Retroflex is an English word with synonyms like backward or enunciate. Below you'll find 10+ example sentences showing how it's used in practice.
Retroflex in a sentence
Retroflex meaning
- Bent or curved backwards.
- Of pronunciation in which the tip of the tongue is raised and bent backwards, so that the underside of the tongue approaches or touches the palate.
- Of pronunciation in which the tip of the tongue approaches or touches the back of the alveolar ridge.
Synonyms of Retroflex
Using Retroflex
- The main meaning on this page is: Bent or curved backwards. | Of pronunciation in which the tip of the tongue is raised and bent backwards, so that the underside of the tongue approaches or touches the palate. | Of pronunciation in which the tip of the tongue approaches or touches the back of the alveolar ridge.
- Useful related words include: backward, enunciate, sound out, enounce.
- In the example corpus, retroflex often appears in combinations such as: the retroflex, retroflex and, retroflex approximant.
Context around Retroflex
- Average sentence length in these examples: 20.9 words
- Position in the sentence: 4 start, 6 middle, 4 end
- Sentence types: 14 statements, 0 questions, 0 exclamations
Corpus analysis for Retroflex
- In this selection, "retroflex" usually appears in the middle of the sentence. The average example has 20.9 words, and this corpus slice is mostly made up of statements.
- Around the word, alveolar, tamil, true, approximant, sounds and series stand out and add context to how "retroflex" is used.
- Recognizable usage signals include dental alveolar retroflex and palatal and a true retroflex. That gives this page its own corpus information beyond isolated example sentences.
- By corpus frequency, "retroflex" sits close to words such as aaaa, abductees and abdulahi, which helps place it inside the broader word index.
Example types with retroflex
The same corpus examples are grouped by length and sentence type, making it easier to see the contexts in which the word appears:
They typically include dental, alveolar, retroflex and palatal laterals, and as many as three rhotics. (15 words)
If there is ambiguity, additional terms have been invented, so subapical–palatal is more commonly called "retroflex". (17 words)
The combination of an aspirated voiceless alveolar plosive /tʰ/ and a voiced retroflex plosive /ɖ/ is particularly unusual. (18 words)
The approximant /ɻ/ has both rhotic and lateral qualities, and is indeterminate between an approximant and a fricative, but is laminal post-alveolar rather than a true retroflex. (28 words)
Notably, the Tamil retroflex series includes the retroflex approximant /ɻ/ ( ழ main) (example Tamil; often transcribed 'zh'), which is absent in the Indo-Aryan languages. (25 words)
Some ad hoc letters have appeared in the literature for the retroflex lateral flap, the voiceless lateral fricatives, the epiglottal trill, and the labiodental plosives. (25 words)
Example sentences (14)
Notably, the Tamil retroflex series includes the retroflex approximant /ɻ/ ( ழ main) (example Tamil; often transcribed 'zh'), which is absent in the Indo-Aryan languages.
Dublin's retroflex approximant has no precedent outside of northern Ireland and is a genuine innovation of the past two decades.
However, words which historically contain these two phonemes are still often written with the graphemes representing the retroflex sounds.
If there is ambiguity, additional terms have been invented, so subapical–palatal is more commonly called "retroflex".
In most languages, the retroflex and palatal releases are "abrupt"; that is, they are sharp popping sounds with little frication (turbulent airflow).
It is often transliterated as 'th' to distinguish it from another letter, ட, which is a retroflex 't' or 'd'.
Some ad hoc letters have appeared in the literature for the retroflex lateral flap, the voiceless lateral fricatives, the epiglottal trill, and the labiodental plosives.
Some Indigenous Australian languages contrast dental, alveolar, retroflex, and palatal laterals, and many Native American languages have lateral fricatives and affricates as well.
The approximant /ɻ/ has both rhotic and lateral qualities, and is indeterminate between an approximant and a fricative, but is laminal post-alveolar rather than a true retroflex.
The combination of an aspirated voiceless alveolar plosive /tʰ/ and a voiced retroflex plosive /ɖ/ is particularly unusual.
These caused the original introduction of the retroflex sounds /ʂ/ and /ʈ/ (modern s, tr) into the language.
The similarity of apicoalveolar /s̺/ to the Vietnamese retroflex /ʂ/ led to the assignment of s and x as above.
They typically include dental, alveolar, retroflex and palatal laterals, and as many as three rhotics.
While the retroflex stops are mapped to 't, T, d, D, N', the dentals are mapped to 'w, W, x, X, n'.
Common combinations with retroflex
These word pairs occur most frequently in English texts: