Vocálico

Vocálico is a Spanish adjective that translates to "vocalic" in English. It is primarily used in phonetics and linguistics to describe sounds or features related to vowels. When applied to a sound, "vocálico" indicates that the sound is a vowel. Vowels are speech sounds produced with an open vocal tract, allowing air to flow freely through the mouth. In contrast, consonants are produced with some obstruction of the airflow.

The term "vocálico" can also refer to the quality of a sound, such as whether it is a vowel or a consonant. For instance, a phonetic transcription might note a "sonido vocálico" (vocalic sound) or a "sonido consonántico" (consonantic sound). In some contexts, it might also describe characteristics of vowel sounds themselves, such as their height, backness, or rounding, although more specific terminology is usually employed for these features.

Beyond its direct phonetic applications, "vocálico" can be used metaphorically or in more specialized linguistic analyses. For example, it might describe a linguistic phenomenon that predominantly involves vowels or the vowel system of a language. The adjective serves as a concise way to categorize and discuss elements pertaining to the vowel component of speech or language.