pronounced as /notice/Coronals, denominated point-and-blade consonants prior, are consonants articulated with the flexible front part of the tongue. Among places of articulation, only the coronal consonants can be divided into as many articulation types: apical (using the tip of the tongue), laminal (using the blade of the tongue), domed (with the tongue bunched up), or subapical (using the underside of the tongue) as well as different postalveolar articulations (some of which also involve the back of the tongue as an articulator): palato-alveolar, alveolo-palatal and retroflex. Only the front of the tongue (coronal) has such dexterity among the major places of articulation, allowing such variety of distinctions. Coronals have another dimension, grooved, to make sibilants in combination with the orientations above.
Coronal places of articulation include the dental consonants at the upper teeth, the alveolar consonants at the upper gum (the alveolar ridge), the various postalveolar consonants (including domed palato-alveolar, laminal alveolo-palatal, and apical retroflex) just behind that, the subapical retroflex consonants curled back against the hard palate, and linguolabial consonants with the tongue against the upper lip. Alveolo-palatal and linguolabial consonants sometimes behave as dorsal and labial consonants, respectively, rather than as coronals.
| place of articulation | passive (mouth) | (IPA|s̪) | dental |
|---|---|---|---|
| (IPA|s̟) | advanced (denti-alveolar) | ||
| (IPA|s͇) | alveolar | ||
| (IPA|s̠) | retracted (postalveolar) | ||
| active (tongue) | (IPA|s̺) | apical | |
| (IPA|s̻) | laminal | ||
| (IPA|ʂ) | retroflex | ||
| secondary | (IPA|sʲ) | palatalized coronal | |
| (IPA|ɕ) | alveolo-palatal | ||
| (IPA|ʃ) | palato-alveolar | ||
| (IPA|sʷ) | labialized coronal | ||
| (IPA|sˠ) | velarized coronal | ||
| (IPA|sˤ) | pharyngealized coronal | ||
| voice-onset time | (IPA|sʰ) | aspirated coronal | |
| (IPA|) | --> | ||
In Arabic and Maltese philology, the sun letters represent coronal consonants.
| (IPA|z) | Voiced alveolar sibilant | English | zoo | pronounced as //zuː// |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (IPA|s) | Voiceless alveolar sibilant | sea | pronounced as //siː// | |
| (IPA|ð) | Voiced dental fricative | that | pronounced as //ðæt// | |
| (IPA|θ) | Voiceless dental fricative | thud | pronounced as //θʌd// | |
| (IPA|ʒ) | Voiced palato-alveolar fricative | vision | pronounced as //ˈvɪʒən// | |
| (IPA|ʃ) | Voiceless palato-alveolar fricative | she | pronounced as //ʃiː// | |
| (IPA|n) | Alveolar nasal | name | pronounced as //neɪm// | |
| (IPA|d) | Voiced alveolar plosive | day | pronounced as //deɪ// | |
| (IPA|t) | Voiceless alveolar plosive | tea | pronounced as //tiː// | |
| (IPA|ɹ) | Alveolar approximant | reef | pronounced as //ɹiːf// | |
| (IPA|l) | Alveolar lateral approximant | lift | pronounced as //lɪft// | |
| (IPA|r) | Alveolar trill | Spanish | perro | pronounced as //ˈpero// |
| (IPA|ɾ) | Alveolar flap | pero | pronounced as //ˈpeɾo// |
In Australian Aboriginal languages, coronals contrast with peripheral consonants.
| Laminal | Apical | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alveopalatal | Dental | Alveolar | Retroflex | ||
| Stop | pronounced as /c ~ t̠ʲ/ | pronounced as /t̪/ | pronounced as /t/ | pronounced as /ʈ/ | |
| Nasal | pronounced as /ɲ ~ n̠ʲ/ | pronounced as /n̪/ | pronounced as /n/ | pronounced as /ɳ/ | |
| Lateral | pronounced as /ʎ ~ l̠ʲ/ | pronounced as /l̪/ | pronounced as /l/ | pronounced as /ɭ/ | |
pronounced as /navigation/