sing-song
Tediously rising, falling
Sing-song describes speech or sound with a rhythmic, repetitive rise and fall in pitch—melodic but often monotonous: She read the poem in a sing-song voice.
The term can be neutral or mildly dismissive, suggesting the pattern is mechanical or childish.
As a noun, a sing-song is an informal gathering where people sing together, chiefly British: We had a sing-song around the piano.
Repeated focus phrase
- incantationSpoken magical formula
- prayerAddress to deity
- psalmSacred scriptural song
- litanyProlonged repetitive account
recitation · hymn · sutra · invocation · nursery rhyme · playground chant · jump rope rhyme · counting rhyme
Rhythmic pulse or pattern
- inflectionWord form alteration
- modulationVarying signals to transmit
- pitchFrequency of sound
- liltRhythmic speech quality
prosody · accent · monotone · rising · falling · contour · patter · drone
Room for infants
- lullabySoothing song for babies
- playgroundChildren's outdoor recreation space
- skippingRhythmic hopping locomotion
- teasingPlayful, mild ridicule
taunting · mocking · na-na · childish · playful · innocent · soothing · bedtime
Rhythmic pulse or pattern
- meterDevice that measures usage
- beatRhythmic pulse or strike
- tempoRate of musical performance
- pulseArterial blood throb
pattern · swing · flow · measure · pace · syncopation · regular · bouncing
mantra
Repeated focus phrase
- incantationSpoken magical formula
- prayerAddress to deity
- psalmSacred scriptural song
litany · recitation · hymn · sutra · invocation · nursery rhyme · playground chant · jump rope rhyme · counting rhyme · schoolyard
cadence
Rhythmic pulse or pattern
- inflectionWord form alteration
- modulationVarying signals to transmit
- pitchFrequency of sound
lilt · prosody · accent · monotone · rising · falling · contour · patter · drone · drawl
nursery
Room for infants
- lullabySoothing song for babies
- playgroundChildren's outdoor recreation space
- skippingRhythmic hopping locomotion
teasing · taunting · mocking · na-na · childish · playful · innocent · soothing · bedtime · rocking
cadence
Rhythmic pulse or pattern
pulse · pattern · swing · flow · measure · pace · syncopation · regular · bouncing · swaying
monotonous
Unchangingly dull
- droningSustained monotonous sound
- tediousBoring through length
- predictableAble to be foreseen
mechanical · rote · tiresome · unvaried · hypnotic · soporific · boring · dulling · numbing · wearisome
- Reduplicativesbye-bye, mama, papa, haha, yo-yo
- speech qualitiesarticulate, clear, loud, soft, quiet
- speechspeech, speaking, talk, diction, conversation
- sound qualitiesloudness, pitch, tone, faintness, clarity
- jinglescommercial jingle, radio jingle, brand jingle, catchy tune, earworm
- Affected Speechaffectation, airs, pretentiousness, posh accent, overenunciation
sing-songmonotone
Single unvarying pitch
flat · monotonous · droning · deadpan · level
sing-songemphatic
Expressed with force
heartfelt · earnest · impassioned · natural · conversational
song, sing, singer, singing, sung, sings, songs, sang, unsung