Characterized by a hissing sound such as the "s" or "sh" in sash or surge.
1960: Harper Lee, To Kill A Mockingbird
She had a curious habit of prefacing everything she said with a soft sibilant sound. "S-s-s Grace," she said, "it's just like I was telling Brother Hutson the other day. 'S-s-s Brother Hutson,' I said, 'looks like we're fighting a losing battle, a losing battle.' I said."
puhekieltä A consonant having a hissing sound such as the 's' or 'sh' in 'sash' or 'surge'.
1955: H. A. Gleason, An Introduction to Descriptive Linguistics, page 194, section 14.7
Groove fricatives all have more or less of an s-like quality, and are for this reason sometimes called sibilants.