接せっ近きん音おん

せ

っ

き

ん

お

ん

Meanings

1

noun

approximant

linguistics

A speech sound produced with a narrowing of the vocal tract, but not enough to cause turbulence. In Japanese phonetics, /j/ and /w/ are typical approximants.

日本にほん語ごの「や」の子し音いんは接せっ近きん音おんに分ぶん類るいされる。
The consonant in Japanese 'ya' is classified as an approximant.

接touch, contact, adjoin

近near, early, akin

音sound, noise

Similar words

摩ま擦さつ音おん
A fricative, where the airflow is constricted enough to cause audible friction, unlike the smoother approximant.
破は裂れつ音おん
A plosive, where the airflow is completely blocked and then released, contrasting with the open approximation of an approximant.

Etymology

Compound of 接近 (sekkin, 'approach') and 音 (on, 'sound'), a calque of the English linguistic term 'approximant'.