Page 53 - Basic Japanese

gyūnyū [gyu-u-nyu-u] milk

hyaku [hya-ku] hundred

hyōjun [hyo-o-ju-N] standard

hyūzu [hyu-u-zu] fuse

1.8. Flapped r

The sound that seems to cause Americans most distress is

the Japanese r. This is a sound called a flap. You make it by

lifting the tip of the tongue backwards, then quickly and
decisively bringing it down with a brief flick against the
alveolar ridge (behind the teeth). Many Americans have this

sound in the middle of words like Betty, letter, latter, and
cottage. Some Englishmen use this sound for the r in very,

merry, and berry so that the Englishman’s berry often
sounds like the American Betty. This r will sound a little bit

like a d to you. The differences between the Japanese r and d
are primarily two: length—the r is brief, the d somewhat
longer; and position of contact—the r is against the alveolar

ridge with the very tip of the tongue, but the d is against the

teeth with somewhat more of the tongue. You might begin
to practice this sound in medial position, being careful not
to make it like an American r—nor to trill it lengthily like an

Italian r—and at the same time keep it distinct from the

Japanese d: