
Fall, Rise, Fall-Rise, Level & Rise-Fall
1
Text 8: ɊHoliday in ᶑScotland
2 WILLIAM: ⱲHi, ᶆJulia. Did you Ɋhave a ᶅgood Ⱡholiday?
3 JULIA: ⱲYes, ᶆthanks. It was ɂvery ᶆnice.
4 WILLIAM: Where did you ᶑgo?
5 JULIA: We Ⱳwent | to ɂScotland.
6 WILLIAM: ɂReally? That sounds ᶅreally ᶑgreat! ɊWhereabouts ᶑwere you?
7 JULIA: We were in ᶑEdinburgh.
8 WILLIAM: ɊVery Ⱡnice. ɊHow Ɇlong | were you ᶑthere for?
9 JULIA: …
Just a Ⱳweek, | but we wanted to ᶅstay ᶑlonger!
10 WILLIAM: ɊWhat was the ᶑweather ᶆlike?
11 JULIA: Well, it ɂrained | for the Ɋfirst couple of Ⱡdays, | but …
after Ⱳthat | it was
12 ɊOᶑK. It was Ⱳcloudy, but it was ᶑdry.
13 WILLIAM: ⱲThat's not ᶆtoo ᶆbad. Did you Ⱡdrive?
14 JULIA: ᶑNo, | we Ⱡdidn't. We Ɋdon't ᶑlike | Ɋdriving long Ⱡdistances, | so we Ɋwent
15 by ᶑtrain.
16 WILLIAM: ɊHow long did the ᶑjourney ᶆtake?

17 JULIA: Oh, aɆbout | Ɋfive ᶑhours, I ᶆthink. We Ɋgot to ɆEdinburgh | at aɊbout
18 ᶅ7.00 in the ᶑevening.
19 WILLIAM: Did you …stay in a hoⱲtel?
20 JULIA: ⱠNo, | we Ⱡdidn't. We Ɋstayed with some ᶑfriends. They've got a …new Ⱳflat
21 | in the Ɋcity ᶑcentre.
22 WILLIAM: Oh, ɂright. ɊWhat things did you ᶑdo?
23 JULIA: We did Ɋquite a ᶑlot, | as a Ɋmatter of Ⱡfact. We Ɋvisited the Ɇcastle, |
24 some muⱠseums, | Ɋquite a ᶅnumber of Ⱡpubs, | and we did a Ɋlot of
25 ᶑshopping, | ᶑtoo!
26 WILLIAM: ɂGreat. So Ɋwhen did you get ᶑback?
27 JULIA: ɊTwo ᶑdays ago.
28 WILLIAM: ᶑWell, | Ɋnice to ᶑsee you again. ɊSee you aᶑround.
29 JULIA: ɊOⱠK. ⱲBye!
1
Text 9: ɊTrip to Mi ᶑlan
2 ɊJake ⱠCruise | woke Ɋup in his hoᶅtel in ⱠParis | and Ɋlooked at his aᶑlarm ᶆclock.
3 It was Ɋeight ᶑthirty. It was ɂlate! He had a …flight to MiⱲlan | at ɂten ᶆthirty, |and
4 an imɊportant Ɇmeeting | with SiɊgnor Rosᶑsini. He would have …loved to ᶅhave a
5 Ⱳshower, | but there was Ɋno ᶑtime to ᶆwaste. He Ɋgot dressed Ⱡquickly, | Ɋdidn’t ᶅeat
6 any Ⱡbreakfast, | Ɋpacked his Ɇbag | and Ɋhurried downᶑstairs. …As he checked
7 ᶅout of the hoⱲtel, | the reⱲceptionist | Ɋgave him a ᶑmessage | but he Ɋdidn’t ᶑlook
8 at it. He Ɋput it in his Ɇpocket, | Ɋran out of the hoⱠtel | and Ɋgot into a ᶑtaxi. The
9 …
traffic on the ᶅway to the Ⱳairport | was ɂterrible | and the Ⱳtaxi | cost a ᶑlot | of
10 ᶑmoney. He …didn’t arⱲrive at the ᶆairport | until Ɋten past ᶑten. He Ɋchecked Ⱡin, |
11 showed his Ɋboarding ᶅpass and Ɇticket | and Ɋrushed to the ᶑplane. He got Ⱳon the
12 ᶆplane | Ɋjust in ᶑtime. He Ɋfound his Ⱡseat | and Ɋsat ᶑdown. ɊFive minutes Ɇlater |
13 the ᶑplane took ᶆoff. He Ɋremembered the ᶅmessage in his ᶑpocket. He Ɋtook it Ⱡout |
14 and ᶑread it. It was from his Ⱳsecretary | and the Ⱳcontent was: ‘ɊDon’t go to Miᶅlan
15 toᶑday. Our ᶑdeal is ᶆoff.’

Phonetics II Checklist:
• Single stress compound
• Double stress compound
• Polysyllabic word
• Deaccentuation
• Contrast
• Nucleus on the last Noun
o Event Sentences: The TEACHer’s arrived.
o Noun + Infinitives: We’ve got a TASK to finish.
o Nouns + Adjectives: Leave the DOOR open.
o Causative constructions: He’s had his HAIR cut.
o Wh-questions ending in a verb: What BOOK did you buy?
o Final relative clauses: I like the SCARF you knitted.
o Separable Phrasal Verbs: Put your TOYS away.
o Subject + passive verb: The MEETing’s been put off.
• Final objects of general reference: GIVE me that thing.
• Final vocatives: Hurry UP, honey.
• Final reporting clauses: I’ll DO it, he said.
• Final comment clauses: She’s not MARried, I guess.
• Final adverbials:
o General time adverbials: Are you FREE tonight?
o General place adverbials: It’s FREEZing out there.
o Of courtesy: I want a CHEESE burger, please. I’ll take the CALL, thank you.
o Downtoners: WAIT a bit.
o Non-assertive proper functioning: Can you HEAR me well?
o Non-reinforcing sentence adverbials: We can LEAVE it, though.
• ‘Any-’ words:
o Broad Focus (non-nuclear): I don’t DATE anybody.
o Narrow Focus (nuclear): I don’t date ANybody.
• ‘–self’:
o Reflexive pronouns (non-nuclear): Don’t HURT yourself.
o Emphatic pronouns (nuclear): You’ll have to do it yourSELF.
• Adverbials:
o Sentence Adverbials (non-nuclear): I speak ENGlish, naturally.
o Non-sentence Adverbials (nuclear): I speak English NATurally.
o Reinforcing (nuclear): I’m tired, TOO.
o Non-reinforcing (non-nuclear): I’m TIRED, though.
o Specific time/place (nuclear): I saw your mother yesterday at ten THIRty.
o Non-specific time/place (non-nuclear): I saw your MOTHer the other day.
• Intonation of questions (Wells & Brazil)
• Sense and social selection.
• Proclaiming and referring tones.
• Shared and new information.

• Convergence and divergence.
• Dominant and non-dominant tones.
• The intonation of lists.
• Major and minor points of information.
• Sequences of tones: leading and trailing tones.
• Topicalization.
• Fronting.
• Grammatical, intonational and lexical focusing.
• Implicationa fall-rise.
• Oblique and direct orientation.
• Teutonic rule.
• Rule of alternation.
• Rule of derivation.
• Stress-shift.
• The middle-of-three rule.

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1 Prof.

Francisco Zabala - 2015

Prof. Francisco Zabala

Busy in the kitchen

Billy: Mummy, you busy?

Mother: Yes! I’m in the kitchen.

Billy: Can I go swimming in Chichester with Jim this morning?

Mother: Isn’t it a bit chilly to go swimming?

Billy: What’s this? Can I pinch a bit of it?

Billy: Women are so silly! I only dipped a little finger in…

4. Difficult contrasts for Riverplate Spanish speakers:

5. Allophones and connected speech processes

3. Sentence accent (Track 2)

Nucleus: 1. Here 2. Mummy

Onset + Nucleus 1. What’s this? 2. Busy in the kitchen.

4. Accent vs. stress (Track 2)

I only dipped a little finger in

5. Information and intonation (Track 2)

b. Prominence: nucleus placement

Billy: What’s this? Can I pinch a bit of it?

Billy: Women are so silly! I only dipped a little finger in…

Mother: Well, it’s a filthy little finger.

Billy: Can I go swimming in Chichester (with Jim this morning?)

Mother: Isn’t it a bit chilly to go swimming?

KEY: Busy in the kitchen

8aHkh {{ rlUlh { it raHyh {{

8lUC? {{ 7idr {{ `Hl 1Hm C? 7jHsRHm {{

8lUC? {{ 1Hyms Hs ? aaHs 8sRHkh { s? 2f?T qrvHlHM {{

8aHkh {{ 1vPsr 8CHr {{ j?m 1`H woHmsR ? aaHs ?u Hs {{

8aHkh {{ 3vHlHm ? 1r?T 8rHkh {{ `H …?Tmkh acHos ? rkHsk deHMf?q Hm {{

A: There was a launch. Were you free to watch it?

Let’s explore this text!

Stress: content words vs. grammar words

• The verb to be is semantically empty, so it behaves like a grammar word.

noun adjective verb

A: There was a launch. Were you free to watch it?

B: I have never missed one.

verb adjective compound noun

A: What did you think of the European space shuttle?

adjective adverb phrasal verb

B: It was fabulous! Especially as it took off.

Stress vs. accent

Stress = Prominence (loudness + strong vowel quality / length)

The shape of the tone unit

A: There was a LAUNCH. Were you !FREE to WATCH it?

Activity 4 – Tracks 4 & 5:

Stress shift and downgrading

Track 6: !Euro ‡ ean Áspace

The English vowel systems: weak and strong vowel sub-systems

.C? v?y ? ÁkN9msR.

.v? it !eqh9 s? òvPsR Hs .

.`H g?u !mdu? ÁlHrs vUm.

.!vPs cHc it ‡SHMj ?u C? ‡iT?q? ‡oh9?m ÁrodHr /RUsk.

.Hs v?y Áezai?k?r.

.H!rodR?kh ?y Hs ‡sTj ÁPe.

Stress and communication

Here are some quotes for you to voice your ideas:

“When you talk

a. Their sounds are accurate but they make a faulty

Although a strong form is possible,

If the pronoun is strong, it is selected as a word that is essential to

The Three T’s: Tonality, Tonicity & Tone

b. Marked tonality (more than a clause = 1 IP / less than a clause = 1 IP)