English
Pitch accents in English serve as a cue to prominence, along with duration, intensity, and spectral composition. Pitch accents are made up of a high (H) or low (L) pitch target or a combination of an H and an L target. The pitch accents of English used in the ToBI prosodic transcription system are: H*, L*, L*+H, L+H*, and H+!H*.
Most theories of prosodic meaning in English claim that pitch accent placement is tied to the focus, or most important part, of the phrase. Some theories of prosodic marking of focus are only concerned with nuclear pitch accents.
Read more about this topic: Pitch Accent
Famous quotes containing the word english:
“You might sooner get lightning out of incense smoke than true action or passion out of your modern English religion.”
—John Ruskin (1819–1900)
“... the English are very fond of being entertained, and ... they regard the French and the American people as destined by Heaven to amuse them.”
—M. E. W. Sherwood (1826–1903)
“The English never draw a line without blurring it.”
—Winston Churchill (1874–1965)