This paper reports the results of an experiment on the question of whether the realizations of f0 variations at the end of the final IP are categorical or gradient. We conducted an imitation task with resynthesized stimuli where the final pitch height was varied in steps of one semi-tone. Results are ambivalent, since both strategies are possible. However, we argue that there is enough evidence for establishing the existence of at least three pitch categories in French.

Index Terms: intonation, imitation task, French, categorical, continuous, pitch level, pitch range