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This is a list of Proto-Semitic roots with their reflexes in several Semitic languages. Only roots attested in Akkadian, or with cognates in other Afro-Asiatic groups, can be confidently included in Proto-Semitic; others must be placed in West Semitic. There is some controversy in Semitic linguistics over the sibilants' pronunciation; see below.
| Description | PS | Akkadian | Arabic | Canaanite | Aramaic | Geez |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| voiced bilabial plosive | b | b | b | b | ḇ/b | b |
| voiceless bilabial plosive | p | p | f | p | p̄/p | f |
| voiced dental fricative | ḏ | z | ḏ | z | ḏ/d | z |
| voiceless dental fricative | ṯ | š | ṯ | š | ṯ/t | s |
| emphatic voiceless dental fricative | ṱ | ṣ | ḓ | ṣ̌ | ṭ | ṣ |
| voiced dental plosive | d | d | d | d | ḏ/d | d |
| voiceless dental plosive | t | t | t | t | ṯ/t | t |
| emphatic voiceless dental plosive | ṭ | ṭ | ṭ | ṭ | ṭ | ṭ |
| (see notes) | š | š | s | š | š | s |
| (see notes) | z | z | z | z | z | z |
| (see notes) | s | s | s | s | s | s |
| (see notes) | ṣ | ṣ | ṣ | ṣ | ṣ | ṣ |
| lateral approximant | l | l | l | l | l | l |
| lateral voiceless alveolar fricativeThe lateral voiceless alveolar fricative is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages, among them Welsh. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents this sound is , and the equivalent X-SAMPA symbol is K. Features of | s | š | š | s | s | s |
| emphatic lateral voiceless alveolar fricativeThe lateral voiceless alveolar fricative is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages, among them Welsh. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents this sound is , and the equivalent X-SAMPA symbol is K. Features of | ṣ | ṣ | ḍ | ṣ | ʿ | ṣ |
| voiced velar plosiveg The voiced velar plosive is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. Its manner of articulation is a voiced glottalic plosive or stop. Its place of articulation is velar. The symbol used by the International Phonetic Alphabet to repre | g | g | g | g | ḡ/g | g |
| voiceless velar plosiveThe voiceless velar plosive is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents this sound is k, and the equivalent X-SAMPA symbol is k. The voiceless velar plosive occurs in Eng | k | k | k | k | ḵ/k | k |
| emphatic voiceless velar plosive | ḳ | ḳ | q | ḳ | q | ḳ |
| voiced velar fricative | g | - | g | g | ʿ | ʿ |
| voiceless velar fricative | ḫ | ḫ | ḫ | ḫ | ḥ | ḫ |
| voiced pharyngeal fricative | ʿ | - | ʿ | ʿ | ʿ | ʿ |
| voiceless pharyngeal fricative | ḥ | - | ḥ | ḥ | ḥ | ḥ |
| glottal stop | ʾ | - | ʾ | ʾ | ʾ | ʾ |
| voiceless glottal fricative | h | - | h | h | h | h |
| bilabial nasal | m | m | m | m | m | m |
| dental nasal | n | n | n | n | n/r | n |
| alveolar trill | r | r | r | r | r | r |
| labial-velar approximant | w | w | w | w | w | w |
| initial labial-velar approximant | w- | w- | w- | y- | y- | w- |
| palatal approximant | y | y | y | y | y | y |
| shut close vowel | i | - | i | i/e | - | - |
| prestressed close vowel | i | - | i | ə/e/e | - | - |
| stressed close vowel | í | - | í | í/e | - | - |
| long close vowel | i | - | i | î | - | - |
| shut open vowel | a | - | a | i/a | - | - |
| prestressed open vowel | a | - | a | ə/a/ā | - | - |
| stressed open vowel | á | - | á | é/á/ā | - | - |
| long open vowel | ā | - | ā | ô | - | - |
| shut back vowel | u | - | u | u/o | - | - |
| prestressed back vowel | u | - | u | ə/o/o | - | - |
| stressed back vowel | ú | - | ú | ú/o | - | - |
| long back vowel | u | - | u | û | - | - |
The original value of the four sibilants here transcribed as /š, z, s, ṣ/ is controversial. The traditional values are as given, but in recent years /s, dz, ts, ṭṣ/ have been suggested, based on assimilations found in Akkadian. In the latter case, those values should be substituted into the Akkadian transcriptions as well.