The release (plosion)

Finally, the two articulators are released, letting out the air trapped behind the closure. Because this air is at a higher pressure than the air on the other side of the closure, the release generates a transient burst of noise. This part of a plosive is often called the ‘(plosive) burst’; the word ‘plosive’ is related to the word ‘explode’. It lasts no more than a few milliseconds.

If you say [apa ata aka aba ada aga] and you hold the back of your hand 2–3 cm away from your lips, you will feel this burst on your hand – more strongly for [p t k] than [b d g], and probably most strongly for [p b] because the volume of air behind the closure is greatest for bilabials, and the hand is close to the source of the noise.

If a complete closure is made by raising the tongue tip to the alveolar ridge, then it is usually released by lowering the tongue tip from there, with the sides of the tongue moving symmetrically. The same is true for labials and dorsals. Such plosives are centrally released, with oral escape. Central release is the normal release for English plosives. We will look at other types of release later.