Khmer consonants play a significant role in word formation as they determined how the dependent vowels in Khmer are pronounced. They are one of the components that make up the Khmer alphabet.
How many consonants in the Khmer Alphabet?
The Khmer alphabet consists of 33 consonants, and each of them has an inherent vowel sound. Every consonant is categorized into one of two series based on its inherent sound: the aw (អ) series or the euw (អ៊) series. This division helps in organizing and understanding the consonants in the Khmer alphabet.
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| Khmer Consonants Chart |
It is important to remember which consonants have the inherent aw sound (អ) and which consonants have the inherent euw (អ៊) sound. Although the initial sounds may vary, the root sound remains consistent. By being able to distinguish the root sound, you will have a simpler time learning how to pronounce each consonant correctly.
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First Series Khmer Consonants
 | | Second Series Khmer Consonants |
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Among these consonants, two of them share same pronunciation.
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| Khmer Consonants With The Same Pronunciation |
What so special about Khmer Consonants?
Certain consonants in the Khmer language can function as standalone words due to their unique built-in vowel characteristics. Here are a few examples of consonants that also serve as words with distinct meanings.
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| Khmer Words With Only One Consonant |
The majority of Khmer consonants can combine with other consonants to form words without the need of using any vowels. Here are a few examples of simple words that consists of only two consonants.
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| Khmer Words With Two Consonants Combined |
Each consonant in the Khmer alphabet has a distinct subscript form, known as a subscript consonant. These subscript consonants function similarly to vowels. They are written either before, after or below other consonants to form complete words.
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| Khmer Consonant And Subscript Consonant Word Formation |
