Alveolarize

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To pronounce a speech sound by placing the tongue near or against the ridge just behind the upper front teeth
2. The act of articulating a consonant by using the alveolar ridge as the point of contact for the tongue
3. Producing a sound in which the tongue touches or approaches the alveolar ridge to shape the articulation

Etymology: Alveolarize is formed from "alveolar," the adjective for the ridge just behind the upper front teeth, plus the verb-forming suffix "-ize." The ridge takes its name from the Latin "alveolus," a diminutive of "alveus," meaning "hollow" or "trough," because the bony ridge holds the sockets of the teeth like small cavities. English borrowed "alveolar" as a technical term in phonetics, and "alveolarize" follows the same pattern, used to describe a sound being shaped by the tongue touching or approaching that ridge. Phoneticians use the verb mainly in describing how a consonant is produced or how a speaker's articulation shifts. The English "t" and "d" in words like "ten" and "dog" are typically alveolar, which is why a learner might be told to alveolarize a sound that another language pronounces further forward or back. The word is a practical coinage rather than a historical one, and its history is essentially that of its parts.

Synonyms: dentalize, articulate alveolarly, alveolarlize

Antonyms: dealveolarize, non-alveolarize