pharyngeal fricative

phonetics

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July 17, 2026

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A pharyngeal fricative is a consonant sound produced by partially obstructing the passage of air in the pharynx, creating audible friction. This is achieved by retracting the root of the tongue towards the back wall of the pharynx. While not common in English, this sound is found in languages like Arabic, where it is known as an emphatic consonant. The production involves the vocal tract and the respiratory system, with the airstream passing through the pharynx and mouth. Fricatives, in general, are consonant sounds made with a narrow constriction that causes turbulence in the airflow.123

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Afro-Asiatic languages
Phonetics and phonology
…this inventory is called the pharyngeal fricatives and is exemplified in Egyptian, Cushitic, Amazigh, and Semitic by ħ and ʿ (“ayn”). A second commonly used group of consonants is an emphatic set, similar to the pharyngeal fricatives but with phonetically quite different articulations; characteristically, emphatics are formed deeper down in…
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…this inventory is called the pharyngeal fricatives and is exemplified in Egyptian, Cushitic, Amazigh, and Semitic by ħ and ʿ (“ayn”). A second commonly used group of consonants is an emphatic set, similar to the pharyngeal fricatives but with phonetically quite different articulations; characteristically, emphatics are formed deeper down in…
Read More