Palatalization (phonetics)

In linguistics, palatalization (/ˌpælətəlaɪˈzeɪʃən/, also US /-ləˈzeɪʃ-/) or palatization refers to a way of pronouncing a consonant in which part of the tongue is moved close to the hard palate. A consonant pronounced this way is called a palatalized consonant. Palatalized consonants have palatal secondary articulation, or two places of articulation, one of which is palatal. They contrast with palatal consonants, which have palatal primary articulation.