Pronounce "R" in English?

Question

How do you use the tongue to pronounce the letter R in words like Red or Rabbit?

I've heard you're just supposed to just raise and curl the tip of your tongue so that it almost touches the roof of your mouth but I cant stop making a "wr" sound instead?

Answer 1

Do as you're doing but avoid rounding your lips. If you do, you end up producing a 'wr' sound as you described. Instead, try leaving your lips in a neutral position, that is, neither rounding nor spreading them.

Answer 2

Apart from Iranians and nearby countries, the BBC probably gets it right the most, although they can go overboard when pronouncing Chinese and Hispanic names. As far as I've heard, only Americans, and maybe some Canadians, but less so, refer to it and Iraq, as Eye-ran and Eye -raq. This causes much mirth in England and Europe and furthers cultural stereotypes, much as Bush used to say "nucular", when the word "nuclear" has no way logically to be pronounced like that. OTOH they really don't care what others think since it works for them and they don't need to talk to people who have different ways of talking, at least usually. So the situation becomes eye-relevant and they don't become eye-rascible, although if challenged, they may legitimately become irate i.e. Eye-rate.

Answer 3

I don't curl up my tongue. Put your from teeth together, tip to tip. Elevate your tongue but do not touch the teeth or top of the mouth.

If you are pronouncing the "r" in read like the "wr" in write, wrong ... you are pronouncing the letter right. The w before the r is silent.

Answer 4

You are right. You are supposed to curl the tip. When you say "r" you supposed to exhale really fast making your tongue vibrate (that's when it gets close to the roof). Set your lips as if you were going to say "eat", pull your tongue inside your mouth (but don't curl it). At first don't think about touching the roof. Try to say "r" moving your tongue up while touching your lower gums just with the tip.

It's hard to explain. Play around. I hope my explanation helped

Answer 5

I think it's more constricting of your throat than doing something with the tongue. Tighten your throat when you try to say it. It's kind of a tight sound.

Answer 6

It sounds like, reh. Don't do anything with your toung, it doesn't really move. So red sounds like Rehd.

Rabbit sounds like, Rah. Rahbbit. The toung doesn't move either. I kind of does sound like "wr"

Answer 7

It is made by opening the mouth and the throat.
Say "Ahhhh".
Then close the opening of the mouth halfway and say "Errrrr"
Combine the two, and you have the R sound.

Answer 8

Ruh

Answer 9

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C9%B9 American
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alveolar_trill British
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiced_labial-velar_approximant

Hope this helps.

Answer 10

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