1. to remove or lose the rounded lip position (labialization) from a speech sound
Usage: linguistics; phonetics

Examples

• In some dialects, the rounded vowel /ø/ may delabialize to /e/.
• Linguists observed that the consonant delabializes when it appears in certain phonetic contexts.
• The sound underwent delabializaton over generations of language change.
• When speakers delabialize a labialized consonant, the lip rounding is eliminated.
• Historical sound changes sometimes cause labial features to delabialize in word-final positions.