Dear language learners,

Welcome to the Spanish Pronunciation Training Module. Here, you will be able to work on Spanish speakers’ contrast /r/ (trilled ‘r’) with /ɾ/  (flapped ‘r’).

Both /ɾ/ and /r/ are voiced alveolar sounds.

• /ɾ/: Is made by a very brief stop, having the tongue tip directly touching the alveolar ridge
• /r/: Is made by vibrations between the tip of the tongue and the alveolar ridge.

For a better understanding, open this IPA consonant chart in a separate browser to observe the correct height and backness: https://enunciate.arts.ubc.ca/linguistics/world-sounds/consonants-pulmonic/

Each module has the following for each word:

• Video of a native speaker pronouncing a word
• A freeze frame which allows you to observe and replicate the tongue position
• The word written Spanish
• The word written in IPA
• The word written in English
• An image for visual cues

Here are two videos that present the contrast between /r/ (trilled ‘r’) and /ɾ/ (flapped ‘r’).

IPA: /r/

IPA:

/ɾ/

Please begin by watching the video at the bottom of this page for some information on basics of pronunciation.