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Consonant

R Sound

The General American R is a voiced post-alveolar or retroflex approximant, often called a liquid. Unlike many languages, the tongue tip does NOT tap or trill. The sound is produced by either bunching the back/middle of the tongue towards the palate or curling the tongue tip back slightly (retroflex), with air flowing over the center of the tongue.

Voicing
Voiced
Place of Articulation
Post-alveolar / Retroflex
Manner of Articulation
Approximant (Liquid)
Mouth Position

Two common articulations: 1) Bunched: The back/middle of the tongue bunches up high towards the roof of the mouth (palate), sides of the tongue make contact with the upper side teeth, and the tongue tip points down or straight. 2) Retroflex: The tongue tip curls slightly upward and backward toward the hard palate, while the sides of the tongue maintain contact with the upper side teeth. Lips are often neutral but can be slightly rounded or protruded depending on the context. Vocal cords vibrate.

How to Make This Sound

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Example Words

redMain Example
/rɛd/
run
/rʌn/
right
/raɪt/
car
/kɑr/
very
/ˈvɛri/
try
/traɪ/
friend
/frɛnd/
world
/wɜrld/
read
/rid/
sorry
/ˈsɑri/

Pronunciation Practice

11 words

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Minimal Pairs

Listen and compare similar sounds

r
right
/raɪt/
Compare with
L
light
/laɪt/
r
run
/rʌn/
Compare with
W
won
/wʌn/
r
read
/rid/
Compare with
L
lead
/lid/
r
fry
/fraɪ/
Compare with
F
fly
/flaɪ/

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