Stop consonant

In phonetics, a stop is a consonant sound produced by stopping the airflow in the vocal tract, but not necessarily in the nasal tract. It may refer to one or more of the following, depending on the author:

• Plosives, also known as occlusives, are stops where the occlusion of the vocal tract stops all airflow.

Examples in English are (voiced) /b/, /d/, /ɡ/ and (voiceless) /p/, /t/, /k/.

• Nasal stops, or simply nasals, are stops where the occlusion in the vocal tract shifts the airflow to the nasal tract.

Examples in English are /m/, /n/, and /ŋ/.

• Affricates such as English /tʃ/, /dʒ/. Typically stops (= plosives) and affricates are contrasted, but affricates can also be described as stops with fricative release, contrasting with simple stops (= plosives). Plosives and affricates may be included in a row of a sound chart labeled 'stops'.
• Implosives (no examples in English)
• Ejectives (no examples in English)
• Click consonants, such as the exclamation tsk! tsk! made when expressing pity, include stops and affricates.

If specific terms are used for the above, a stop may then mean a glottal stop. Oral stop may mean any of the above apart from nasal stops, but typically means plosive. Clicks may be simple occlusives, including nasals, affricates, or ejective.