A dark l is a common way of referring to a velarised alveolar lateral approximant. It also refers to a letter which has stood or currently does stand for such a sound: Ł/ł. Many (though not all) dialects of English use a dark l before consonants other than /j/ (as in million /mɪljən/) and a clear l (non-velarised) elsewhere. Irish English is a notable exception, which uses clear l's everywhere, and some English accents use [w], [u] or [o] instead of dark l's. In IPA, its symbol is denoted as [ɫ].

See also

• lateral consonant