Syntactic theories of intonation assume that intonation is congruent to syntax. It is, however, in the cases where it is not that intonation can restructure an utterance and become informative. In a first stage, we identify the prosodic units which play a part in the organisation of utterances. In a second stage, we examine how intonation contributes to the linear and hierarchical structure of utterances. The functioning of prosodic units in semantic and pragmatic organisation of the sentence allows us to bring to light syntactic constraints. This method seems the best way to evaluate the respective interactions of intonation with syntax and pragmatics. These syntactic constraints constitute formal marks which justify the content of prosodic rules (syntactic, semantic, accentual and rhythmic) which make it possible to predict or explain the intonation of utterances.