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Intonation

intonation, pitch pattern in speech

noun in-to-na-TSYOHN Rare
Communication Speech

Origin: from Latin intonare

Usage Note

Intonation describes the melody of spoken language — the rise and fall of pitch that conveys questions, statements and emotions. Eine fragende Intonation — a rising intonation. Important for language learners because German intonation differs markedly from English.

Examples

"Die Intonation verrät, ob der Satz eine Frage oder eine Aussage ist."

Natural Translation

The intonation reveals whether the sentence is a question or a statement.

Literal Translation

The intonation reveals, whether the sentence a question or a statement is.

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