delabialize

[ dee-ley-bee-uh-lahyz ]

verb (used with object)

, de·la·bi·al·ized, de·la·bi·al·iz·ing.

1. to deprive (a sound) of labial character, as in unrounding a vowel.

verb (used without object)

, de·la·bi·al·ized, de·la·bi·al·iz·ing.

1. (of a speech sound) to lose its labial character.

Word History and Origins

Origin of delabialize¹

First recorded in 1870–75; de- + labialize