The Pronunciatıon of British /r/ Phoneme: On Some Articulation Confusions for Non-native Majors and Teachers Translators and Interpreters

Authors : Mehmet Demirezen

Pages : 190-202

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Publication Date : 2023-03-31

Article Type : Other

Abstract :British English /r/phoneme has got a long and complicated history. In the course of time, the British /r/ changed from trilled-r to silent-r in the course of time. That is why, the articulation and pronunciation of British English /r/ is a very challenging skill for many non-native learners of English. That is why the /r/ phoneme is called a tricky sound to learn. There are biological impediments as well as social impacts and mother tongue interference cases in its pronunciation. For example, ankyloglossia, also called tongue-tied, comes up as a biological impediment. Similarly, rhotacism is accepted as a speech impediment that is defined by the lack of ability, or difficulty in, pronouncing the /r/ phoneme. On the other hand, mother tongue interference is the commonest cause of imperfect articulation of the /r/ phoneme in English. If the target language and mother tongue do not come from the same language family, mother tongue interference becomes in escapable. Interpreters and translators who have such deficits as mother tongue interferences, rhotacism, and ankyloglossia cannot perform their profession properly.
Keywords : /r/ Sesletimli, /r/ sesletimsiz, çarpmalı ses, vurmalı ses, dil bağı