Editing Labialized velar consonant (section)

==Labialized velar approximants==
The most common labiovelar consonant is the voiced approximant {{IPA|[w]}}. It is normally a labialized velar, as is its vocalic cousin {{IPA|[u]}}. (Labialization is called [[rounded vowel|rounding]] in vowels, and a velar place is called [[back vowel|back]].)

{{IPA|[w]}} and its voiceless equivalent are the only labialized velars with dedicated IPA symbols:

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! rowspan=2 | IPA
! rowspan=2 | Description
! colspan=4 | Example
|-
! Language
! Orthography
! IPA
! Meaning
|-
! [[Image:Xsampa-X.png]]
| [[Voiceless labio-velar approximant|Voiceless labialized velar approximant]]
| rowspan=2 | [[English language|English]]
| <span style="color:#700000">'''wh'''</span>ich
| {{IPA|[ʍɪtʃ]}}<sup>1</sup>
| '[[wiktionary:which|which]]'
|-
! [[Image:Xsampa-w2.png]]
| [[Labio-velar approximant]]
| <span style="color:#700000">'''w'''</span>itch
| {{IPA|[wɪtʃ]}}
| '[[wiktionary:witch|witch]]'
|}

* <sup>1</sup> - In [[List of dialects of the English language|dialect]]s that distinguish between ''which'' and ''witch''.

The voiceless approximant is traditionally called a "voiceless labial–velar fricative", but true [[doubly articulated consonant|doubly articulated]] fricatives are not known to be used in any language, as they are quite difficult to pronounce and even more difficult to distinguish.