fortis

IPA/ˈfɔːtɪs/
KK[fˈɔrtɪs]IPA/ˈfɔːrtɪs/

fortis — adjective

  • fortispositive
  • more fortiscomparative
  • most fortissuperlative

1. describes a consonant sound that is produced with greater breath force and tight

1.形容詞C2
釋義

describes a consonant sound that is produced with greater breath force and tighter muscles in the mouth and throat — for example, /p/, /t/, and /k/ are fortis sounds because they push air out more strongly than their opposite sounds /b/, /d/, and /g/.

例句

The /s/ in 'sip' is a fortis sound, while the /z/ in 'zip' is lenis.

fortis/lenis contrast with word pairs

Nala held a tissue near her lips to see the fortis /p/.

concrete demonstration of breath force

同義詞
  • voiceless

    Fortis and voiceless often overlap because fortis sounds are usually voiceless, but 'fortis' specifically adds the idea of greater muscular force, not just the absence of vocal fold vibration.

反義詞
  • lenis

    The direct opposite; lenis describes a sound made with less breath force and muscle tension.

文法句型

fortis + noun

fortis/lenis distinction

用法筆記

Fortis is almost always used in contrast with 'lenis' (its opposite). The term belongs to phonetics and is rarely encountered outside academic linguistics or language-teaching contexts. It is a classifying adjective and does not normally appear in comparative or superlative forms.

常見錯誤

❌Speak with a more fortis voice.
✅The /p/ in 'pin' is a fortis stop.
💡Fortis describes specific speech sounds, not a general way of speaking.
❌This is the fortis version of the sound.
✅This is a fortis sound.
💡Fortis is a classifying adjective; it does not take degree comparisons.