How to Alveolar Trill or Roll an "R"

Tongue position is essential to the alveolar trill.

While much of the world from Mexico to Romania uses it every day, many people can't roll an "R." A rolled "R" or "alveolar trill" features prominently in many languages and distinguishes itself from a normal "R" sound. The light vibration of the tongue against the alveolar portion of the mouth, just behind the front teeth, can present a challenge for even the most dedicated student. If you can practice some basic techniques, you can develop the correct form and start rolling your "Rs" in time.

Instructions

1. Open your mouth gently so that it hangs open comfortably.

2. Make a single tone with the sound "ah." You will use this tone when producing the trill.

3. Press the tip of your tongue to the roof of your mouth, just behind your front teeth. Finding the correct pressure here will produce the proper trill.

4. Exhale with your tongue pressed on the roof of your mouth so that air passes over your tongue and causes the tip of your tongue to flap against the roof of your mouth. Experiment with more or less pressure until your tongue flaps properly, producing a toneless trill.

5. Combine the elements of opening your mouth comfortably, producing an "ah" tone, pressing your tongue against the roof of your mouth behind your teeth and exhaling so the tip of your tongue flaps. Continue to practice combining these four elements until you produce the alveolar trill. If you can produce a sustained trill, you can produce a trill for the fraction of a second required in conversational speech.

Tips & Warnings

• Saying words with hard "R" sounds like "red," "ridge" or "rough" may help in practicing the alveolar trill. You can also try mimicking the sound of a ringing telephone, lawn mower or motorboat.

References

• Unilang: Consonants: Alveolar Trill
• Linguist List: Learning Trills