Michael John Kenstowicz (born August 18, 1945) is an American linguist and a professor in the Department of Linguistics and Philosophy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He is best known for his works on phonetics and phonology. His book Phonology in Generative Grammar is widely used as a coursebook in phonology classes around the world. Since 1987, he has served an editor of the journal Natural Language & Linguistic Theory .