glottal

IPA/ˈɡlɒtl/
KK[ɡlˈɑtəl]IPA/ˈɡlɑːtl/

glottal — adjective

  • glottalpositive
  • more glottalcomparative
  • most glottalsuperlative

1. relating to the glottis — the opening between the vocal cords — or describing sp

1.adjectiveC1
Definition

relating to the glottis — the opening between the vocal cords — or describing speech sounds that are produced at the glottis.

Example

In her linguistics class, Saira learned how to produce a glottal stop.

collocation: glottal stop — most common use

Some British English speakers use a glottal stop instead of the /t/ sound in words like "bottle."

Common collocations
  • glottal stop
  • glottal fry
  • glottal sound
  • glottal opening
  • glottal closure
Synonyms
  • laryngeal

    broader term referring to the whole larynx, not specifically the glottis; used more in medicine than linguistics

  • vocal

    much more general — 'vocal' refers to any speech sound or singing, while 'glottal' is specific to the glottis

Grammar Patterns

glottal + noun (e.g. glottal stop, glottal fry)

Usage Note

Most often used as an attributive adjective before phonetic terms like 'stop' and 'fry'. It is a technical word from phonetics and is rarely used in everyday conversation.

Common Mistakes

He has a glottal cough.
He has a deep, rough cough.
'glottal' describes sound production in the vocal cords, not the quality of a sound.
The singer's glottal voice was very loud.
The singer's voice came from deep in her throat.
'glottal' is a technical phonetic term, not a general description of vocal quality.

Word family

  • glottis
    nounC1
  • glottalize
    verbC2
  • glottalization
    nounC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

While 'glottal', 'laryngeal', 'vocal', and 'guttural' all relate to voice or throat functions, they differ in scope and register. 'Glottal' is the most specific — it refers precisely to the glottis (the opening between the vocal cords) and is used almost exclusively in phonetics. 'Laryngeal' is broader and more medical, referring to the entire larynx (voice box); a doctor might diagnose a 'laryngeal infection' but would not say 'glottal infection'. 'Vocal' is the most general, covering any speech or singing produced by the voice — 'vocal warm-ups', 'vocal range'. 'Guttural' describes a rough, throaty sound quality rather than a specific place of articulation; it is less technical and often carries a slightly negative or dramatic tone. For example, a linguist might describe a 'glottal stop' in a language, but a novelist might describe a character's 'guttural growl'.

laryngealvocal ↗guttural

Common collocations

Nouns

  • glottal stop
  • glottal fry
  • glottal sound
  • glottal opening
  • glottal closure
  • glottal constriction

Etymology

GreekLatinEnglish

Borrowed from Modern Latin 'glottalis', from Greek 'glōttis' (the opening of the windpipe) + Latin '-alis' (suffix meaning relating to). 'Glōttis' itself comes from 'glōtta' (tongue). The word entered English in the mid-1800s alongside the development of modern phonetics.

First known use

1846

1846, in the meaning defined above