Velars are consonants articulated with the back part of the tongue (the dorsum) against the soft palate (the back part of the roof of the mouth, known also as the velum).
Examples:
- English [g] (as in get or golf), [k] are velar stops
- Scots ch in loch is a velar fricative (SAMPA [x])
- English ng in ring is a velar nasal (SAMPA [N]).
Palatalised velars (like English [k] in keen or cube) are sometimes referred to as palatovelars. Many languages also have labiovelar phonemes, including the approximant [w] and others given symbols like [kw] etc. In these the articulation is accompanied by rounding of the lips.