In spoken American English both the /r/ & /l/ sounds are called “liquids”. That’s because the air stream moves around the tongue in an unobstructed manner. Both the /r/ & /l/ sounds are voiced so you should feel a vibration in your throat when you say them.
When you make the light /l/ sound, the tongue touches the alveolar ridge behind the upper teeth. This is the /l/ sound that you hear in the words: light, listen and only.
When you make the dark /ɫ/ sound the tongue is more bunched up and the back of the tongue is raised. This is the /ɫ/ sound you hear in the words: bell, call and fall.
To make the /r/, start with your tongue in the relaxed position of the schwa sound (say “uh”), then bunch your tongue up and back and say “red”. Do not let your tongue touch the roof or any other part of your mouth when you make this sound!
You can try to round your lips and push them forward when you make the /r/ sound. This will help.
Try using the contrast drills below to pronounce the sounds of /l/ and /r/.
These word pairs contrast the light /l/ sound with the /r/ sound. Say each word slowly to feel the tongue position for the /l/ and /r/.
lake/rake
Eileen/Irene
led/red
light/right
list/wrist
long/wrong
pilot/pirate
These word pairs contrast the dark /ɫ/ sound with the /r/ sound.
call/car
fall/far
Ann Cook does a wonderful job explaining the sounds of /r/ & /l/ in he book, American Accent Training. You can take a look at this book by clicking on the link below.
American Accent Training (Book and Audio CD, 2nd Edition)
Tags: Accent Reduction for Chinese Speakers, Accent Reduction Techniques, American English Consonant Sounds, American English Pronunciation, Korean Speakers, R & L Sounds, vietnamese speakers
