Velar consonant

A velar consonant is a consonant that is pronounced with the back part of the tongue against the soft palate, also known as the velum, which is the back part of the roof of the mouth. Velar consonants in English are [k], [g] and [ŋ]. The consonant [k] is the most common in all human languages.

These are the velar consonants in the IPA.

IPA Description Example
Language Orthography IPA Meaning
Xsampa-N2.png velar nasal English ri ng [ɹʷɪŋ] ring
Xsampa-k.png voiceless velar plosive English skip [skɪp] skip
Xsampa-g.png voiced velar plosive English get [ɡɛt] get
Xsampa-x.png voiceless velar fricative German Bauch [baʊx] abdomen
Xsampa-G2.png voiced velar fricative Greek γάτα [ɣata] cat
Xsampa-X.png voiceless labio-velar approximant English which [ʍɪtʃ] which
Xsampa-Mslash.png velar approximant Spanish pagar [paɰaɾ] to pay
Xsampa-Lslash.png velar lateral approximant Mid-Wahgi aʟaʟe [aʟaʟe] dizzy
Xsampa-w2.png voiced labio-velar approximant English witch [wɪtʃ] witch
velar ejective plosive Archi кIан [an] bottom
ɠ voiced velar implosive Sindhi g̈əro/ڳرو [ɠəro] heavy

References