Bidental consonant

Bidental consonants, pronounced with both the lower and upper teeth, are normally found only in speech pathology. The Extensions to the IPA symbol is both a superscript and a subscript bridge, IPA| [ ̪͆] .

Besides interdental consonants such as IPA| [n̪͆] , which involve the tongue, there is at least one confirmed attestation of a true bidental consonant in normal language. The Black Sea sub-dialect of the Shapsug dialect of Adyghe has a bidental non-sibilant fricative where other dialects have [x] , such as "xə" "six" and "daxə" "pretty". Therefore it might best be transcribed phonemically as IPA|/x̪͆/. However, there is no frication at the velum. The teeth themselves are the only constriction: "The lips [are] fully open, the teeth clenched and the tongue flat, the air passing between the teeth; the sound is intermediate between IPA|ʃ and IPA|f" (L&M 1996:144-145). This can be transcribed phonetically as IPA| [h̪͆] , since [h] has no place of articulation of its own.

References

*SOWL