noun
- consonant sounds produced by forcing air through a narrow opening in the mouth, creating friction
Usage: linguistics; phonetics
Examples
- The sounds /f/, /v/, /s/, and /z/ are common fricatives in English.
- Students learning phonetics must distinguish between fricatives and other consonant types.
- The word ‘fish’ begins and ends with fricatives.
- Fricatives are characterized by the turbulent airflow they create.
- Speech therapists often work with children who have difficulty pronouncing fricatives.
- The fricatives in ‘she’ and ‘measure’ are produced in different parts of the mouth.