palatalize

pal·a·tal·ize
P3A1L1A1T1A1L1I1Z10E1
/ˈpælətəlaɪz/

verb

To pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate of the mouth when that sound normally would not be so pronounced.

“Most English speakers palatalize the letter t in the word "nature".”

Similar
palatizepalatalise
OriginEnglish palatal ← Proto-Indo-European *h₂élisder.? ← Middle English palate →
Scrabble 21
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

verbpalatalize (third-person singular simple present palatalizes, present participle palatalizing, simple past and past participle palatalized)

present singular third person palatalizes · participle present palatalizing · participle past palatalized · past palatalized · alternative palatalise

  1. transitivehuman sciencesTo pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate of the mouth when that sound normally would not be so pronounced.

    Most English speakers palatalize the letter t in the word "nature".

    Synonyms: palatize

  2. intransitivehuman sciencesTo be pronounced with the tongue against the palate.

Synonyms & antonyms

verbTo pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate of the mouth when that sound normally would not be so pronounced.

Similar
palatize

More synonyms by meaning

verbpronounce a consonant with the tongue against the palate

Similar
palatalise
Broader
pronouncearticulateenounce
Also see
palatize

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*pleth₂-?
  2. Proto-Indo-European*pel-?
  3. Proto-Indo-European*pleh₂-os
  4. Latinpalātum
  5. Old Frenchpalat
  6. Middle Englishpalate
  7. Englishpalate
  8. Proto-Indo-European*h₂el-
  9. Proto-Indo-European*h₂élisder.?
  10. Englishpalatal
  11. Englishpalatalize

From palatal + -ize.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Catalan palatalitzar
  • palatalitzarto pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate
Finnish palatalisoida
  • palatalisoidato pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate
French palataliser
  • palataliserto pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate
German palatalisieren
  • palatalisierento pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate
Italian palatalizzare
  • palatalizzareto pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate
Polish palatalizować
  • palatalizowaćto pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate
Portuguese palatalizar
  • palatalizarto pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate
Romanian palataliza
  • palatalizato pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate
Russian палатализова́ть, палатализи́ровать
  • палатализова́ть (palatalizovátʹ)to pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate
  • палатализи́ровать (palatalizírovatʹ)to pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate
  • смягчать (smjagčát')to pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate
  • смягчить (smjagčít')to pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate
Spanish palatalizar
  • palatalizarto pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate
Swedish palatalisera
  • palataliserato pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate
Ukrainian палаталізува́ти, м'якши́ти
  • палаталізува́ти (palatalizuváty)to pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate
  • м'якши́ти (mʺjakšýty)to pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate
  • пом'я́кшувати (pomʺjákšuvaty)to pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate
  • пом'якши́ти (pomʺjakšýty)to pronounce a sound with the tongue against the palate

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with palatalize

sizesuppliesexerciseguysriseprizeliessurprisewisetiesariseadvisediesbuyscompromisefliesauthorizerevisecomprisefriesexcisepiesdyesdemise
All rhymes →
Cite this entry
APA

palatalize. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/palatalize

MLA

“palatalize.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/palatalize. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “palatalize,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/palatalize.

Source: palatalize on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.