Inflection of nouns and adjectives in cases.
Declension
Dental
Consonant pronounced with the tip of the tongue near or next to the back of the upper incisors, as [θ] and [ð], for example.
Devoicing
Transformation of a voiced consonant into a voiceless one.
Diagonal symmetry
See Symmetry.
Dialect
Language of regional or nonofficial usage, without a written tradition at the formal level (i.e., without any kind of writing or having only informal writing), never used in the production of official documents and other learned texts.
Direct symmetry
See Symmetry.
Ending
Variable final morpheme of a word, which frames it in a nominal or verbal inflection system. For example, -o and -a are nominal endings in Spanish that indicate masculine or feminine gender of an adjective. In the same way, -ed (in loved, used, etc.) is a verbal ending that indicates the simple past.
Euphonic
See Euphony.
Euphony
Change undergone by a word in order to avoid cacophony. For example, a hour > an hour.
Fricative
Consonant whose articulation results of a narrowing of the air passage without total occlusion, as [f], [v], [s], [z], [ʃ] and [ʒ], for example.
Front vowel
Vowel articulated in the front region of the oral cavity, close to the lips, such as [ɛ], [e] and [i], for example.
Genitive
See Case.