labial

[ ley-bee-uhl ]

adjective
  1. of, relating to, or resembling a labium.

  2. of or relating to the lips.

  1. Phonetics. involving lip articulation, as p, v, m, w, or a rounded vowel.

  2. Music. having the tones produced by the impact of a stream of air on a sharp liplike edge, as in a flute or the flue pipes of an organ.

nounPhonetics.
  1. any labial consonant, especially a bilabial.

  2. any labial sound.

Origin of labial

1
From the Medieval Latin word labiālis, dating back to 1585–95. See labium, -al1

Other words from labial

  • la·bi·al·i·ty, noun
  • la·bi·al·ly, adverb
  • in·ter·la·bi·al, adjective
  • post·la·bi·al, adjective
  • post·la·bi·al·ly, adverb
  • pre·la·bi·al, adjective
  • pseu·do·la·bi·al, adjective
  • sub·la·bi·al, adjective
  • sub·la·bi·al·ly, adverb

Words Nearby labial

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use labial in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for labial

labial

/ (ˈleɪbɪəl) /


adjective
  1. of, relating to, or near lips or labia

  2. music producing sounds by the action of an air stream over a narrow liplike fissure, as in a flue pipe of an organ

  1. phonetics relating to a speech sound whose articulation involves movement or use of the lips: a labial click

noun
  1. Also called: labial pipe music an organ pipe with a liplike fissure

  2. phonetics a speech sound such as English p or m, whose articulation involves movement or use of the lips

Origin of labial

1
C16: from Medieval Latin labiālis, from Latin labium lip

Derived forms of labial

  • labiality, noun
  • labially, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012