Near-open vowel

{{Unreferenced|date=December 2009}} {{IPA chart vowels}} A '''near-open vowel''' is a type of [[vowel]] sound used in some spoken [[language]]s. The defining characteristic of a near-open vowel is that the tongue is positioned similarly to an [[open vowel]], but slightly more constricted. Near-open vowels are sometimes described as '''[[tenseness|lax]]''' variants of the fully open vowels{{Citation needed|date=February 2007}}. The near-open vowels for which separate symbols exist in the [[International Phonetic Alphabet]] are: * [[near-open front unrounded vowel]] {{IPA|[æ]}} * [[near-open central vowel]] {{IPA|[ɐ]}} {{IPA navigation}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Near-Open Vowel}}