cardinal vowel

noun

a vowel sound produced when the tongue is in an extreme position, either front or back, high or low.

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Meanings

nouncardinal vowel (plural cardinal vowels)

plural cardinal vowels

  1. human sciencesa vowel sound produced when the tongue is in an extreme position, either front or back, high or low.

Origin

The term was coined by the British phoneticians Daniel Jones in the early 20th century.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Polish samogłoska kardynalna, samogłoska podstawowa
  • samogłoska kardynalnaany vowel sound produced in the front of the mouth
  • samogłoska podstawowaany vowel sound produced in the front of the mouth
Cite this entry
APA

cardinal vowel. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cardinal%20vowel

MLA

“cardinal vowel.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cardinal%20vowel. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “cardinal vowel,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cardinal%20vowel.

Source: cardinal vowel on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.