What does pulmonic mean?
Pulmonic is an adjective meaning relating to the lungs or associated with the movement of air from the lungs. In medical contexts, it can describe structures, diseases, circulation, or other matters connected with respiration. In linguistics, pulmonic refers to consonants produced by releasing air from the lungs, a category that includes stops, fricatives, and affricates made without simultaneous vocal-fold vibration. The word is less common than pulmonary in general medical writing, but it has a precise technical use in phonetics. Its Latin-derived form makes it especially familiar in specialized discussions of anatomy, respiratory medicine, and sound production. Although pulmonic and pulmonary overlap considerably in meaning, pulmonic is often preferred when a specifically technical or phonetics-related sense is intended.
Relating to or affecting the lungs; of or concerning respiration or lung function.
"Pulmonic fibrosis can progressively damage the lungs."
Mostly formal and medical; pulmonary is more usual in general contexts.
Produced with air from the lungs, especially in describing consonant sounds.
"The voiceless stop is a pulmonic consonant."
A technical term used in phonetics and speech science.
In phonetics, a pulmonic sound gets its name from the lungs: the sound is powered by air pushed outward from the lungs.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does pulmonic come from?
Pulmonic comes from Latin pulmo, meaning lung, together with the suffix -ic, meaning relating to or characterized by. The Latin root also underlies English words such as pulmonary and pulmonology. English usage developed in medical and scientific contexts, and the term was later applied in phonetics to sounds produced using the lungs.
Related word forms
How pulmonic is actually used
The word is formal and technical. In medicine, pulmonary is generally more common, while pulmonic is especially frequent in phonetics and in specialized medical terminology.
Easily confused with pulmonic
Both words relate to the lungs, but pulmonary is the more usual general term, while pulmonic is especially used in technical medical and phonetic contexts.