articulates

Articulates is the third-person singular present tense of the verb articulate and, in specialized historical or technical contexts, can appear as a noun. In everyday use, to articulate means to express an idea clearly, to utter speech sounds distinctly, or to join components in a mechanism or structure.

In linguistics and speech science, articulate refers to the production of sounds through the coordinated movement of the lips, tongue, teeth, palate, and other articulators. A speaker who articulates well makes speech segments clear and intelligible. The study of how sounds are formed is called articulation or phonetics.

In anatomy and biomechanics, to articulate describes the functioning of joints where bones or other elements meet and move. Articulations are the points of connection that allow motion, such as where the femur articulates with the pelvis at the hip joint. The verb is commonly used in passive constructions, as in “the bones articulate at the knee.”

Historically, Articulata was a taxonomic grouping used in the 18th and 19th centuries to describe animals with articulated limbs, notably arthropods and some annelids. The term has fallen from regular scientific use as classifications were refined, with modern phyla such as Arthropoda and Annelida taking precedence.

Etymology and usage: articulate derives from Latin articulatus, the past participle of articulare, meaning “to join by joints, to express distinctly.” In common language, articulation most often refers to clear speech or to the act of joining parts, while technical senses pertain to anatomy, zoology, and mechanical design.