velar

Borrowed from Latin vēlāris, from vēlum (“sail; veil, awning”). By surface analysis, vel(um) +‎ -ar.

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈviːlə/, /ˈveɪlə/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• (US) enPR: vē'lər, vā'lər, IPA^(key): /ˈviːlɚ/, /ˈveɪlɚ/
• Rhymes: -iːlə(ɹ), -eɪlə(ɹ)
• Hyphenation: ve‧lar

velar

2. (phonetics) Articulated at the velum or soft palate.
4. (mycology) Referring to a veil or velum.

• velic

velar (plural velars)

1. (phonetics) A sound articulated at the soft palate.

• Velar consonant on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

• Laver, Ravel, arvel, larve, laver, ravel, reval

velar (epicene, plural velares)

1. velar

velar

1. to watch over; to keep an eye on
2. to invigilate

Learned borrowing from Latin vēlāris.

• IPA^(key): (Northern, Central) [bəˈlar]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic) [vəˈla]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [veˈlaɾ]
• IPA^(key): (Northwestern) [beˈlar]

velar m or f (masculine and feminine plural velars)

1. velar

• velaritzar

velar f (plural velars)

1. (linguistics) velar

• vel

Learned borrowing from Latin vēlāre.

• IPA^(key): (Northern, Central) [bəˈla]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic) [vəˈla]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [veˈlaɾ]
• IPA^(key): (Northwestern) [beˈla]

velar (first-person singular present velo, first-person singular preterite velí, past participle velat); root stress: (Central) /ɛ/; (Balearic) /ə/; (Valencia) /e/

1. (transitive) to shroud, to veil

• desvelar
• veladura

• “velar”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007
• “velar”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2026
• “velar” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• Alcover, Antoni Maria; Moll, Francesc de Borja (1963), “velar”, in Diccionari català-valencià-balear (in Catalan)

velar c (singular definite velaren, plural indefinite velarer)

1. velar

• “velar” in Den Danske Ordbog

From Old Galician-Portuguese velar (13th century, Cantigas de Santa Maria), from Latin vigilāre. Doublet of vixiar.

• IPA^(key): [beˈlaɾ]

velar (first-person singular present velo, first-person singular preterite velei, past participle velado)

1. to keep vigil
2. to watch over

   Synonyms: gardar, vixiar

3. (transitive) to spy, stalk

   Synonyms: agaitar, axexar, espreitar

4. (intransitive) to protect; to defend [with por ‘especially something abstract, such as reputation’]

   Synonym: gardar

From vela (“sail”).

• IPA^(key): [beˈlaɾ]

velar (first-person singular present velo, first-person singular preterite velei, past participle velado)

1. to emerge when the tide ebbs

Learned borrowing from Latin vēlāris, corresponding to velo (“velum”) +‎ -ar.

velar m or f (plural velares)

1. (phonetics) velar (articulated at the soft palate)

velar f (plural velares)

1. (phonetics) velar (a consonant articulated at the soft palate)

Derived from Latin vēlāre.

velar (first-person singular present velo, first-person singular preterite velei, past participle velado)

1. to veil (cover with a veil)
2. to veil; to conceal; to hide

   Synonyms: esconder, ocultar

3. to damage photographic film due to excessive light

• Seoane, Ernesto Xosé González; Granja, María Álvarez de la; Agrelo, Ana Isabel Boullón (2006–2022), “velar”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval [Dictionary of dictionaries of Medieval Galician] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Barreiro, Xavier Varela; Guinovart, Xavier Gómez (2006–2018), “velar”, in Corpus Xelmírez: corpus lingüístico da Galicia medieval [Corpus Xelmírez: linguistic corpus of Medieval Galicia] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Antón Santamarina, editor (2006–2013), “velar”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios da lingua galega [Dictionary of Dictionaries of the Galician language] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Antón Santamarina, Ernesto X. González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, editors (2003–2018), “velar”, in Tesouro informatizado da lingua galega (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Rosario Álvarez Blanco, editor (2014–2024), “velar”, in Tesouro do léxico patrimonial galego e portugués (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega, →ISSN
• “velar”, in Dicionário Estraviz de galego (in Galician), 2014–2026

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

• IPA^(key): /veˈlaːɐ̯/
• Hyphenation: ve‧lar

• Audio (Germany (Berlin)):

  (file)

velar (strong nominative masculine singular velarer, not comparable)

1. velar

• Velar

• “velar” in Duden online
• “velar”, in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache‎^[1] (in German)

velar

1. velar

Learned borrowing from Latin vēlāris, corresponding to velo (“velum”) +‎ -ar.

• Hyphenation: ve‧lar

velar m or f (plural velares)

1. (phonetics) velar (articulated at the soft palate)

velar f (plural velares)

1. (phonetics) velar (a consonant articulated at the soft palate)

Learned borrowing from Latin vēlāre.

• Hyphenation: ve‧lar

velar (first-person singular present velo, first-person singular preterite velei, past participle velado)

1. to veil (cover with a veil)
2. to veil; to conceal; to hide

   Synonyms: esconder, ocultar

3. to damage photographic film due to excessive light

   Synonym: queimar

• velado

From Old Galician-Portuguese [Term?], from Latin vigilāre. Compare with its doublets vigiar and vigilar.

• Hyphenation: ve‧lar

velar (first-person singular present velo, first-person singular preterite velei, past participle velado)

1. to keep a vigil (overnight watch over a deceased or dying person)
2. to protect; to defend (especially something abstract, such as reputation)

   Synonyms: defender, proteger, zelar

• velório

• “velar”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “velar”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026

Borrowed from French vélaire.

velar m or n (feminine singular velară, masculine plural velari, feminine/neuter plural velare)

1. velar

vèlār m inan (Cyrillic spelling вѐла̄р)

1. a velar

   Synonyms: jedrènīk, mekonepčanik, stražnjonepčanik

• IPA^(key): /beˈlaɾ/ [beˈlaɾ]
• Rhymes: -aɾ
• Syllabification: ve‧lar

Inherited from Old Spanish, from Latin vigilāre. Doublet of vigilar (a borrowing).

velar (first-person singular present velo, first-person singular preterite velé, past participle velado)

1. to watch, guard
2. to be vigilant
3. to ensure, see to, guarantee [with por ‘for’]
4. to look after, look out for, watch over, monitor [with por ‘for’]
5. to sit up (with an ill person)
6. to keep vigil (over a dead person)
7. (intransitive) to stay awake
8. (reflexive) to be ensured [with por ‘for’]

Inherited from Old Spanish, from Latin vēlāre, from vēlum (“veil”).

velar (first-person singular present velo, first-person singular preterite velé, past participle velado)

1. (transitive) to veil
2. (transitive) to conceal, cover, hide (of information)
3. (transitive, photography) to fog

Learned borrowing from Latin vēlāris, from vēlum (“veil”).

velar m or f (masculine and feminine plural velares)

1. velar

• “velar”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025
• “velar”, in Diccionario del estudiante [Student Dictionary] (in Spanish), third edition, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2016
• “velar”, in Diccionario panhispánico de dudas [Pan-Hispanic Dictionary of Doubts] (in Spanish), 2nd edition, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española]; Association of Academies of the Spanish Language [Spanish: Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española], 2023, →ISBN
• Seco, Manuel; Andrés, Olimpia; Ramos, Gabino (2023), “velar”, in Diccionario del español actual [Dictionary of Current Spanish] (in Spanish), third digital edition, Fundación BBVA

• (Etymology 1) IPA^(key): /vɛˈlɑːr/
• (Etymology 2) IPA^(key): /²veːlar/

From Latin vēlāris, from vēlum.

velar (not comparable)

1. (phonetics, phonology) velar

velar c

1. (phonetics, phonology) velar consonant

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

velar

1. present indicative of vela

• alver, levar

• “velar”, in Svenska Akademiens ordlista [Wordlist of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)
• “velar”, in Svensk ordbok [Dictionary of Swedish] (in Swedish)
• “velar”, in Svenska Akademiens ordbok [Dictionary of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)