In your variety a rise at the end of a phrase usually means one thing: a question, or at least doubt. So when an Indian colleague says "The meeting is on Monday" and the voice climbs on "Monday", you hear "Is the meeting on Monday?" and you answer "Yes, I think so," and the colleague looks puzzled, because she was telling you, not asking. The misreading is built into your ear. What you will learn: • The word-level rise • The phrase-level rise • Variation by first language • The rise in plain statements: office, shop, phone • When the rise is A question • The cost of mishearing the rise • Practice: decode the sentence • Listening strategies • Self-check questions to test your ear Level: B1–B2. Self-study: listen, then take the quizzes. Audio voiced with AI from an original script by Dr. Rashmi R Nair.