Tone is the writer’s or speaker's attitude toward the subject.

Often a change or shift in tone will be signaled by the following: key words (e.g. but, yet, nevertheless, however, although); punctuation (dashes, periods, colons); stanza and paragraph divisions; changes in line and stanza or sentence length.

animated
ambivalent
apathetic
accusatory
amused
absurd
aggressive
acerbic
angry
abstruse
assertive
aggrieved
arrogant
awestruck
admiring
admiring
assertive
ardent
acerbic
befuddled
benevolent
bitter
belligerent
compliant
cautionary
condescending
callous
cynical
colloquial
comic
confused
critical
compassionate
complaining
chatty
complex
cheerful
contemptuous

caustic
cruel
celebratory
candid
conciliatory
detached
depressed
disapproval
docile
evasive
docile
derisive
dignified
disparaging
distressed
disheartened
diplomatic
defiant
dispassionate
demeaning
excited
empathetic
egotistical
earnest
farcical
frustrated
forceful
formal
frank
fawning
flippant
faultfinding
frivolous
fuming
ghoulish
grim
gullible
gentle

hard
hard-hearted
hypercritical
humble
intense
incensed
imploring
indignant
intimate
impressionable
sulking
inane
irreverent
impassioned
informative
incredulous
indifferent
impartial
ironic
jaded
joyous
laudatory
loving
malicious
mocking
modest
macabre
mourning
mean-spirited
naive
nasty
narcissistic
nostalgic
objective
outraged
obsequious
optimistic
outspoken

placating
pompous
pragmatic
pretentious
prayerful
playful
pathetic
pessimistic
pensive
patronizing
philosophical
persuasive
reflective
resentful
reverent
resigned
regretful
righteous
reticent
reflective
restrained
sentimental
satirical
sympathetic
skeptical
scornful
scathing
subjective
self-pitying
sensationalistic
submissive
scorning
subjective
solemn
sorrowful
tragic
thoughtful
tolerant

unbiased
uneasy
virtuous
vindictive
witty
world-weary
wretched
wonder
worried
whimsical
melodic
sinister
sinful
unsightly
simmering
seething
amorous
tacky
dorky
irksome
soulful
fruity
conscious
funky
miserly
rueful
cheesy
touchy
uncouth
raunchy
creamy
pasty
tasty
classy
seductive
sassy
saucy
zesty