Standard Lemma guide

palatal

adj · noun · 8 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈpælətl̩/
  • Received-Pronunciation: /pəˈleɪtl̩/
  • General-American: păl′ə-tl
  • General-American: /ˈpælətl̩/
  • rhymes with -ælətəl
  • rhymes with -eɪtəl
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Pertaining to the palate.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: anatomy, medicine, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adj

Meaning 2

Of an upper tooth, on the side facing the palate.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

Topics: dentistry, medicine, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

adj

Meaning 3

Articulated at the hard palate.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: human-sciences, linguistics, phonetics, phonology, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

adj

Meaning 4

Articulated at the palate: dorsal.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncommon

Topics: human-sciences, linguistics, phonetics, phonology, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

A palatal consonant.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: human-sciences, linguistics, phonetics, phonology, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

adjective

Meaning 6

relating to or lying near the palate

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • palatal index
  • the palatine tonsils

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: palatine

Antonyms: none provided

7

adjective satellite

Meaning 7

produced with the front of the tongue near or touching the hard palate (as `y') or with the blade of the tongue near the hard palate (as `ch' in `chin' or `j' in `gin')

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: palatalized, palatalised

Antonyms: none provided

8

noun

Meaning 8

a semivowel produced with the tongue near the palate (like the initial sound in the English word `yeast')

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: semivowel, glide

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *pleth2-? Proto-Indo-European *pel-? Proto-Indo-European *pleh2-osder. Latin palātumder. Old French palatbor. Middle English palate English palate English -al English palatal From palate + -al.

Across languages

Translations

79 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Armenian: քիմքի (kʻimkʻi) — pertaining to the palate
  • Armenian: քմային (kʻmayin) — pertaining to the palate
  • Bulgarian: на небцето (na nebceto) — pertaining to the palate
  • Catalan: palatal — pertaining to the palate
  • Chinese Mandarin: 硬齶的 /硬腭的 (yìng'è de) — pertaining to the palate
  • Finnish: maku- — pertaining to the palate
  • French: palatal — pertaining to the palate
  • German: palatal — pertaining to the palate
  • Indonesian: palatal — pertaining to the palate
  • Malay: lelangit — pertaining to the palate
  • Malay: palatal — pertaining to the palate
  • Manx: cleaoil — pertaining to the palate
  • Polish: podniebienny — pertaining to the palate
  • Portuguese: palatal — pertaining to the palate
  • Portuguese: palatino — pertaining to the palate
  • Russian: нёбный (njóbnyj) — pertaining to the palate
  • Spanish: palatal — pertaining to the palate
  • Spanish: paladial — pertaining to the palate
  • Swedish: gom- — pertaining to the palate
  • Turkish: damaksıl — pertaining to the palate
  • Ukrainian: піднебі́нний (pidnebínnyj) — pertaining to the palate
  • Welsh: taflodol — pertaining to the palate
  • Finnish: palataalinen — (dentistry) on the side facing the palate
  • French: palatal — (dentistry) on the side facing the palate
  • Malay: lelangit — (dentistry) on the side facing the palate
  • Malay: palatal — (dentistry) on the side facing the palate
  • Turkish: damaksıl — (dentistry) on the side facing the palate
  • Albanian: qiellzor — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Arabic: غَارِيّ (ḡāriyy) — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Armenian: քմային (kʻmayin) — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Burmese: တာလုဇ (talu.ja.) — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Catalan: palatal — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Chinese Mandarin: 硬齶 /硬腭 (yìng'è) — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Danish: palatal — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Finnish: palataalinen — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • French: palatal — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • German: palatal — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Greek: ουρανικός (ouranikós) — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Icelandic: framgómmæltur — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Irish: carballach — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Irish: pailitiúil — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Malay: lelangit — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Malay: palatal — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Manx: cleaoil — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Mongolian: тагнайн (tagnajn) — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Mongolian: ᠲᠠᠩᠨᠠᠶ ᠵᠢᠨ (tangnay-ǰin) — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Norwegian Bokmål: palatal — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: palatal — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Polish: palatalny — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Polish: podniebienny — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Polish: twardopodniebienny — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Portuguese: palatal — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Russian: палата́льный (palatálʹnyj) — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Scottish Gaelic: palatach — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Spanish: palatal — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Swedish: palatal — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Tagalog: pangalangala — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Turkish: damaksıl — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Ukrainian: палата́льний (palatálʹnyj) — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Ukrainian: піднебі́нний (pidnebínnyj) — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Welsh: taflodol — (phonetics) articulated at the hard palate
  • Albanian: qiellzore — (phonetics) palatal consonant
  • Armenian: քմային հնչյուն (kʻmayin hnčʻyun) — (phonetics) palatal consonant
  • Catalan: palatal — (phonetics) palatal consonant
  • Chinese Mandarin: 硬齶輔音 /硬腭辅音 (yìng'è fǔyīn) — (phonetics) palatal consonant
  • Danish: palatallyd — (phonetics) palatal consonant
  • Finnish: palataali — (phonetics) palatal consonant
  • Finnish: lakiäänne — (phonetics) palatal consonant
  • German: Vordergaumenlaut — (phonetics) palatal consonant
  • German: Palatal — (phonetics) palatal consonant
  • Malayalam: താലവ്യം (tālavyaṁ) — (phonetics) palatal consonant
  • Mongolian: тагнайн гийгүүлэгч (tagnajn giigüülegč) — (phonetics) palatal consonant
  • Mongolian: ᠲᠠᠩᠨᠠᠢ ᠵᠢᠨ ᠭᠡᠢᠢᠭᠦᠯᠦᠭᠴᠢ (tangnai-ǰin ɣeiigülügči) — (phonetics) palatal consonant
  • Russian: палатальный звук (palatalʹnyj zvuk) — (phonetics) palatal consonant
  • Slovene: trdonebnik — (phonetics) palatal consonant
  • Spanish: palatal — (phonetics) palatal consonant
  • Swedish: palatal — (phonetics) palatal consonant
  • Thai: เสียงเพดานแข็ง — (phonetics) palatal consonant
  • Turkish: damaksıl ünsüz — (phonetics) palatal consonant
Real reading context

palatal in complete knowledge articles