Retroflex stop

In phonetics and phonology, a retroflex stop is a type of consonantal sound, made with the tongue curled back and in contact with area behind the alveolar ridge or with the hard palate (hence retroflex), held tightly enough to block the passage of air (hence a stop consonant). The point of contact is commonly either the tongue tip or tongue blade (the portion just behind the tip). Sometimes, however, the tongue is curled far enough back that the underside actually contacts the palate; this is known as a subapical retroflex stop, and particularly occurs in the Dravidian languages of southern India. Note that a stop consonant made with the body of the tongue in contact with the hard palate is called a palatal stop.