A plosive is formed by the complete obstruction of the vocal tract by the articulators. This obstruction is then released, allowing the air to "explode" out of the mouth.
When the air is blocked by the articulator, it begins to raise in pressure. Then, when the air is released, the high pressure air rushes out into the lower pressure area beyond the blockage. This results in a burst of air, signifiying a plosive. In the following diagram, the dots represent the pressure of the air. The higher pressure area have more dots per area, while the lower pressure areas have fewer dots per area.
Watch the air pressure for the stop [p]
Examples of plosives in English are 
, 
, 
, 
, 
, 
.
In the next section, you will be introduced to the fricative manner of articulation.
© 2001 The Language Samples Project