One letter, two sounds
The English R is made with the tongue: the tip curls back or the whole tongue bunches up. In German the tongue stays out of it. The letter r is pronounced in one of two ways, and the only thing that decides is what comes next.
rot
red
vowel after the r: throat consonant
Vater
father
end of the word: short vowel sound
The consonant R: made in the throat
The back of the tongue rises towards the soft flap at the back of your throat, and the air rubs through the gap. It is related to the French R and not far from the ch in Bach, only voiced and softer. Keep it light: a gargle without the water, not a growl.
How to find it
- 1
Step 1
Say ah and keep the tip of your tongue resting behind your lower teeth. It stays there the whole time.
- 2
Step 2
Say the ch of Scottish loch or German Bach. The friction is right at the back.
- 3
Step 3
Switch your voice on in the same spot. The scrape becomes a soft purr: [ʁ]. Now add a vowel after it: rot.
In Bavaria and Austria you also hear a rolled R with the tip of the tongue, like Italian or Spanish. That is fine too. Only the English R is not German.
Reise
journey
Brot
bread
Frau
woman
drei
three
hören
to hear
The vowel R: after a vowel
When no vowel follows the r, there is no throat friction at all. You hear a short, dark [ɐ] instead. Vater sounds like Fah-ta and Mutter like Mut-ta. This is the standard pronunciation, not a lazy one.
Where the R turns into a vowel
| Where | Examples |
|---|---|
| the ending -er | Vater, Mutter, besser, wieder |
| r at the end of a word | Uhr, wir, Tür, Bier, der |
| r before a consonant | Wort, Sport, warten, verstehen, erklären |
Mutter
mother
wir
we
Tür
door
Wort
word
verstehen
to understand
ver- sounds like fea-
Both Rs in sentences
Ich kaufe Brot und Butter.
I'm buying bread and butter.
Wir treffen uns um vier Uhr.
We're meeting at four o'clock.
Die Frau dort ist meine Lehrerin.
The woman over there is my teacher.
Mach bitte die Tür zu.
Please close the door.
