强调语气的作用是使某个观点或意思更加突出，增强感染力，给人留下更深刻的印象。人们在说话时通常借助提高话音、放慢语速、说话简练或打手势等方式来突出重点，强调主要的意思。为了达到更好的表达效果，我们应该学会如何在说话中使用强调语气来突出主要的意思，增强感染力。

把主要的意思放在句首或句末，尤其是句末，这是最容易引起读者注意力的地方

1 Education remains the most important single means of economic advancement, in spite of all its shortcomings.

2 In spite of all its shortcomings, education remains the most important single means of economic advancement.

3 Education remains, in spite of all its shortcomings, the most important single means of economic advancement.

以上三句话用词完全相同，但是词序的变化引起读者对三句话不同的理解。第一句话把in spite of all its shortcomings放在句末，强调的是教育的缺憾，淡化了教育的重要性；第二句话把in spite of all its shortcomings放在句首，强调了教育的缺憾，但是把教育的重要性放在句末，更加突出了教育的重要性。第三句话把in spite of all its shortcomings放在句中，淡化了教育的缺憾，把教育和教育的重要性分别放在句首和句末，突出了二者的重要性。

偶尔使用掉尾句（the periodic sentence）来代替累加句（the loose sentence）

1The jury found him guilty, though his lawyer defended him eloquently.

2 Though his lawyer defended him eloquently, the jury found him guilty.

1句是累加句，主要意思（主句）在前，次要意思（从句）在后，但是把次要意思放在句末，容易给读者造成强调次要意思的印象。2句是掉尾句，次要意思（从句）在前，主要意思（主句）在后，突出了主要意思，符合句子的原意，即主要意思用主句表达，次要意思用从句表达。

表达并列的意思时，根据意思的重要性由低到高依次排列，由此来强调最重要的意思

1 Urban life is unhealthy, morally corrupt, and fundamentally inhuman.

2 The storm knocked down many trees in town, ripped the roofs off several buildings, and killed ten people.

3 Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.

以上三句话中，并列成分按重要性从低到高排列。句1中，unhealthy, corrupt和inhuman三个词程度越来越严重地描述了城市生活，并强调了城市生活非人性的一面。句2描述了暴风雨造成的损害：刮倒了许多树，刮跑了几个房顶，十人丧生。显然损害程度越来越强，给人们造成的影响越来越严重。句3反映了西方人心目中获得healthy, wealthy和wise的难易程度，healthy最易获得，wise最难获得，也最重要。