Close front compressed vowel
The close front compressed vowel is a type of vowel sound, used in some spoken languages. There is no diacritic in the IPA to indicate compression, but since the Swedish back vowel [u] and Norwegian central vowel [ʉ] are also labially compressed, <ʉ̟> is frequently chosen as an ad hoc transcription for Swedish. Another possibility would be to transcribe it as a close front vowel with an old alternate labialization diacritic, [i̫].
Features
- Its vowel height is near-close, which means the tongue is not quite so constricted as a close vowel.
- Its vowel backness is near-front, which means the tongue is positioned almost as far forward as a front vowel.
- Its vowel roundedness is compressed, which means the corners of the mouth are drawn slightly together and the lips may be compressed horizontally, but do not protrude.
Occurrence
As there is no official diacritic for compression in the IPA, the old diacritic for labialization, [ ̫], may be used here as an ad hoc symbol.
| Language | Word | IPA | Meaning | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Swedish | ut | 'out' | May be central in other dialects. See Swedish phonology | ||