Hypertext Webster Gateway: "fricative"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Fricative \Fric"a*tive\, a. [See {Frication}.] (Phon.)
Produced by the friction or rustling of the breath, intonated
or unintonated, through a narrow opening between two of the
mouth organs; uttered through a close approach, but not with
a complete closure, of the organs of articulation, and hence
capable of being continued or prolonged; -- said of certain
consonantal sounds, as f, v, s, z, etc. -- n. A fricative
consonant letter or sound. See Guide to Pronunciation,
[sect][sect] 197-206, etc.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
fricative
adj : produced by forcing air through a constricted passage (as
`f'. `s', `z', or `th' (in both `thin' and `then'))
[syn: {sibilant}, {spirant}]
n : a continuant consonant produced by breath moving against a
narrowing of the vocal tract [syn: {fricative consonant},
{spirant}]
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