Editing Lateral consonant (section)

{{Short description|Type of consonant}}
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A '''lateral''' is a [[consonant]] in which the [[airstream mechanism|airstream]] proceeds along one or both of the sides of the tongue, but it is blocked by the tongue from going through the middle of the mouth. An example of a lateral consonant is the [[English language|English]] ''L'', as in ''Larry''. Lateral consonants contrast with [[central consonant]]s, in which the airstream flows through the center of the mouth.

For the most common laterals, the tip of the tongue makes contact with the upper teeth (see [[dental consonant]]) or the upper gum (see [[alveolar consonant]]), but there are many other possible places for laterals to be made. The most common laterals are [[approximant]]s and belong to the class of [[liquid consonant|liquids]], but lateral [[fricative consonant|fricatives]] and [[affricate consonant|affricates]] are also common in some parts of the world. Some languages, such as the [[Iwaidja language|Iwaidja]] and [[Ilgar language|Ilgar]] languages of [[Australia]], have  [[lateral flap]]s, and others, such as the [[Xhosa language|Xhosa]] and [[Zulu language|Zulu]] languages of [[Africa]], have [[lateral click]]s.

When pronouncing the [[labiodental consonant|labiodental]] fricatives {{IPA|[f] and [v]}}, the lip blocks the airflow in the centre of the vocal tract, so the airstream proceeds along the sides instead. Nevertheless, they are not considered lateral consonants because the airflow never goes over the side of the tongue. No known language makes a distinction between lateral and non-lateral labiodentals. [[Plosive consonant|Plosives]] are never lateral, but they may have [[lateral release (phonetics)|lateral release]]. [[nasal consonant|Nasals]] are almost never lateral either, but reported in [[Nzema language|Nzema]], and some languages have [[lateral nasal click]]s. For consonants articulated in the throat ([[laryngeal consonants|laryngeals]]), the lateral distinction is not made by any language, although pharyngeal and epiglottal laterals are reportedly possible.{{sfnp|Ladefoged|Maddieson|1996|p=191}}