phonetic
[ fuh-net-ik ]
/ fəˈnɛt ɪk /
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adjective
Also pho·net·i·cal [fuh-net-i-kuhl]. /fəˈnɛt ɪ kəl/. of or relating to speech sounds, their production, or their transcription in written symbols.
corresponding to pronunciation: phonetic transcription.
agreeing with pronunciation: phonetic spelling.
concerning or involving the discrimination of nondistinctive elements of a language. In English, certain phonological features, as length and aspiration, are phonetic but not phonemic.
noun
(in Chinese writing) a written element that represents a sound and is used in combination with a radical to form a character.
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Origin of phonetic
First recorded in1820–30; from New Latin phōnēticus, from Greek phōnētikós “vocal,” equivalent to phōnēt(ós) “to be spoken” (verbid of phōneîn “to speak”) + -ikos adjective suffix; see -ic
OTHER WORDS FROM phonetic
WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH phonetic
fanatic, phoneticDictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022
How to use phonetic in a sentence
In some essays the writer makes extensive use of phonetical spelling.
A Collection of Essays and Fugitiv Writings|Noah Webster
British Dictionary definitions for phonetic
phonetic
/ (fəˈnɛtɪk) /
adjective
of or relating to phonetics
denoting any perceptible distinction between one speech sound and another, irrespective of whether the sounds are phonemes or allophonesCompare phonemic (def. 2)
conforming to pronunciationphonetic spelling
Derived forms of phonetic
phonetically, adverbWord Origin for phonetic
C19: from New Latin phōnēticus, from Greek phōnētikos, from phōnein to make sounds, speak
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Medical definitions for phonetic
phonetic
[ fə-nĕt′ĭk ]
adj.
Of or relating to phonetics.
Representing the sounds of speech with a set of distinct symbols, each designating a single sound.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.