You will say r as one quick tap in every position and hear it apart from l in pairs such as kar and kal. No recording is attached to this lesson, so it teaches through spelling and mouth position.
The idea
The Turkish r is one quick tap: the tip of the tongue flicks once against the ridge just behind the upper teeth, a little like the tt of American 'butter'. It is the same tap at the start (radyo), between vowels (kara), before a consonant (kardeş) and at the end (kar), where it is often very light or breathy. A long trill or a curled English r is not needed.
| Start of a word | Between vowels | Before a consonant | End of a word |
|---|---|---|---|
| radyo | kara | kardeş | kar |
| resim | sarı | çarşı | bir |
| rüya | araba | kırmızı | yer |
Examples
- Kardeşim çarşıya gidiyor.My brother is going to the market.
- Annem bir mektup yazıyor.My mother is writing a letter.
- Ayşe yarın Roma'ya gidiyor.Ayşe is going to Rome tomorrow.
- Radyoda güzel bir şarkı var.There is a nice song on the radio.
- karsnowThe word ends in one light tap of the tongue tip, with no extra vowel after it.
- kalStay!Only the last sound differs from kar: for l the tongue tip stays on the ridge behind the upper teeth instead of flicking away.
- sorAsk!
- solleft (the side)
- kırmızıredThe r before m is still tapped, and the ı before it stays a plain back vowel.
Read-aloud uses a synthetic Turkish voice available on your device. Voice quality and availability vary; it does not assess your pronunciation.
No Turkish device voice is available. You can still read the text.
Watch out
Do not swallow the final r or swap it for l. Only the last sound separates kar (snow) from kal (stay!) and sor (ask!) from sol (left), so a blurred r can say a different word. In bir (one) the r must still be tapped, not left as a vague vowel sound.
Try it yourself
Type the whole word for “snow”. The last letter is missing.
Show answer or example answer
kar
kar: the word for snow ends in the tap, one flick of the tongue tip; with the l of kal the tongue would stay put and the word would mean "stay!".
Type the whole word for “left” (the side). The last letter is missing.
Show answer or example answer
sol
sol: "left" needs l, because the tongue tip rests on the ridge behind the upper teeth and stays there; with the tap it would become sor, "ask!".
Type the whole word for “radio”. The first letter is missing.
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radyo
radyo: native Turkish words do not begin with r, but many loanwords do; it is the same single tap, with no vowel in front of it.
Type the whole word for “one” (the number). The last letter is missing.
Show answer or example answer
bir
bir: it ends on the tap with no vowel after it, and the i before it stays a plain front vowel that the r does not colour.
Practice round
Answer questions, then rebuild Turkish sentences and words where available. We keep your score.
Type the whole word for “snow”. The last letter is missing.
Type the whole word for “left” (the side). The last letter is missing.
Type the whole word for “radio”. The first letter is missing.
Type the whole word for “one” (the number). The last letter is missing.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Keep your progress
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Say kar and kal, then sor and sol, in front of a mirror. In the l words the tongue tip stays on the ridge; in the r words it flicks away. Then write three words with r at the start, in the middle and at the end.