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Mid vowel

{{Short description|Class of vowel sounds including [ə]}}

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A mid vowel (or a true-mid vowel) is any in a class of vowel sounds used in some spoken languages. The defining characteristic of a mid vowel is that the tongue is positioned approximately midway between an open vowel and a close vowel.

Other names for a mid vowel are lowered close-mid vowel and raised open-mid vowel, though the former phrase may also be used to describe a vowel that is as low as open-mid; likewise, the latter phrase may also be used to describe a vowel that is as high as close-mid.

Vowels

The only mid vowel with a dedicated symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet is the mid central vowel with ambiguous rounding {{IPA|[ə]}}.

The IPA divides the vowel space into thirds, with the close-mid vowels such as {{IPA|[e]}} or {{IPA|[o]}} and the open-mid vowels such as {{IPA|[ɛ]}} or {{IPA|[ɔ]}} equidistant in formant space between open {{IPA|[a]}} or {{IPA|[ɒ]}} and close {{IPA|[i]}} or {{IPA|[u]}}. Thus a true mid front unrounded vowel can be transcribed as either a lowered {{angbr IPA|e̞}} (with a lowering diacritic) or as a raised {{angbr IPA|ɛ̝}} (with a raising diacritic).{{cite book|first=Ratree|last=Wayland|title=Phonetics: A Practical Introduction|location=Cambridge|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2018|isbn=978-1-10841-834-8|page=26}}{{cite book|first=Henry|last=Rogers|title=The Sounds of Language: An Introduction to Phonetics|location=Harrow|publisher=Longman|year=2000|isbn=978-1-31787-775-2|page=9}} Typical truly mid vowels are thus:

Languages

Few languages contrast all three heights of mid vowel, because it is rare for a language to distinguish more than four heights of true front or back vowels.

The Kensiu language spoken in Malaysia and Thailand is highly unusual in that it phonemically contrasts true-mid vowels with close-mid and open-mid vowels without differences in other parameters such as backness or roundedness.

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class="wikitable"

|+ Kensiu oral vowels

! scope="col" |

! scope="col" | Front

! scope="col" | Central

! scope="col" | Back

scope="row" | Close

| {{IPA|i}}

| {{IPA|ɯ}}

| {{IPA|u}}

scope="row" | Near-close

| {{IPA|ɪ}}

|

|

scope="row" | Close-mid

| {{IPA|e̝}}

| {{IPA|ɚ}}

| {{IPA|o̝}}

scope="row" | Mid

| {{IPA|e}}

| {{IPA|ə}}

| {{IPA|o}}

scope="row" | Open-mid

| {{IPA|ɛ}}

| {{IPA|ʌ}}

| {{IPA|ɔ}}

scope="row" | Open

|

| {{IPA|a}}

|

scope="row" | Diphthongs

| {{Not a typo|ie}}

|

|

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class="wikitable"

|+ Kensiu nasal vowels

! scope="col" |

! scope="col" | Front

! scope="col" | Central

! scope="col" | Back

scope="row" | Close

| {{IPA|ĩ}}

| {{IPA|ɯ̃}}

| {{IPA|ũ}}

scope="row" | Near-close

| {{IPA|ɪ̃}}

|

|

scope="row" | Close-mid

| {{IPA|ẽ̝}}

|

| {{IPA|õ̝}}

scope="row" | Mid

| {{IPA|ẽ}}

|

| {{IPA|õ}}

scope="row" | Open-mid

| {{IPA|ɛ̃}}

| {{IPA|ʌ̃}}

| {{IPA|ɔ̃}}

scope="row" | Open

|

| {{IPA|ã}}

|

scope="row" | Diphthongs

| {{IPA|ĩẽ}}

|

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References

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Category:Vowels by height