ABSTRACT
The fundamental frequency of a sound is responsible for the pitch that we hear. The range of fundamental frequencies in a person’s voice is part of what characterizes them as a speaker, leading to descriptions like “high-pitched voice,” “low-pitched voice,” and “monotonous voice.” During an utterance, changes of fundamental frequency help to signal the relationships among the words and it is also involved in conveying less tangible things, like the speaker’s attitude and emotional state. This chapter first explains fundamental frequency and describes how it is measured. It goes on to describe typical and extreme values of the fundamental frequency of human voices. It also illustrates the role of fundamental frequency in signaling meaning, in words and sentences.
