Voiceless dental affricate

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Voiceless dental non-sibilant affricate

Voiceless dental non-sibilant affricate
t͡θ
t͜θ
t̪͡θ
t̟͡θ

The voiceless dental non-sibilant affricate is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. The symbols in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represent this sound are ⟨t͡θ⟩, ⟨t͜θ⟩, ⟨t̪͡θ⟩ and ⟨t̟͡θ⟩.

Features

Features of the voiceless dental non-sibilant affricate:

  • Its manner of articulation is affricate, which means it is produced by first stopping the airflow entirely, then allowing air flow through a constricted channel at the place of articulation, causing turbulence.
  • Its place of articulation is dental, which means it is articulated with the tongue at either the upper or lower teeth, or both. (Most stops and liquids described as dental are actually denti-alveolar.)
  • Its phonation is voiceless, which means it is produced without vibrations of the vocal cords. In some languages the vocal cords are actively separated, so it is always voiceless; in others the cords are lax, so that it may take on the voicing of adjacent sounds.
  • It is an oral consonant, which means air is allowed to escape through the mouth only.
  • It is a central consonant, which means it is produced by directing the airstream along the center of the tongue, rather than to the sides.

Occurrence

This phoneme is very rare, and is perhaps best known as the final sound in the English word eighth, which is pronounced eight + th.

Language Word IPA Meaning Notes
English New York[1] think [ˈt̟͡θɪŋk] 'think' Corresponds to [θ] in other dialects, may also be pronounced [t] and [θ].

See also

References

  1. ↑ Labov (1966:?)

Bibliography

  • Labov, William (1966), The Social Stratification of English in New York City (2nd ed.), Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 
 
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