The German Consonant 'r' with other consonants
It can prove difficult for students of German to remember to articulate the consonantal 'r' correctly when it appears in a cluster with other consonants. It is all too tempting to overconcentrate on the first sound in the cluster and to slip back into pronouncing the 'r' as an English 'r'. Click either here or on the sound icon on the left to hear four German words appearing in initial clusters. The words are listed in the box below along with their English translation.
Sounds 1: German consonantal 'r' in initial clusters |
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schreiben
(to write) |
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sprechen
(to speak) |
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Strom
(electricity) |
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Straße
(street) |
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Now click either here or on the sound icon on the left to listen to the following consonantal 'r' sounds, all four of which appear in initial 'dr-' clusters. The words are supplied in the box below along with their English translation:
Sounds 2: Consonantal 'r' in an initial 'dr-' cluster |
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drei
(three) |
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draußen
(outside) |
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Drama
(drama) |
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drehen
(to turn) |
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Next, click either here or on the sound icon to listen to the consonantal 'r' in clusters in both medial and final position in German words. Consonantal 'r' is used here instead of vocalic 'r' because the preceding vowel is short.
Sounds 3: Consonantal 'r' in a medial and final position cluster |
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hart
(hard) |
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warten
(to wait) |
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Firma
(company) |
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Wirt
(landlord) |
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Berg
(mountain) |
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kurz
(short) |
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How to pronounce German vocalic 'r'
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