intonation


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in·to·na·tion

 (ĭn′tə-nā′shən, -tō-)
n.
1.
a. The act of intoning or chanting.
b. An intoned utterance.
2. A manner of producing or uttering tones, especially with regard to accuracy of pitch.
3. Linguistics The use of changing pitch to convey syntactic information: a questioning intonation.
4. A use of pitch characteristic of a speaker or dialect: "He could hear authority, the old parish intonation coming back into his voice" (Graham Greene).
5. Music The opening phrase of a plainsong composition sung as a solo part.

in′to·na′tion·al adj.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

intonation

(ˌɪntəʊˈneɪʃən)
n
1. (Phonetics & Phonology) the sound pattern of phrases and sentences produced by pitch variation in the voice
2. the act or manner of intoning
3. an intoned, chanted, or monotonous utterance; incantation
4. (Classical Music) music the opening of a piece of plainsong, sung by a soloist
5. (Classical Music) music
a. the correct or accurate pitching of intervals
b. the capacity to play or sing in tune. See also just intonation
ˌintoˈnational adj
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

in•to•na•tion

(ˌɪn toʊˈneɪ ʃən, -tə-)

n.
1. the pattern or melody of pitch changes in connected speech, esp. the pitch pattern of a sentence, which distinguishes kinds of sentences or speakers of different language cultures.
2. the act or manner of intonating.
3. the ability to produce musical tones on pitch.
4. something that is intoned.
5. the opening phrase of a Gregorian chant.
[< Medieval Latin]
in`to•na′tion•al, adj.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.intonation - rise and fall of the voice pitchintonation - rise and fall of the voice pitch  
prosody, inflection - the patterns of stress and intonation in a language
intonation pattern - intonations characteristic of questions and requests and statements
droning, monotone, drone - an unchanging intonation
singsong - a regular and monotonous rising and falling intonation
2.intonation - singing by a soloist of the opening piece of plainsong
singing, vocalizing - the act of singing vocal music
3.intonation - the act of singing in a monotonous toneintonation - the act of singing in a monotonous tone
singing, vocalizing - the act of singing vocal music
cantillation - liturgical chanting
4.intonation - the production of musical tones (by voice or instrument); especially the exactitude of the pitch relations
music - musical activity (singing or whistling etc.); "his music was his central interest"
fixed intonation - the intonation of keyboard instruments where the pitch of each note is fixed and cannot be varied by the performer
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

intonation

noun
1. tone, inflection, cadence, modulation, accentuation His voice had a very slight German intonation.
2. incantation, spell, charm, formula, chant, invocation, hex (U.S. & Canad. informal), conjuration They could hear strange music and chanting intonations.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

intonation

noun
A particular vocal quality that indicates some emotion or feeling:
Idiom: tone of voice.
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
تَغَيُّر في حِدَّة الصَّوْت
intonace
intonation
intonáció
ítónun; hljómfall
intonacija
intonācija
intonácia
intonacija
tonlama

intonation

[ˌɪntəʊˈneɪʃən] Nentonación f
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

intonation

[ˌɪntəˈneɪʃən] nintonation f
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

intonation

nIntonation f; (Ling also) → Satzmelodie f
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

intonation

[ˌɪntəʊˈneɪʃn] n (Linguistics) → intonazione f
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

intonation

(intəˈneiʃən) noun
the rise and fall of the voice in speech.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
References in classic literature ?
His mother had two long conversations with Mills on his passage through Paris and had heard of me (I knew how that thick man could speak of people, he interjected ambiguously) and his mother, with an insatiable curiosity for anything that was rare (filially humorous accent here and a softer flash of teeth), was very anxious to have me presented to her(courteous intonation, but no teeth).
Natasha, who, of the whole family, was the most gifted with a capacity to feel any shades of intonation, look, and expression, pricked up her ears from the beginning of the meal and was certain that there was some secret between her father and Anna Mikhaylovna, that it had something to do with her brother, and that Anna Mikhaylovna was preparing them for it.
For the iambic is, of all measures, the most colloquial: we see it in the fact that conversational speech runs into iambic lines more frequently than into any other kind of verse; rarely into hexameters, and only when we drop the colloquial intonation. The additions to the number of 'episodes' or acts, and the other accessories of which tradition; tells, must be taken as already described; for to discuss them in detail would, doubtless, be a large undertaking.
She laughed very prettily, not so much at the sonnets, which she could not but esteem, as at poor Henry's French accent, which was unique, resembling the warbling of birds, if birds ever warbled with a stuttering, nasal intonation.
From the intonation of the words, she guessed, with her woman's quick intuition, at their meaning; but she quite failed to follow, when, becoming more pressing, he continued to urge his suit in a mixture of the grossest animal passion and ridiculous threats.
Gardner, with a slight intonation of tolerant wonder.
The old man motioned me in with his right hand with a courtly gesture, saying in excellent English, but with a strange intonation.
There was a rather pettish intonation in Fleur-de-Lys's-- laconic words.
Could not distinguish the words, but was convinced by the intonation that the speaker was an Italian.
I was awed by his intonation of the word `Selah.' `He shall choose our inheritance for us, the excellency of Jacob whom He loved.
Naseby,' he concluded, with an intonation that would have made his fortune on the stage, so just, so sad, so dignified, so like a man of the world and a philosopher, 'and you see a man who is content.'
You read, I will suppose, attentively enough; but you cannot see the speaker's white, sincere face in the bright circle of the little lamp, nor hear the intonation of his voice.