Study the intonation of phrases that involve lists so people can follow your speech more easily.
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Video Transcript:
In this American English pronunciation video, we’re going to go over word stress and intonation in lists.
The rule for stress and intonation in lists is easy. Each item goes up in pitch until the final item, which goes down in pitch. Let’s look at an example. I’m driving you, Dan, and Cindy to the party. So here, we’re listing three things, three people: you, up in pitch; Dan, up in pitch; and Cindy, down in pitch. Up, up, down. I’m driving you, Dan, and Cindy to the party.
It’s easy, right? Let’s look at a few more examples. You can have cereal, pancakes, or oatmeal. Cereal, pancakes, or oatmeal. Up, up, down. You can have cereal, pancakes, or oatmeal.
My mom, dad, little sister, and grandma are visiting next week. My mom, dad, little sister, and grandma are visiting next week. Up, up, up, down.
I dusted, vacuumed, and straightened the living room. Dusted, vacuumed and straightened. Up, up, down.
She just got back from a trip to Spain, Portugal, and France. Spain, Portugal, and France. Up, up, down.
Now, that’s not hard, is it? Intoning lists this way, along with leaving a small pause for the commas, will make you easier to understand.
That’s it, and thanks so much for using Rachel’s English.
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