Labiodental Fricative Consonant Sounds with Examples

In the English language, the classification of consonants is done based on various factors. Usually, consonants cause some constriction in the vocal tract that causes obstructed airflow. Consonants are described as voiced as well as voiceless. Let us talk about labiodental fricative consonant sounds, that as the name indicates, comes under the category of voiced consonants. 

What are Labiodental Fricatives?

The consonants [f] and [v] are known to form labiodental fricative sounds in the English language. The sounds of these consonants are made with top teeth on the bottom lip. The sounds thus produced are called labiodental sounds. 

Moving on to the fricative sounds, as we have talked earlier about consonants, the constricted vocal tract results in obstructed airflow. When the airflow is not blocked completely, and articulators are held together close. This allows air to flow turbulently through a small space. The sound products due to this kind of turbulence are called fricatives. 

There are two kinds of labiodental fricative sounds, the voiced and the voiceless sounds. Now, let’s learn about what is fricative and affricate sound in labiodental. 

Voiced Labiodental Fricative

The voiced labiodental fricative is a kind of consonantal sound utilized in some communication in languages. The image in the International Phonetic Alphabet that speaks to this sound is ?v?.

We can check if a sound is voiced or voiceless by placing our fingers on the front of our throat.

If we feel some vibrations, then the sound can be categorized as the voiced sounds. These are a few examples of words that contain the phoneme voiced labiodental fricative.

Voiceless Labiodental Fricative

The Voiceless labiodental fricative is a kind of consonantal sound utilized in some communication in languages. The image in the International Phonetic Alphabet that speaks to this sound is ?f?. 

For the voiceless, we can check if a sound is voiceless by placing our fingers on the front of our throat.

If we do not feel some vibrations, then the sound can be categorized as voiceless sounds. These are a few examples of words that contain the phoneme voiceless labiodental.

Combining the labiodental and fricative sounds, we get the consonants [f] and [v] that give the labiodental fricative sounds.

Let’s have a look at some words with labiodental fricative sounds.

Examples of Words with Labiodental Fricative Sounds