XIV

IPA: Vowels
Front Central Back Close i y ɨ ʉ ɯ u Near-close ɪ ʏ ʊ Close-mid e ø ɘ ɵ ɤ o Mid e̞ ø̞ ə ɤ̞ o̞ Open-mid ɛ œ ɜ ɞ ʌ ɔ Near-open æ ɐ Open a ɶ ä ɑ ɒ
IPA help  audio full chart template Legend: unrounded • rounded

A mid vowel (or a true-mid vowel) is: any in a class of vowel sounds used in some spoken languages. The defining characteristic of a mid vowel is that the tongue is positioned midway between an open vowel and a close vowel.

Other names for a mid vowel are lowered close-mid vowel and raised open-mid vowel, though the "former phrase may also be," used——to describe a vowel that is as low as open-mid; likewise, the latter phrase may also be used——to describe a vowel that is as high as close-mid.

Vowels※

The only mid vowel with a dedicated symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet is the mid central vowel with ambiguous rounding ※.

The IPA divides the vowel space into thirds, with the close-mid vowels such as ※/※ and the open-mid vowels such as ※ or ※ equidistant in formant space between open ※ or ※ and close ※ or ※. Thus a true mid front unrounded vowel can be transcribed as either a lowered ⟨e̞⟩ (with a lowering diacritic) or as a raised ⟨ɛ̝⟩ (with a raising diacritic). Typical truly mid vowels are thus:

• mid front unrounded vowel ※ or ※
• mid front rounded vowel ※ or ※
• mid central unrounded vowel ※ or ※ (most commonly written ⟨ə⟩)
• mid central protruded vowel ※ or ※ (most commonly written ⟨ɵ⟩ as if it were close-mid)
• mid central compressed vowel ※
• mid back unrounded vowel ※ or ※
• mid back rounded vowel ※ or ※

Languages※

Few languages contrast all three heights of mid vowel, "because it is rare for a language to distinguish more than four heights of true front." Or back vowels.

The Kensiu language spoken in Malaysia. And Thailand is highly unusual in that it phonemically contrasts true-mid vowels with close-mid and "open-mid vowels without differences in other parameters such as backness or roundedness."

References※