Ever felt like you are nailing the word-by-word pronunciation but still not sounding natural in English? The missing part here might just be intonation.

What is intonation?

Intonation is the melody of your speech.

It is not about what you say but how you say it. It is about the rise and fall of your voice when you speak. A song has highs and lows, and your sentences do, too. A good song continuously varies in pitch, and the same pattern applies to your speech.   

Why does it matter?

Intonation matters because it calls the difference between sounding friendly or angry, curious or bored, sincere or ironic. It administers the backing track of your voice. It can transmit the hidden message behind literal words and phrases in spoken context, especially when you are not laying out words in black and white with clear signs of punctuation.

Three examples are laid out in the table below:

With that being said, the exact same words have different vibes and meanings with different tones. Without intonation, even grammatically correct and beautifully written language can feel … off.

How to Practice Intonation?

The best way to practice intonation is no secret. It is to Listen and Repeat at intervals, with frequency. You can record and re-listen to your speech for self-assessment, or ELSA can assist you with our scoring and feedback system.

As little as 5 minutes of practice with our daily intonation exercise indeed makes a difference. Focus on the pitch, not just words! And make it fun!

 Linh Ta