Affricative

Pronunciation: /əˈfrɪkətɪv/

Definitions of affricative

noun a speech sound that begins like a stop (for example, [t]) but releases like a fricative (for example, [s])

Example Sentences

A1 An affricative is a type of consonant sound.

A2 In English, the 'ch' sound in 'chair' is an example of an affricative.

B1 Learners at this level should be able to distinguish affricatives from other consonant sounds.

B2 The affricative 'ts' is commonly found in the Russian language.

C1 Phonologists study the articulation of affricatives in various languages.

C2 Native speakers can easily produce affricatives without much effort.

Examples of affricative in a Sentence

formal The phoneme /dʒ/ is an affricative sound in English.

informal I find it difficult to pronounce affricative sounds correctly.

slang Some people struggle with affricatives, but with practice, you can improve.

figurative Her words had a sharp affricative tone, cutting through the silence.

Grammatical Forms of affricative

• past tense: affricated
• plural: affricatives
• comparative: more affricative
• superlative: most affricative
• present tense: affricates
• future tense: will affricate
• perfect tense: have affricated
• continuous tense: is affricating
• singular: affricative
• positive degree: affricative
• infinitive: to affricate
• gerund: affricating
• participle: affricated

Origin and Evolution of affricative

First Known Use: 1601 year

Language of Origin: Latin

Story behind the word: The word 'affricative' originated from the Latin word 'affricare' meaning 'to rub against'.

Evolution of the word: Originally used in linguistics to describe a type of speech sound that begins as a stop consonant and releases as a fricative, the term 'affricative' has evolved to also refer to a specific type of consonant sound in phonetics.