View source for Slack voice

{{Short description|Type of pronunciation}}
{{One source|date=August 2008}}

'''Slack voice''' (or '''lax voice''') is the pronunciation of [[consonant]] or [[vowel]]s with a [[glottal opening]] slightly wider than that occurring in [[modal voice]]. Such sounds are often referred to informally as [[lenis]] or half-[[voice (phonetics)|voice]]d in the case of consonants. In some [[varieties of Chinese|Chinese varieties]], such as [[Wu Chinese|Wu]], and in a few [[Austronesian language]]s, the 'intermediate' [[phonation]] of slack [[stop consonant|stop]]s confuses listeners of languages without these distinctions, so that different transcription systems may use {{angbr|p}} or {{angbr|b}} for the same consonant. In [[Xhosa language|Xhosa]], slack-voiced consonants have usually been transcribed as [[breathy voice]]. Although the IPA has no dedicated diacritic for slack voice, the [[voiceless]] diacritic (the under-ring) may be used with a voiced consonant letter, though this convention is also used for partially voiced consonants in languages such as English.<ref name="SOWL96">{{SOWL|63–6}}</ref>

[[Wu Chinese]] "muddy" consonants are slack voice word-initially, the primary effect of which is a slightly breathy quality of the following vowel.<ref name="SOWL96"/>

{| class=wikitable style="text-align:center"
! rowspan=2| || colspan=3|Bilabial || colspan=3|Alveolar || colspan=3|Velar
|-
! IPA|| Wu || gloss || IPA|| Wu || gloss || IPA|| Wu || gloss
|-
! slack voice
| {{IPA|[b̥ʌ̀ʔ]}} || {{lang|wuu|白}} || {{gloss|white}}
| {{IPA|[d̥ǐ]}} || {{lang|wuu|地}} || {{gloss|earth}}
| {{IPA|[ɡ̊ə̀ʔ]}} || {{lang|wuu|個}} || {{gloss|mode=def|possessive particle}}
|-
! [[tenuis consonant|tenuis]]
| {{IPA|[pʌ́ʔ]}} || {{lang|wuu|百}} || {{gloss|hundred}}
| {{IPA|[tíʔ]}} || {{lang|wuu|的}} || {{gloss|mode=def|a grammatical particle}}
| {{IPA|[kóʔ]}} || {{lang|wuu|角}} || {{gloss|corner}}
|-
! [[Aspiration (phonetics)|aspirated]]
| {{IPA|[pʰʌ́ʔ]}} || {{lang|wuu|拍}} || {{gloss|to strike}}
| {{IPA|[tʰî]}} || {{lang|wuu|天}} || {{gloss|sky}}
| {{IPA|[kʰʌ́ʔ]}} || {{lang|wuu|客}} || {{gloss|guest}}
|}

[[Javanese language|Javanese]] contrasts slack and [[stiff voice]]d bilabial, dental, retroflex, and velar stops.<ref name="SOWL96"/>

{| class=wikitable
! !! colspan=2|Bilabial !!colspan=2|Dental Stop !!colspan=2|Dental Affricate !!colspan=2|Retroflex !!colspan=2|Velar
|-
! phonation || IPA || gloss || IPA || gloss || IPA || gloss || IPA || gloss || IPA || gloss
|-
!stiff voice
| {{IPA|[paku]}} || {{gloss|nail}}
| {{IPA|[tamu]}} || {{gloss|guest}}
| {{IPA|[tsariʔ]}} || {{gloss|sheet (of paper)}}
| {{IPA|[ʈiʈiʔ]}} || {{gloss|little}}
| {{IPA|[kali]}} || {{gloss|river}}
|-
!slack voice
| {{IPA|[b̥aku]}} || {{gloss|standard}}
| {{IPA|[d̥amu]}} || {{gloss|blow}}
| {{IPA|[d̥z̥arit]}} || {{gloss|mode=def|type of women's clothing}}
| {{IPA|[ɖ̥isiʔ]}} || {{gloss|first}}
| {{IPA|[ɡ̊ali]}} || {{gloss|dig}}
|}


[[Parauk language|Parauk]] contrasts slack voicing in its vowels. The contrast is between "slightly stiff" and "slightly breathy" vowels; the first are between modal and stiff voice, while the latter are captured by slack voice.<ref name="SOWL96"/>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{phonation}}

[[Category:Phonation]]