glottal stop

The 'glottal stop' is a significant sound in many languages, represented by the symbol 'Κ”' in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA).

πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ US Voice:
πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ UK Voice:

Definition

C1Phonetics

(technical, academic)A speech sound produced by closing and then quickly opening the vocal cords, creating a brief interruption in airflow.

Example

  • In English, the word 'butter' can be pronounced with a glottal stop as 'bu'er' in some dialects.

C1Linguistics

(technical, academic)A type of consonantal sound characterized by the complete closure of the glottis, leading to a brief silence or a slight 'catch' in the voice.

Example

  • The glottal stop is an essential feature in languages like Arabic and Hawaiian.

Similar

Terms that have similar or relatively close meanings to "glottal stop":

full stop