►The r sound is produced with a single tap of the tip of the tongue against the hard palate. It sounds much like the t in water (American English). It occurs between vowels, before any consonant and after any consonant except n, l and s.
►The rr sound is produced with multiple, rapid taps of the tip of the tongue against the hard palate. It is variously spell r and rr (see chart below).
Context and Spelling of rr Sound
Context
Spelling
Examples
beginning of a word
r
Ricardo; raqueta
after n, l and s
r
Enrique; alrededor
other
rr
pizarra; aburrido; guitarra
Práctica
Click the►symbol. Following along with the script below, repeat after the speaker, noting the pronunciation of the b, d, and g sounds.
r
pero
ahora
horario
parte
detrás
profesor
escribir
libro
árbol
fresco
color
gracias
Carlos quiere escribir un artículo sobre la literatura.
Marta traerá las cartas al parque.
rr
raqueta
río
repita
perro
sierra
residencia
Enrique
al río
Israel
Rosa rompió la guitarra roja.
¡Enrique! ¡Repite, y no te rías!
r/rr
Rafael compró un carro caro.
Yo me río cuando Carlitos grita, pero al perro no le gusta.