boundary tone

In some analyses of INTONATION, a TONE typically positioned at the EDGE of a PHRASAL CONSTITUENT. High (H) and Low (L) tones are recognized as having important boundary roles, expressing such functions as assertion, question, and continuation. An asterisk is used to identify a tone that is realized on the STRESSED SYLLABLE (H*, L*), and a % symbol is used to show that a tone associates with the EDGE syllable of a phrase (H%, L%). The notion, applied to a wide range of languages, subsumes effects which are usually handled separately (e.g. NUCLEAR tone, syllabic accent, PITCH ACCENT). Utterance spans which are dominated by boundary tones are intonational phrases.

‘Medial’ boundary tones are also recognized, positioned at certain points within a CONSTITUENT, marking an intermediate-level phrase.