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vowel - 5 dictionary results

vow⋅el

  [vou-uhl]
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–noun
1. Phonetics.
a. (in English articulation) a speech sound produced without occluding, diverting, or obstructing the flow of air from the lungs (opposed to consonant ).
b. (in a syllable) the sound of greatest sonority, as i in grill. Compare consonant (def. 1b).
c. (in linguistic function) a concept empirically determined as a phonological element in structural contrast with consonant, as the (ē) of be (bē), we (wē), and yeast (yēst).
2. a letter representing or usually representing a vowel, as, in English, a, e, i, o, u, and sometimes w and y.
–adjective
3. of or pertaining to a vowel.
Origin:
1275–1325; ME < OF vowel < L vōcālis vocal

Related forms:
vow⋅el⋅less, adjective
vow⋅el⋅like, adjective
vow⋅el⋅y, vow⋅el⋅ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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vow·el   (vou'əl)   
n.  
  1. A speech sound, such as (ē) or (ĭ), created by the relatively free passage of breath through the larynx and oral cavity, usually forming the most prominent and central sound of a syllable.
  2. A letter, such as a, e, i, o, u, and sometimes y in the English alphabet, that represents a vowel.

[Middle English vowelle, from Old French vouel, from Latin (littera) vōcālis, sounding (letter), from vōx, vōc-, voice; see wekw- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Vowel

Vow"el\, n. [F. voyelle, or an OF. form without y, L. vocalis (sc. littera), from vocalis sounding, from vox, vocis, a voice, sound. See Vocal.] (Phon.) A vocal, or sometimes a whispered, sound modified by resonance in the oral passage, the peculiar resonance in each case giving to each several vowel its distinctive character or quality as a sound of speech; -- distinguished from a consonant in that the latter, whether made with or without vocality, derives its character in every case from some kind of obstructive action by the mouth organs. Also, a letter or character which represents such a sound. See Guide to Pronunciation, [sect][sect] 5, 146-149.

Note: In the English language, the written vowels are a, e, i, o, u, and sometimes w and y. The spoken vowels are much more numerous.

Close vowel. See under Close, a.

Vowel point. See under Point, n.

Vowel

Vow"el\, a. Of or pertaining to a vowel; vocal.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : vowel
Spanish: vocal,
German: der Vokal,
Japanese: 母音字
More Translations »

vowel 
c.1308, from O.Fr. vouel, from L. vocalis, in littera vocalis, lit. "vocal letter," from vox (gen. vocis) "voice" (see voice). Vowel shift in ref. to the pronunciation change between M.E. and Mod.Eng. is attested from 1909. The Hawaiian word hooiaioia, meaning "certified," has the most consecutive vowels of any word in current human speech; the English record-holder is queueing.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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