allophone
/ˈæləˌfoʊn/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: 1.43 in modern English
14
Scrabble Score
9
Letters
3
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
Any of two or more alternative pronunciations for a phoneme.
noun
A person whose mother tongue is one other than that spoken by the majority.
adj
Of or relating to those whose mother tongue is neither English, French, nor (sometimes) an indigenous language of Canada.
Canadian usage
adj
That which is of a language other than that spoken by the majority.
Example Sentences
- "In some languages, [ʋ] is an allophone of /v/."
- "In the former the bilabial phone forms an allophone of the phoneme /v/ in word-final position after /a/ and an allophone of the phoneme /u/ when it is preceded by an obstruent and followed by /a/; […]"
- "However, “the languages used by STM staff during customer interactions are French and English,” the transit authority said. “Indeed, during phone calls or emails, STM employees speak English with anglophone or allophone customers who do not speak French.”"
- "In every case the allophone population is vastly larger than the proportion of francophones, which ranges from 4.2 percent […] from other parts of Canada more than international immigration from abroad: despite a growing allophone presence, […]"
- "As immigration increases from different parts of the world, the linguistic makeup of Canada changes. In 2006, the allophone population—individuals whose mother tongue is neither English nor French—totalled 6.3 million, […]"
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-der. Proto-Indo-European *h₂élyos Proto-Hellenic *ál͏̌l͏̌os Ancient Greek ᾰ̓́λλος (ắllos)der. English allo- Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂-der. Proto-Hellenic *pʰōnā́ Ancient Greek φωνή (phōnḗ)der. English -phone English allophone From allo- (“different”) + -phone.
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈæləˌfoʊn/
- British English: /ˈaləˌfəʊn/