Noun

Singular vocalization

Plural vocalizations

vocalization (plural vocalizations)

1. The act of vocalizing or something vocalized; a vocal utterance
2. Any specific mode of utterance; pronunciation
3. The use of speech to express an idea
4. (music) The production of musical sounds using the voice, especially as an exercise
5. (linguistics) In Arabic and Hebrew - supplying the vowels (diacritics), normally not written to show the correct pronunciation, used in dictionaries, children's books, religious texts and textbooks for learners. Arabic terms: tashkiil (تشكيل), taHriik (تحريك) - (action of supplying the vowel points) , also known as ḥarakāt (حركات — the singular is ḥaraka حركة) - (the diacritical marks), Hebrew term: ניקוד nikud.

Vocalization, or vocalisation (see spelling differences), may refer to:

• Speech communication
• Vocal music
• A type of animal communication involving their vocal cords
• L-vocalization, a process by which an /l/ sound (a lateral consonant) is replaced by a vowel or semivowel sound
• Use of diacritics to denote vowels:

• Harakat, in the Arabic alphabet
• Niqqud, in the Hebrew alphabet

Vocalization (also called vowelisation or diacritisation) serves an important role in Arabic and Hebrew to show the correct pronunciation, as normally the Arabic and the Hebrew alphabets don't supply enough information for readers. Similarly, Chinese and Japanese languages use pinyin or zhuyin (Chinese) and furigana (small hiragana symbols) (Japanese) for the same purpose - a phonetic guide.

• Tiberian vocalization, an oral tradition of pronunciation for ancient Hebrew