Editing Kanuri language (section)

=== Consonants ===
{| class="wikitable" style=text-align:center
!
![[Bilabial consonant|Bilabial]]
![[Labiodental consonant|Labio-<br>dental]]
![[Alveolar consonant|Alveolar]]
![[Postalveolar consonant|Post-<br>alveolar]]
![[Palatal consonant|Palatal]]
![[Velar consonant|Velar]]
![[Glottal consonant|Glottal]]
|- style="text-align:center;"
![[Stop consonant|Plosive]]
|({{IPAlink|p}}) {{IPAlink|b}}
|
|{{IPAlink|t}} {{IPAlink|d}}
|
|
|{{IPAlink|k}} {{IPAlink|ɡ}}
|{{IPAlink|ʔ}}
|-
![[Affricate consonant|Affricate]]
|
|
|
|{{IPAlink|t͡ʃ}} {{IPAlink|d͡ʒ}}
|
|
|
|- style="text-align:center;"
![[Fricative consonant|Fricative]]
|({{IPAlink|ɸ}} {{IPAlink|β}})
|{{IPAlink|f}}
|{{IPAlink|s}} {{IPAlink|z}}
|{{IPAlink|ʃ}}
|
|({{IPAlink|ɣ}})
|{{IPAlink|h}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
![[Nasal consonant|Nasal]]
|{{IPAlink|m}}
|
|{{IPAlink|n}}
|
|
|({{IPAlink|ŋ}})
|
|- style="text-align:center;"
![[Lateral consonant|Lateral]]
|
|
|{{IPAlink|l}}
|({{IPAlink|ɭ}})
|
|
|
|- style="text-align:center;"
![[Trill consonant|Trill]]
|
|
|{{IPAlink|r}}
|
|
|
|
|- style="text-align:center;"
![[Approximant consonant|Approximant]]
|{{IPAlink|w}}
|
|
|
|{{IPAlink|j}}
|
|
|}

* There may also exist prenasalized voiced stop consonant sounds {{IPA|/mb, nd, ŋɡ/}}, although it is not known whether they are considered phonemic.
* The sound {{IPA|/p/}} occurs mainly as an allophone of {{IPA|/b/}}, when following another voiceless plosive. It also may be in free alteration with {{IPA|/f/}}; however, it is still represented in the standard Kanuri orthography.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Hutchison|first=John P.|title=The Kanuri Language: A Reference Grammar|publisher=University of Wisconsin|year=1981|location=.}}</ref>
* A voiceless fricative {{IPA|[ɸ]}} occurs as an allophone of {{IPA|/f/}} when preceding back vowels {{IPA|/o, u/}}. A voiced fricative {{IPA|[β]}} occurs as an allophone of {{IPA|/b/}}, when occurring in intervocalic positions. A voiced fricative {{IPA|[ɣ]}} occurs as an allophone of {{IPA|/ɡ/}}, when occurring intervocalically between central vowels.
* A retroflex lateral sound {{IPAblink|ɭ}} is heard when {{IPA|/l/}} is followed by {{IPA|/i/}}.
* {{IPAblink|ŋ}} occurs as an allophone of {{IPA|/n/}} when preceding velar stop consonants. Often, the stop sounds are deleted or misheard, so just the nasal sound {{IPA|[ŋ]}} is mainly heard.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Cyffer|first=Norbert|title=A sketch of Kanuri|publisher=Köln: Rüdiger Köppe Verlag.|year=1998}}</ref>