Definition

Noun A speech sound produced with both the oral and nasal passages open simultaneously. This term is primarily used in phonetics to describe sounds where air escapes through both the mouth and the nose.

Usage and Examples

The term 'orinasal' is a technical term used in linguistic and phonetic analysis. * In French, the vowels in words like bon [bɔ̃] (good) and vin [vɛ̃] (wine) are classic examples of orinasal sounds. * Phoneticians classify nasalized vowels as orinasal because the velum is lowered, allowing airflow through the nasal cavity while the oral articulation for the vowel is maintained. * The study of orinasal phonemes is important for understanding the sound systems of languages like Portuguese and Polish, which also utilize nasal vowels.

Advanced Usage

• Orinasal quality: Refers to the auditory characteristic or timbre of a sound produced with combined oral and nasal resonance.
  • The singer's training focused on eliminating unwanted orinasal quality from her vowel sounds.
• The concept is central to the distinction between oral vowels (where the velum is raised, blocking the nasal passage) and nasal(ized) vowels (where it is lowered).

Variants and Related Words

• Orinasal can also function as an adjective.
  • The phonetic chart included a symbol for the orinasal vowel.
• Nasal vowel: A more common term for an orinasal vowel sound.
• Nasalization: The process or result of making a sound nasal (or orinasal).
• Oral-nasal: A synonymous descriptive phrase.

Synonyms

• Nasalized (vowel/sound)
• Nasal (in the specific phonetic context of vowels)

Notes

• 'Orinasal' is a highly specialized term. In most linguistic discussions, the simpler terms nasal vowel or nasalized vowel are preferred.
• The term is a compound of (from Latin meaning "mouth") and (from Latin meaning "nose").

Noun

1. a speech sound produced with both the oral and nasal passages open (as French nasal vowels)