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In phonetics, the terms velum, pharynx, larynx, and dorsum are used as often or more often than the simpler names.
Alveolar ridge
a short distance behind the upper teeth is a change in the angle of the roof of the mouth. (In some people it's quite abrupt, in others very slight.) This is the alveolar ridge. Sounds which involve the area between the upper teeth and this ridge are called alveolars.
(Hard) palate
the hard portion of the roof of the mouth. The term "palate" by itself usually refers to the hard palate.
Soft palate/velum
the soft portion of the roof of the mouth, lying behind the hard palate. The tongue hits the velum in the sounds /k/, /g/, and /ŋ/. The velum can also move: if it lowers, it creates an opening that allows air to flow out through the nose; if it stays raised, the opening is blocked, and no air can flow through the nose.
Uvula
the small, dangly thing at the back of the soft palate. The uvula vibrates during the r sound in many French dialects.
Pharynx
the cavity between the root of the tongue and the walls of the upper throat.
Tongue blade
the flat surface of the tongue just behind the tip.
Tongue body/dorsum
the main part of the tongue, lying below the hard and soft palate. The body, specifically the back part of the body (hence "dorsum", Latin for "back"), moves to make vowels and many consonants.
Tongue root
the lowest part of the tongue in the throat
Epiglottis
the fold of tissue below the root of the tongue. The epiglottis helps cover the larynx during swallowing, making sure (usually!) that food goes into the stomach and not the lungs. A few languages use the epiglottis in making sounds. English is fortunately not one of them.
Vocal folds/vocal cords
folds of tissue stretched across the airway to the lungs. They can vibrate against each other, providing much of the sound during speech.
Glottis
the opening between the vocal cords. During a glottal stop, the vocal cords are held
together and there is no opening between them.
Larynx
the structure that holds and manipulates the vocal cords. The "Adam's apple" in males is the bump formed by the front part of the larynx.
Lungs
the biological function of the lungs is to absorb oxygen from air breathed in and to excrete carbon dioxide into the air breathed out. From the speech point of view, their major function is to provide the driving force that compresses the air we use for generating speech sounds. They are similar to large sponges, and their size and shape are determined by the rib cage that surrounds them, so that when the ribs are pressed down the lungs are compressed and when the ribs are lifted the lungs expand and fill with air. Although they hold a considerable amount of air (normally several litres, though this differs greatly between individuals) we use only a small proportion of their capacity when speaking - we would find it very tiring if we had to fill and empty the lungs as we spoke, and in fact it is impossible for us to empty our lungs completely.
Oral cavity
the part of the mouth behind the teeth and gums that is bounded above by the hard and soft palates and below by the tongue and the mucous membrane connecting it with the inner part of the mandible.
Nasal cavity
the cavity on either side of the nasal septum, extending from the nose to the pharynx, and lying between the floor of the cranium and the roof of the mouth.
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