adjective
tonic
Pertaining to vocal pitch or emphasis.
In this sentence, tonic stress falls on the final word.
Etymology
Tension produced pitch in a stretched string, linking the Greek word to sound. Tonic in this sense concerns vocal tone or emphasis.
More examples
- The tonic syllable carries the main pitch change in the phrase.
- Her tonic emphasis on “you” makes the question sound accusatory.
- Moving the tonic stress changes which word sounds most important.
Forms
tonic
tone noun — A sound considered by its pitch or quality.
Similar words
- tonal
- Relates to pitch or tone, rather than specifically to emphasis.
- stressed
- Describes an emphasized syllable, not vocal pitch generally.