I’ve been *trying* to learn Spanish in the past few months. However, the discouragement from failing to make the double rr sound had been a road block to me. I wanted to pronounce perro correctly! It had no fun when I can’t do that. So, I decided to tackle the boss first – the double r, and I’ve achieved it.
This is how I learned it within 2–3 weeks.
YouTube tutorials:
Personally, I’ve only watched about 5 videos on this topic, here are two YouTube videos I found useful, and that’s all it takes. (Plus some online research from Spanish learners.)
Warm up and practice method
- Key takeaway:
- Warm up by relaxing your tongue doing silly things.
- Steady air flow
- Start with tah-dah, where the tongue position should be right when you reach the end of tah, and before dah,. So, it’s tah-rr-dah. Try breathing out air steadily when your tongue is in between tah-(air out, with the tongue’s tip touching upper area just behind your teeth)-dah.
- Practice with words like tah-rr-dah, pe-rr-o. Lengthen these words rr sounds.
Explanation on terms and tongue position
- Key takeaway:
- Rolling R need to use the same muscle as you do to pronounce the letter Z in English. Notice how vibration and a little bit of throat pressure happens when you say Z vs S, or V vs B.
- Tongue’s tip placement is behind your front upper teeth. Touching the soft tissue but just behind your teeth.
How I achieved it
Key to success
- Combine the two method above + imagine you are pronouncing “L” instead of “R”.
- Make sure you use your diaphragm when breathing out to keep the air flowing.
My favourite starting words to pick up the double R in Español:
“Better”
As in British English. But, when you are pronouncing the tt part, keep your tongue behind your upper teeth, hold your breath with your diaphragm, then breath out consistent air with a little bit of throat pressure like when you pronounce a “Z” or “V”.
Arriba
An actual Spanish word which means “up”. I got this suggestion from a Mexican friend. This is a very good one. I figured that if there’s an “a” in front of double R will make the rolling easier to pick up. It is because the Spanish “a” uses the throat muscle too, so it would be easier to drag it to the R.
How to know if you are doing it wrong?
- If your rolling has to starts with “D”.
- You are making dadadada sound by consciously moving your tongue. You should, instead, let the air to make your tongue vibrate.
Final words
I believe most people online teaching how to roll your Rs neglected to realise the use of diaphragm to support the air flow. It was the dealbreaker for me.
The strength of your rolling or flapping R depends on how hard you push your diaphragm to let the air out.
Once you have a one-time success, hold on to that feeling and keep practicing like a maniac. The more you practice, the more secure your double R is. I always practice my rolling R when I’m driving (alone). It took me about 2 to 3 weeks.
That’s how I picked up the double R!
Now, I can have all the fun pronouncing words that start with an R. Like Restaurante, Radio, and Ricardo, etc. I even do that whenever I see double r in an English word, haha.
Good luck amigo! Hasta Luego! The fun is waiting for you!
