phonotactics

[ foh-nuh-tak-tiks ]
/ ˌfoʊ nəˈtæk tɪks /

noun (used with a singular verb)Linguistics.

the patterns in which the phonemes of a language may combine to form sequences.
the study and description of such patterns.

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a cylindrical wooden container with slightly bulging sides.
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Origin of phonotactics

First recorded in 1955–60; see origin at phonotactic, -ics

Words nearby phonotactics

phonoreception, phonoreceptor, phonorenogram, phonoscope, phonotactic, phonotactics, phonotype, phonotypy, phony, phony-baloney, phony disease
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

British Dictionary definitions for phonotactics

phonotactics
/ (ˈfəʊnəʊˌtæktɪks) /

noun

(functioning as singular) linguistics the study of the possible arrangement of the sounds of a language in the words of that language

Word Origin for phonotactics

C20: from phono- + -tactics, on the model of syntactic; see syntax
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012