Buzz
Once seen as a negative trait, the 'Valley girl' speech pattern, where a speaker’s statements end in an upward pitch, almost making them sound like questions, was first identified by linguists in the 1970s. For years, it was ridiculed as a marker of unseriousness. In 1993, New York Times writer James Gorman acknowledged there could be some merit, although he feared it might become problematic if used by authority figures like airplane pilots.
That comparison was flawed; pilots’ typical intercom speeches are often long-winded, with rising intonations at the end of each sentence. Uptalk, however, has become widespread and increasingly defended in outlets like Slate, the Observer, The Cut, the BBC, and even The Times. A Canadian HR consultant even suggests that judging people for using uptalk might be seen as discriminatory. It has become so common that older studies on the subject seem almost unrecognizable in their depiction of it as unusual.
Perhaps it’s because men also use uptalk—George W. Bush was even called out for it by The Times—which reduces the cultural stigma typically associated with it. It could also be that millennials, a generation often raised by uptalkers, have reached an age where they hold leadership positions. Another reason might be the growing need for attention in our era of constant electronic distractions, where uptalk could help retain focus.
She connects this trend to a similar approach in American Sign Language, where the raised-eyebrow gesture indicates a yes/no question and grabs the conversation partner’s attention. The Atlantic even gives an example from interpreter Lydia Callis, whose expressive sign language during New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s Hurricane Sandy address went viral.
Linguist Arika Okrent discusses in the Atlantic:
In this example, Bloomberg is warning that the worst part of the storm is approaching. Callis signs WORST SOON HAPPEN, raising her eyebrows for WORST and SOON, then lowering them for HAPPEN. This eyebrow gesture signals topicalization, a common structure in many languages. In topicalization, a part of a sentence is emphasized and commented upon. A rough equivalent of her sentence could be, 'You know the worst? Soon? It’s going to happen.'
Studies by Cynthia McLemore, Amanda Ritchart, and Amalia Arvaniti show that uptalk serves a similar function: By turning a statement into a question, it encourages the listener to actively engage, prompting them to nod or confirm, just like adding 'you know?' or 'right?' to a sentence. It also serves a basic role of 'floor-holding,' signaling that there’s more to come and preventing interruptions; it transforms a period into a semicolon.
Rosenbaum extends the connection from linguistics to sociology: Like ASL speakers, young women are often ignored or interrupted, making it logical that they would develop a similar defensive mechanism. With in-person conversations increasingly disrupted by digital distractions, it’s understandable that others would adopt this behavior as well.
Although there's a lot of advice on avoiding uptalk (since it can convey uncertainty to some listeners), it could be just as beneficial to embrace it. Linguist Mark Liberman tells the Times that uptalk is often used by the more authoritative figure in a conversation, like a doctor speaking to a patient or a boss speaking to an employee, to communicate confidence and friendliness. As uptalk sheds its stigma, it could become more valuable in any situation where you need to maintain the listener's attention—especially when they’re distracted by their phone or simply seem disinterested in your perspective. By prompting them to respond and engage, uptalk can signal that you're worth listening to.
