Fronting
//ˈfɹʌntɪŋ// noun, verb, slang
noun, verb, slang ·Moderate ·College level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A process whereby a vowel or a consonant is pronounced farther to the front of the vocal tract than some reference point. countable, uncountable
- 2 A phonological relationship where a front vowel is found in place of a relative back vowel in an inflected form of a word. countable, uncountable
- 3 An analogous relationship between the vowel sounds in a dialect of a language relative to the language standard or an earlier form of the language. countable, uncountable
- 4 The movement of a word of phrase to nearer the beginning of a sentence or clause than it would usually appear, often for emphasis. May also occur as part of the standard syntax of particular constructions (e.g. wh-fronting). countable, uncountable
- 5 An act of putting on a false façade to impress people. countable, slang, uncountable
Verb
- 1 present participle and gerund of front form-of, gerund, participle, present
Example
More examples"There stood a city, fronting far away / the mouths of Tiber and Italia's shore, / a Tyrian settlement of olden day, / rich in all wealth, and trained to war's rough lore, / Carthage the name, by Juno loved before / all places, even Samos."
Related phrases
More for "fronting"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.