alveolar
/ælˈviː.ə.lər/
adjective
- Relating to the alveoli, the tiny air sacs in the lungs where gas exchange occurs.
- Smoking can damage the alveolar tissue and make breathing difficult.
- The alveolar walls are very thin to allow oxygen to pass into the blood.
- The doctor explained how alveolar sacs expand and contract during breathing.
- Relating to the tooth sockets (alveoli) in the jawbone.
- After tooth loss, the alveolar ridge can shrink over time.
- Alveolar fractures sometimes occur during facial injuries.
- The dentist examined the alveolar bone around the patient's molars.
- In phonetics, pronounced with the tongue touching or near the bony ridge behind the upper front teeth (the alveolar ridge).
- Children often learn alveolar sounds like 'n' and 'l' early on.
- She practiced making the alveolar trill for her Spanish class.
- The English sounds /t/, /d/, /s/, and /z/ are alveolar consonants.
noun
- An alveolar consonant (a speech sound made with the tongue against the alveolar ridge).
- Some languages have more alveolars than English does.
- The teacher asked the class to list all the alveolars in the word 'stadium'.
- In English, 't' and 'd' are alveolars.