Exercise 17: Pitch variations when speaking 

Take a phrase and, using variations in the pitch of your voice, say it in as many different ways as you can to give it different shades of meaning. 

Until you can keep your voice flowing smoothly across the changes in pitch use phrases that have plenty of friendly consonants in them. 

Here are some phrases to try: 

• Now I know what you mean. 
• We really need to move now. 
• Mandy is the winner this morning. 
• You will not make a noise. 
• Many of you need more workbooks. 
• Make sure your homework is neat.  

Remember to keep the vowels long. 

Now start to use phrases with consonants that are more tricky because they tend to stop the flow of sound. An interesting one is: 

• I didn’t kill your wife. 

Saying it with the emphasis on each of the words in turn should also persuade you – if you need persuading – how you can completely change the meaning of what you say by the way you say it.  

Q: Devise another phrase that changes its meaning when the emphasis given to each word is changed