Uptalk: Towards a quantitative analysis

The use of high-rise terminals, or uptalk, continues to be a point of contention in the study of intonation. Researchers continually produce conflicting descriptions of it in an effort to define it, including conflicting explanations of its connotation or significance in conversation. These difficulties suggest that ToBI, the most frequently used system of annotation for intonation, cannot adequately describe the contour. The definitions of uptalk produced using ToBI do not allow it to be distinguished from other contours, namely question intonation. This study tries to define the contour, not by describing it as ToBI does, but by measuring the pitch excursions that speakers produce in these contours in relation to the overall pitch range of the phrase in which it was produced. The results of the study show that the excursions produced in uptalk fall in the mid range of rises, steeper than those of other declarative statements, but not as steep as those produced in question intonation. This provides a potential set of criteria which can be used to precisely distinguish uptalk contours. The ability to identify contours based on the height of the pitch excursion exhibited also points to the possibility of the use of categorical perception of intonation contours by native speakers of English. Adapted from the source document