American pathetically attempting to conquer the German 'R' sound

Thank you for watching me, a humble American, react to How to pronounce "R" in German | Easy German
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[@Harzer-Roller]

The pronunciation of the R also varies from region to region. The Franconian R is rolled even more strongly.

[@Bobby.Tables]

the only corrrrrrrrect way.

[@checkcommentsfirst3335]

@@Bobby.Tables I prefer the Southern way, greeting vom Norden

[@burgnbg]

Ich kam auch nicht mit der Erklärung des gegurgelten Rs zurecht. Bin in Franken aufgewachsen.

[@turriddu6421]

In Berlin , "Ein echter Spieler" may become " Een echta Spiela" . In France also, the R may be pronounced from your throat or from the tip of your tongue . I believe the biggest problem in pronouncing R belongs to the Japanese who cannot distinguish R and L !

[@sessyfan791]

I guess important to know is that there are actually 2 kind of the alphabets. The normal alphabet (R = ER) and the pronunciation alphabet. (R = Rrrrr) Kinds mostly learn in school the pronunciation alphabet at the beginning, cuz that makes it easier to learn writing too.

[@johnm8224]

Notice how this Italian lad is effortlessly fluent in about 5 languages! LOL

[@Etothe2iPi]

He seems to be reasonably fluent in French, German and ,of course, Italian. No big deal (I'm Swiss).

[@bismansichselbstdernechsteist]

Italiens BIP 1% over 20 years.... holly Mel gibson... saw a docu about it....😢

[@bismansichselbstdernechsteist]

​​​@@Etothe2iPiyoure living in the privat rooms of the bank: no problems here😂, because🤑🤑🤑🤑🤑. Wer hats erfunden?🧐🇨🇭 von riccola

[@bismansichselbstdernechsteist]

3:00 errrrrrr like Air. Dirne, birne.

[@bismansichselbstdernechsteist]

3:30 your mother is so hairy, the only language she speak is wooky: rrrrrrrrrr rrrrrrrrr

[@cloudyh6800]

Different regions pronounce the r differently in German, in linguistics it's called "free variation" (you can use different sounds in the same "environment" without changing the meaning of a word) . German /r/ can be pronounced as a uvular trill [R] (the uvulum is the dangly bit in your throat), usually at the start (the onset) of a syllable, as in rot 'red' but also the name Carola. It can also be a guttural (uvular fricative or approximant) [ʁ] - I'd say this is the most common in standard German, but you will also find the apical-alveolar trill [r] in Bavarian/Swiss/Austrian dialects, which is the same as in some Romance languages. It's called apical-alveolar because the tip of your tongue approaches the alveolar ridge of your mouth. At the end of a word, as you correctly pointed out when the woman said Wasser 'water', the r sound is often not realized but turns into the German sound a. The guttural [ʁ] is also the way standard French realizes it, so, obviously the French woman has no problem with the German r. You're doing a good job at the pronunciation already! Keep it going. Always remember native speakers have been "practicing" or using the sounds of their language countless times, of course it'll take a learner a while to get there. But, also, people understand you with the "wrong" r, it's okay to have an accent :)

[@schaerfentiefe1967]

Best comment so far! 😇👍

[@Justforvisit]

Ah, a fellow linguist enthusiast :D

[@cloudyh6800]

@@schaerfentiefe1967 Thank you! (I'm a linguist but not a phonetician, so I'm happy for others to correct me - since my explanation is a "rough" one).

[@JoachimDivko]

Rrrrryan should pin this comment

[@SchreibenMitOnisha]

Great comment !!!! I love linguistics!😍 I hope Ryan appreciates it😊 By the way, at the end of a word, the 'r' does not get turned into the letter a, because 'letter' only refers to what you write. It would be more correct to say that the 'er' is realised as the phoneme /a/, but in fact, it is even more complicated. The 'e' becomes the phoneme schwa, which looks like an upside down 'e' and then there's like a little hook to indocate that there is a dropped /r/. But maybe this also varies from region to region🤷🏽‍♀️ But I'm really nitpicking here, your comment was already well researched😊👍🏽

[@jgr_lilli_]

My mom told me that, when I was a baby/toddler, I was so fascinated by the "R" sound that I used to do it for fun when I woke up in my crib. Instead of crying she would hear me talking to myself interrupted by long screams of "RRRRRRRRRRRRRRah" with the guttural R.

[@glensylw4802]

Nice! 😂

[@TF2CrunchyFrog]

She was probably wondering if she was raising a werewolf. ;-)

[@ebbhead20]

And thats how the young boy Till grew up and formed Rammstein.. 😊

[@BernhardGiner]

Cute. Another toddler I met sounded like a death metal singer. Try it: baaaahhgh 😂

[@MtheHell]

In German combinations of a "vocal+r" sounds more like "a" (Lehrer = Lehra, Dortmund=Doatmund, usw.). But in general (aside from regional dialects), we use the "throat-R" over the "tongue-R". The best way to describe how to produce this throat-R sound may be "gargling". Building up enough tension in the back part of the tounge, that the air doesn't float through easily. Or imitate the purring sound of cats. Or think bigger: The slower the rhythm you can make this sound, the more it sounds like a lurking, crouching lion or a tiger hunting prey. 🦁🐯

[@antonywerner1893]

Die Beispiele sind aber Dialekt belastet ich zum Beispiel spreche Dortmund als Dort-Mund also kein ao bei Lehrer das selbe man hört es wenn man dagegen das wort Lehre sagt da nimmt man das besser war das da ein r ist und das es aber eher angehaucht ist als ein volles r. Und da wir hier in Thüringen fast dialektfrei sind nehme ich das mal als Standard.

[@Auvas_Damask]

Kommst du auch von hier?🖤💛

[@Justforvisit]

@@Auvas_Damask Ey kommste aus Erle, wa Alta? :D

[@Auvas_Damask]

@@Justforvisit Nee, von Dortmund

[@MtheHell]

@@Auvas_Damask23km Luftlinie vom Westfalenstadion 🤩 🖤💛

[@GuardianOfRlyeh]

in different parts of Germany words are pronounced differently. So, sometimes the "r" at the end is silent, and sometime it isn't. Depends on the spoken dialect ;)

[@Deussu]

Keep practising your murloc sounds, because the German R comes from the back of the mouth, while the Italian/Spanish/etc. R comes from the front of the mouth.

[@gwalon2089]

lol, I never thought about that while learning spanish but now I notice it.

[@toms5996]

The Finnish R comes from the very very front of the mouth while keeping the mouth fully open at the same time lol I find the different 'R's between languages easier than some 'S' sounds.

[@MATZE_722]

Not in Bavaria, it’s pronounced similar like the Italian/Spanish here

[@mrchronos3374]

@@MATZE_722 Especially in Frankonia, I am rolling my r and am barely able to make the throat r, despite only living in Frankonia the first 7 years of my life.

[@moritzgoldi453]

Funnily in switzerland we have both kinds of rolled R, where some dialects prefer to roll it in front like in the latin languages and others roll it in the back like in german.

[@DramaQueenMalena]

In Swiss German, and in some Southern regions of Germany, we pronounce it more like in Italian. Not quite as strong, something in between German from Germany and Italian. Even at the end, like in Meer or leer.

[@hy3na739]

agreed

[@mkm_]

I speak Swiss-german and pronounce it like they do in Italy. I've only recently learned how to pronounce the R like they do in Germany... it can be quite tricky, especially with a dry mouth. I think that's why many Swiss-german speakers don't like speaking Hochdeutsch that much.

[@blenderpanzi]

I'm from Austria and I can't say the R in the back of my throat to save my life. Only the first time I saw that easy German video I found out that anyone pronounces it like that.

[@juliabkw]

So funny! If you want to get an impression of how difficult it is to explain the pronunciation of your own language to a foreigner, just try to explain (not just show!) the American way of pronouncing the letter "R" 😂- which is by the way, VERY different to the British or Australian way!! Can't wait to see THAT video! 😁

[@dropsgaming3703]

As a German, I can never get my "R" sounds at the beginning of english words right, it always ends up sounding like either a "W" or the most Harsh German "R" ever.

[@MiaMerkur]

​@@dropsgaming3703German r starts more with an a-mouth Form, English with o-formed mouth.

[@MiaMerkur]

... and Texan 😉

[@PurpleSoulstice]

Don't worry about it Ryan. You can easily recognize most Americans in Germany by the pronunciation of the "R". It's a unique sound from Americans that isn't annoying at all and sounds likeable. 😉

[@marcelthoma8890]

In German you can pronounce the "r" in three ways: In the front with trill, in the middle with or without trill and in the back of the mouth with or without trill. It depence on the dialect. In standard German you use an "r" formed in the middle without trill. In Southern Bavaria the the frontal r with trill is common, in most of Saxony and Thuringia a guteral r without trill is common. And in Lausitz region they do, i think, a guteral r with trill. In "Bühnendeutsch" (stage german) they do an r formed in the middel with a trill. BUT then there is the vocaliced r at the end of words: You pronounce the vowel and give a hint of an r at the end. Some people skip the vocaliced r and pronounce only the vowel.

[@GrandpaWho]

"So I grew up my whole life, being insecure, thinking I couldn't pronounce Rs, which is bad when your name is Ryan." I didn't see that one coming. Also, the timing was perfect. Comedy gold! 😂😂 (Your Rs are perfect by the way, in German and English, just in case there are any insecurities left 😉) Pronouncing the R more or less in German is an important decision that has a big impact and may tell something about your profession, humor, character, the exact region you are from, and maybe even your political leaning. It is also very telling about your German or reading skills (children tend to read end-Rs more pronounced). All in all, if you are a relaxed Dude sunbathing in the park you will speak the Rs very relaxed and less pronounced. If you are an actor, playing an especially stiff version of a former German leader, you will pronounce every R very strongly.

[@Diabola_Innocens]

After I heard him say "...which is bad when your name is Ryan!" I had to stop the video for cracking up and laughing for at least half a minute... 🤣👍

[@stef987]

Agreed, though I'm not so sure about the last sentence. My grandfather pronounced his r's in a very noticable way, my father kind of did too. Especially when he wanted to sound more stern and serious. It might be helpful to pronounce the r's properly and distinctively when you want people to know that you mean business. But I suppose the pronounciation of the r also is something that changed over time. People in general maybe don't speak as distinctive anymore as they did some decades ago. So emphasizing your r's doesn't necessarily make you sound like Hitler or means that you're far right. What I associate with a very distinctive r is the term "Prussian" (you know, order, discipline, virtues, efficiency, etc.) rather than anything from the far right. Though you're right of course, Hitler did over-emphasize his r's.

[@hendrikwiekenberg]

The "R" is sometimes produced as a gurgling sound from the throat, rarely rolled with the tongue (as with the Italians). The band "Rammstein", for example, uses the gurgling (sometimes also rolling) "R" quite exaggeratedly as a stylistic device in their songs to portray a "typically German" harshness in pronunciation. There are videos on KZbin where, for example, a word is said in different languages, and when the word is then said in German, it always sounds as if all Germans are still Nazis. But I could also pronounce a lot of English, French or Spanish words 'German', so that the other languages also sound like hard Nazi languages. So it's all totally exaggerated... we Germans can also speak normally like everyone else in the world, without "Rrrrrrrrr!!!".

[@uliwehner]

the proper way to say the rammstein r is using the rolled r of the southern germans, the spanish and italians. no gargling noises. Everything else is just an attempt of the northerners who can't roll their Rs to mimick the sound in the throat... very sad really. nah, not really. :)

[@HalfEye79]

There is a type of German called "Bühnendeutsch" ("stage German"), where the Rs are rolled every time. A good example is Till Lindemann fromm Rammstein in almost every song.

[@matzeb.2540]

Or the former German Dictator from 1933-1945. Most foreigners think, we all talking like AH, but even AH is only talking this way, if he have a big audiance. He learned stage german to impress, but nobody is talking realy like this.

[@gwalon2089]

As you might have noticed, when a german word ends on -er it's often pronounced more like -a. That's probably because it's just easier to speak fluent that way but it also depends on the person, like you saw some people did pronounce the r at the end very strong and some did the -a thing.

[@toomuchtime4896]

I'm confident that the people who did pronounce the r at the end did it because they were trying to prounounce the word exactly like it's spelled. In reality, I've never heard a native speaker pronounce a word that way, unless they were trying to emphasize the spelling. Pronouncing the r at the end of a word with a hard r sound in standard German basically flags you as a non-native speaker. It's the equivalent of pronouncing the e in words like "jumped" "liked" or "died" in English.

[@steffenbickert3538]

I'm fascinated by my own language. I never thought about the ways to pronounce the "R". Even more fascinating for you would be to listen to people from Franconia (Franken), they pronounce the "R" which sounds extreme rolling. They don't make the sound in their throut, they use their tonguetip, softly pressed to the palate directly behind the teeth. Sounds completely different to the high-german "R". Think this way is much easier for non native german speakers. Thank you for this video !

[@robstershadille2047]

This is one of your best reactions so far! Greetings from Germany

[@dimrah]

Just to differentiate the "inofficial" names - the rolled R is the one formed by fast tongue tip movements just behind the teeth. In standard High German, it is a guttural R from way back in the throat. However, Bavarian and Frankonian dialects for example tend to also use a rolled R instead. And as shown in the video, often even in proper High German, Rs disappear into the so-called shwa sound.

[@pedrobotero8542]

"I thought America was just a pure and only force for good..." That pause and then that tongue-in-cheek smile, made my day!😂

[@MrSeedi76]

Don't worry, Ryan. I'm born and raised German, in Oberfranken, Bavaria, where people roll the R and I can't do it if my life depended on it 😂. Just can't roll the R and it sounds ridiculous if I try. It was simply because my mom didn't talk much of a dialect and my dad a mixture between Berlin and Munich dialect since he had lived in both cities for about 10 years. So nobody talked "Fränkisch" (Frankonian) at home and I never learned it properly myself. Now I'm pushing 50 and probably will never do till the end of my days.

[@DisturbedFox137]

me too 😅 i'm from northern/middle germany and my family does it but i just can't as if my body just isn't able to do it 😂

[@MeLostInArt]

That was so much fun! I hadn't realised that the R is often not pronounced, but helps shape the preceding vowel in pronunciation, so it has an influence on how the vowel is pronounced. I always assumed that only the French write letters that they don't speak. Your attempts to pronounce Brot (bread) or Braten (roast) almost killed me. I've watched a lot of your clips in the last few days while working on my computer. I like your frank, open and interested manner. Keep it up.

[@herrbonk3635]

I'm just Swedish, but I belive I say brötchen with exactly the same sound as you say brother. If you do that, the Germans will understand you perfectly :)😊 For the ö-sound, you can use the vowel sound in English 'stir' or 'learn'.

[@insu_na]

the tricky thing I think is that the R in German uses a glottal stop, which is unheard of in English (not the glottal stop, just the combination)

[@HartmutRick]

The glottal stop appears before words starting with a vowel, or in words like Rühr-ei, after the end of the first component of a composite word whose second component starts with a vowel. It has nothing to do with the R.

[@philippprime6844]

The pronunciation of the "R" depends on where it appears in the word - at the beginning and in the middle of the word it is the German "R" sound. At the end of a word, especially the ending "-er" as in "Lehrer" or "Wasser" is pronounced similarly to the German "A" (like the first letter in "Apfel"). This is the official standard pronunciation and not colloquial language. And how intensively the “R” is rolled and with which method (tongue or palate) depends on where in Germany you grew up.

[@Lisa-xn9xc]

The r is often almost silent, especially in the -er ending. But we we try to speak clearly, we try not to skip it so it's even pronounced 'harder' than it should be. That's exactly what happened in this video. You could notice that most of them pronounced the r diffferent in the word they should read out than in the words they just used for their explanation.

[@KingKalas]

My old Japanese teacher (German guy) once told me how he teached Japanese the German R Sound, as their R is again different (between L and R). Just take some water in your mouth and start gurgling, than try the same without any water. All of my pupils learned the R really fast that way! Just be careful not to overdo it :D

[@CM-ey7nq]

German, French, Danish, Dutch (mostly), large portions of Norway (South and South West/West, some places in the South of Sweden, I've most certainly left out many places).. We pronounce R the "guttural" way and still survive just fine :) Oh, and Israel of course. They do it too.

[@miss_walderdbeere]

German teacher here: The r at the end of a syllibal is never pronounced in standart german. So its not slang at all not to pronounce them. It would even be wrong to do so.

[@gwalon2089]

It's so funny how proud he looked as he pronounced "Lehrer" as "Lechreh" which was probably the worst of all his tries. 😂

[@luh034]

I am very suprised how much of sounding german comes down to the "R" sound. Because once you kinda got the hang of it towards the end you pronounced some words absolutely flawlessly!

[@GibAuf]

I like the sentence "Der braune Braten brutzelt in der Bratpfanne" (The brown roast sizzles in the frying pan)

[@wernerclarssen2939]

Go on like this Ryan! Nice video! As a German I must say, it's funny to think about this pronouncing stuff because in your daily life you just don't realize all that! The best R words are literally that once starting within R !

[@Anna-i9u8t]

That was so funny! How did I miss that video 10 weeks ago? I imagined while you were going "RRRR" "hrrrrrrh" "rrrrrrr" your wife standing behind the door listening. And then shaking her head slightly and leaving. That's what I do when my husband behaves strangely behind a closed door...

[@stef987]

Don't worry too much about the r. Oftentimes it's just dropped nowadays, anyway, or done in a way that makes it sound less prominent. The r sound in the video is the one used in Standard German. There are dialects that roll the r in the same way or in a similar way to how it's done in Romanic languages. I also think the High German r is a bit similar to the French r. If you want to try, maybe try using a sip of water or some spit to generate that sound in the back of your throat with the back of your tongue (don't drown, though😉). As a native German speaker, I myself need a bit spit if I want to make the r sound properly. Though I very rarely use the proper pronounciation. I think some people in the video too weren't used to properly roll the r, that's why they had trouble with some words and the pronounciations always sounded a bit different. If the r is (at the end of the word) behind a vowel, it's basically not pronounced, or at least not actually rolled (maybe it used to be, not sure). Many people for example say "Wassa" and "Lehra" rather than "Wasser" or "Lehrer" (the er sound is pronounced differently from the a sound). 5:56 sorry, but no, it's not like that, unless you want to sound like a stereotypical Hollywood villain played by an actor who never spoke German in his life before.😅 6:22 that was closer.🙂 With "Brötchen" you need not only to roll the r, but also pronounce the ch sound. That's probably not one of the easier words. If done properly, it doesn't hurt and isn't uncomfortable in any way.

[@twofinedays]

'r' is usually one of the most characteristic and thus tricky consonant in European language family. Spanish and Italian 'r' tend to roll at the tip of the tongue (but then I think there're difference between 'r' and 'rr(double r)'. French and German 'r' tend to be more gloatal, but there are difference depending on whether the r is at the beginning, middle or end of the word. American, British, Irish English 'r' are also all quite different and even between regions.

[@eucitizen78]

You are not pathetically at all. You are doing well on many words.🙂👍

[@mikegill4038]

in french we have the same "r" ! But in german , it depends where the r is placed in the word ! If the r is the last letter , you don"t roll it and it sounds more like an "a"

[@nataschapollmitz322]

I was born and raised in the middle of Hesse. Still living there for 43 years. - A lot of other germans are laughing when they hear our accent, because of the strong r-sound we use. Stronger than all the others. 😅 I still think, we are the Scotts of Germany. 😂

[@hessin3027]

Laut dem hessischen Comedien Johannes Scherer ( in einer Karnevalssitzung) gibt es dort das „R“ in Wörtern, wo sonst keine sind. Beispiel: Barnarne ;)

[@nataschapollmitz322]

@@hessin3027 M-hm. Auch schon gehört: Nar-tar-schar. So extrem ist es drei Dörfer weiter. 😂

[@DramaQueenMalena]

The letter r (the phonogramm) is very interesting from a linguistic point of view. It's pronounced very differently in different languages. There's an interesting Wikipedia article about the rhotic consonant.

[@sachmetmuller1298]

In southern German regions, the German "r" is pronounced more clearly than further north. That's why the video sounds so different depending on where the people are from. In some regions of Germany, especially in the west, the "r" when followed by a consonant is pronounced more like an "a" (German pronunciation of the vowel), i.e. "geane" instead of "gerne". But if the "r" is followed by a vowel, it is always spoken audibly everywhere. And as already correctly recognized, the "r" at the end of words is often not pronounced. and sound more like an "a". But this can also be observed in a similar way in other languages. What is important is how the German "r" sounds when spoken audibly, it is slightly throaty and "dry", in contrast to the rolled Italian/Spanish "r".

[@derramboralf6404]

Hi Ryan. There are a lot of R-types in Germany belonging to the region. What in this video was spoken is: Hochdeutsch. At the end of the word the R is normally dropped. The R in the middle of the word is more like the CH in Germany. It’s like you got a salad leaf too far back on your tongue and you try to blow it out of your mouth, but shorter. A word beginning with R, the R is more spoken like that gargle sound but softer and shorter. This is Hochdeutsch. Buuut!!! There are dialects. 1. Every R is spoken like the English R. Even the last one. Sometimes there can be heard a R where no R is written: Jeanette -> JeaRnette. 2. Middle and last Rs are dropped: Arbeiter (worker) -> Abbeite (wo‘ke‘). 3. the R is spoken like in Sweden. Rolling with the tongue tip. And that’s only the letter R. Stay to Hochdeutsch, it’s difficult enough.

[@ftrueck]

To practice the german R try to snore. If you can snore very loud by intention, try it while exhaling. When you master this, you understand how the german R works. The snoring-area in your throat is the area where the german R gets formed.

[@SakuraKuromi]

I have the feeling how strongly the r is rolled, differs not only through the regions, but also from person to person. At my time in the choir, wer were always told to over-pronounce the Rs (but as well the Ts, Ds, Ks and such - these are the letters that get sometimes lost) as there is often a small echoing for the people hearing us (it was a church choir). Whenever we were (once again) told to focus on it, it always sounded extremely funny xD

[@Rai_Te]

Hi Ryan, at least you can say you tried. And, you certainly have improved your 'german-r-skills' in this video. (Whatever that is good for in real live).

[@steffahn]

The r is never silent, it just has two variants, depending on its position in words, and in one of three two variants it's a vowel quite similar to a German "a". (Technically, "near-open central vowel", with IPA [ɐ].) This applies regularly to "r" at the end of syllables, where it's typically following another vowel. It also applies to endings spelled "-er" at the end of syllables, where the whole combination "-er" is pronounced with this single "a"-like sound. (Unless it's the end or beginning of a word, It's hard to fully determine which "r"s are at the end of a syllable FROM WRITING ALONE, as you need to understand the composition of words in compounds or with suffixes/prefixes to determine this.) Because it's similar to "a", word endings "-ar" sound almost indistinguishable from just a long "a", which is the reason the people in this video perceive the "r" in "gar nicht" as silent.

[@paulbeneder9337]

The firs mistake is to believe that German could be „easy“.😅 If there is an obstacle on the road when you come along with your car: „Umfahren“ is the opposite of „umfahren“. Have a nice day! 😁😁😁

[@dermenschnr5221]

It's actually a bit hard to explain because our R is used differently. They teach you to roll it but we actually never really roll it. Often times it's more of a very soft "ch" sound or spoken like "eh-ah" (imagine "air" but spoken short and without the hard R)

[@patrickstahle9632]

There are 3 ways to pronounce r und all 3 a used in German. the throated one is prob the most common, but it is definitly the German signiture r. In words in which r as "er" is at the end of words, like "Wasser" oder "Mutter" you create the sound like a vocal, thats why it often sounds like a German "a". But most of the time you German dialect determine how you pronounce your r's.

[@tsurutom]

If someone pronounces an audible [r] in "leer", that sounds different than anything you've heard because it's plain wrong. It's not casual at all to "swallow" the [r], but the standard pronunciation. To be precise, it's not silent, but "vocalized": the whole thing becomes something akin to an [a]. In IPA, it's written [ɐ]. Most importantly and the first step to sound more like a native speaker is to be aware that the sound is 100% a vowel, not a consonant.

[@Strakin]

Southern German "R" is a rolling R, made with the tongue in front of the mouth, Rest of Germany speaks the "Gaumen-R", its made in the throat. So very different. I had to learn the Gaumen-R in actors shool and it was hard to learn for me (im from Bavaria).

[@dekjet]

In turn, Germans struggle to pronounce the American R sound. Except for one region where there's a local dialect that happens to use the American style R sound. I can't remember which dialect that, though.

[@doenerjb]

Till Lindemann from Rammstein is rolling the "R" perfect 🤣🤣

[@MichasWelten]

"Brot und Brötchen, Braten und Brühe bringt die Braut dem Bräutigam" This is a common training sentence for people in speech training such as actors or singers. It encourages rolling every single R in the sentence. It is meant to be spoken in an upbeat tempo like a hopping tone.

[@Joanne-t6j]

Now you’ve got me sitting here (in Australia) trying to pronounce German rrrs.

[@christinehorsley]

😂

[@tomkronberger8710]

Greetings from german speaking Australia upps Austria😂😂😂😂

[@micha_el_]

My local german dialect uses the "english" pronunciation of the r. Made learning to speak English just a bit easier😅 I think if you tried speaking German but keep the english r, you could maybe pass as a local

[@j.a.1721]

Oh really? Where? I was not aware any dialect uses the English r, that's so interesting :)

[@metalafro]

Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrromanian here, this was funny 😂😂 watched the whole thing too 🤣🤣

[@MellonVegan]

Don't listen to what virtually all these people are saying in the video. They don't know linguistics, so what they're saying here is quite far from the true sound they're making. There are different versions of the German R. In this video, everyone is overemphasising it, so you're not really getting the right impression. It's much more subtle. And barely anyone ever uses the uvular trill (that's what the sound in the video is called) in regular words (usually just for emphasis). It's a uvular fricative, usually. In the North. It's the same sound as in French. In the South, it's a trill of the tongue, like in most Romance languages. 6:45 Yes, roughly. But there are differences in the nuances. 7:09 Yeah, exactly. Bc people think in rigid and simple rules but actual speech is different.

[@LC19.]

As a German I don't even use the "rrrr" sound for the letter R, I pronounce it more like "ea"

[@userAndix]

I think this type of video helps you a lot in pronounciation, its good for you to learn what parts of a word are important while speaking and what parts can vary. And also in general hearing different persons say the word is good

[@uwesauter2610]

There are two main ways of pronouncing the consonate "R". One is formed in the throat and causes the larynx to vibrate (Rachen-R). You can feel it with your hand on your larynx. It usually occurs in the word "Herren". The other type is formed by vibration of the tip of the tongue (Zungen-R). It is used, for example, when coming from the consonant "T" or "D". For example, with the word “Thron”. Depending on the person, the change follows their own habits. There is no rule to use one R here and the other R there. You can also see in the video that it is used depending on your mood and habits. When singing chorally, the Zungen-R should be used. The way Americans pronounce the R in “Jesus Christ” is perfectly fine.

[@Kokuswolf]

I love your reactions here! Very funny!

[@esrohm6460]

the interesting thing is that there are arguments to be made that one of the 2 r's we use in german is also a vowel. thats probably where the biggest issue lies. that symbol of "r" isn't even remotely representing the same letter

[@pascalnitsche8746]

You didn’t hear the r in „Wasser“ because the „er“ at the end of words in German often gets contracted to „a“ if not explicitly pronounced very clearly. - basically what the guy tried to explain for „Lehrer“ (teacher)

[@mumsderdampfer8517]

So you're smart enough to remember everything from Volker Pispers Part 1 - congratulations or don't wait too long for part 2

[@Bearded-northern-guy]

coming from the northwestern part of germany, we (where i grew up) actually do pronounce the rolling R far more than those in the video. but thats more because due to the influence of the dialect. so i'm someone who grew up in a household where mostly the dialect was spoken i do pronounce it quite prominent as well.

[@Orbitalbomb]

off of the people on the street, didn’t even realize that there is an R at the start of Rührei. they focussed on the almost silent R in the middle

[@dnny1440]

Yo Ryan bro please watch this back, that was absolutely hilarious 😂😂

[@armitage9204]

It's pronounced like a German A in (I think) many cases. Lots of Germans (at least in the northern part) say Mea instead of Meer, or lea instead of leer. The R at the beginning of a word should be "rolled" always. But even the word verregnet is more pronounced like vea-regnet and not ver-regnet. Regnet comes from Regen/regnen which means rain/raining and verregnet is just made out of two words. It should be clear now why the first R is pronounced more like a German A and the second R should be rolled in verregnet. Maybe it's lazyness or hastiness but I only roll the R at the beginning of a word as long as I don't pronounce a word that is made of two words. And I don't hear people talk differently.

[@beetle-pz9lv]

I am from the south of Germany (Bavaria) and we mostly roll the "R" like Italians, in the front of the mouth. I can actually purr like a cat! 😆No surprise I find Italian the most beautiful sounding language.

[@Tiborg1973]

We are not Germans,but we're living in Germany for a long time and my son (5) was born here.Some time ago the Kindergarten decided that my son has to go to Logopäde because he can't pronounce the letter R.After weeks and weeks of learning the woman there said to me that my son achieved das R very quickly.So,after 3 months i can proudly say that my son can't say R anymore and it seems like everybody is satisfied with it 😂😂😂

[@losarpettystrakos7687]

If you want to learn how to pronounce something, the worst thing you can do is to ask random people on the street, because after that you will be more confused than before. ;-) This is actually quite simple: before a vowel it is pronounced as voiced uvular fricative [ʁ] e.g. Rand [ʁant], rot [ʁot], rest [ʁest]. In any other case (unless you want to specifically emphasize it), it's not pronounced as a consonant at all. Instead it's pronounced as a near-open central vowel [ɐ], also known as a-schwa (the closest thing you can find in English is probably the British pronunciation of r at the end of a word, like in car or far). If the word ends with -er, like Mutter both letters are pronounced as as single vowel ['mutɐ], NOT ['muteɐ]. In the word Lehrer mentioned in the video, we can see both variants of this letter: ['le:ʁɐ]. Of course, you need a lot of practice to actually pronounce these sounds correctly, if they don't exist in your language (for French speakers it's easy, because they know this sound). But the question, which sound to pronounce in which case is really that simple. And of course this is only the standard German (Hochdeutsch), in numerous regional accents the pronunciation may be completely different, especially in southern regions like Bavaria. Many native speakers from Bavaria pronounce r as a flap o even as a trill (similar to Italian, Spanish or Russian).

[@Vargskinn]

As a German teacher, I find it funny that you seem more aware than most of the actual Germans how the vocalized R works. Congrats!

[@analholes77]

Like in British Englisch in German the "r" isn't really pronounced when it follows a vowel and closes a syllable. In standard British English beer is pronounced more like Beea, and in German Bier is pronounced more like Biea, actually the same pronunciation. The English "r" is pronounced differently from the German "r" but the rule when to pronounce it and when not in SBE is the same as in German, while most Americans pronounce every written "r". Basically in German and SBE it is only pronounced when starting a word or syllable and in consonant clusters like "br...", "tr..." ”str..." etc. I would say that's the easiest to notice difference in BE and AE. There are actually two ways to pronounce the "r" depending on where it stands in a word. Most Germans aren't aware of it, and if you talk about it with a know-it-all kind of person, they just role the "r" where ever it stands when trying examples, just like some did in the video when focusing to hard on the pronunciation of the German "r" without noticing they are pronunciation of unnaturally and actually wrong in words like "Mutter". Of course in BE and in German there are regional differences. One of my teachers from a different region pronounced "Sport" more like Spocht, when the standard pronunciation would be more like Spoat.

[@andreasrothenhauser5352]

I think you did really well, actually. R is not easy to pronounce for Germans as well. That's why it is not or only partially in many cases.

[@naselp5171]

In English the tip of the tounge goes up when you pronnounce the 'r'. In Germany the tounge press to the bottom in you mouth. Then you need to speek the 'r' from the back of you throught to get the Sound. Try it with the brand: 'Rolex'

[@hellemarc4767]

The sound is made with the soft palate, in the back of the mouth, a little like when you're gargling. It's close to the "ch" in "lachen" or "machen", but with a light thrill. The soft palate is vibrating, the tongue doesn't move at all (whereas with the "ch" in "lachen", there is no thrill). The French "r" is quite similar. So yes, sometimes you almost don't hear it, in the middle of words, it often sounds like "ch". But "Rührei" ("scrambled egg") is an exception, there is a "schwa" in the middle of the word, rather than an actual "r", in most cases (it sounds like "rü-uh-eye") Some German dialects, like Bavarian, roll the "r", like the Italians (the Austrians do, too), and I remember that my grandparents (who were born in the early 1900s, not in Bavaria) used to roll the "r"s as well, although nowadays it's no longer done (people born soon before or after WWII don't do it anymore). Some linguists believe that the "real" German "r" used to be rolled, and that the pronunciation nowadays was "imported" from the French, little by little. When you listen to "Schlager" (German music) from the 1960s, the English "r" was used by almost every singer. The "r" at the end of words is not pronounced, like in British English, especially when it precedes an "e" (like "Mutter" = "mother"). This sound is called a "schwa" (you can google it). It's like when, in a conversation, you don't find the right word, and you fill it with a "uh" (not sure about the spelling, but such words or sounds are actually called "fillers" or "verbal tics", people who for instance say things like "you know", or "like", etc. all the time. They often even catch on, people who hang together often catch such verbal tics from others). I was looking for medical imagery when speaking the sound, so that you can see what's going on inside the mouth, and I found this interesting video where a woman shows all the sounds of the German language, with pictures of what goes on inside the mouth (it's 38 minutes long, I haven't watched it yet to find exactly when she talks about the "r", but I'm going to watch it right now). But all in all, don't worry too much. Just learn the language, nobody will care if you don't pronounce the "r" like everybody else. People will understand you, anything else won't matter. Here's the video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/lX7TeWuLaciNmZosi=hU7OrZqgJcC4nkAh

[@kevstruction1223]

For me as a swiss guy speaking swiss german, the german's "R" sounds very soft. But i think it's because we pronounce every "R" in a word like a strong "R"

[@Ohjeezno]

Here in The Netherlands the pronunciation of R is about the same as German, but also French, as the girl in the video explains. Italian and Spanish R's are more formed in the front of the mouth with the tongue, in Germany and The Netherlands we vibrate our tonsils at the back of our throats wich gives it that raspy sound. English speakers (both Brits and Americans) have never learned to do so, that's why it is very distinguishable when an English speaking person speaks our language, although they may have lived here for years. Some are getting pretty good, though. Like the girl from the channel Dutch Americano

[@AC-dn7yq]

😄 sounds pretty good for the beginning. some where perfect. to much intesion ;o) as a sidenote: most languages are "designed" for easy speak, eg a spanish sentense to my ears sounds like one word in a birdsong. German on the other hand is focused on clear words sharply seperated for optimized understanding. kind of. and it platforms for those famous compound words like Jahresendgeschenksackträger

[@SaRah-21532]

12:21 The 'gar nicht' was really good! You're getting really good at the 'ch' as well.

[@i_can_c_u_2295]

I once noticed, when you loudly clear your throat, there is one moment, where you pronounce the r. Just concentrate to that spot, because there is the spot where the r is „produced“.

[@DaGuys470]

The further north you go, the less you roll the R. Where I grew up no one even thinks about rolling the R. It's just a subtle palatal sound, which is produced by slightly narrowing the throat, blowing air through it and simultaneously trying to say something along the lines of "uh" (or A, as we Germans would write it).

[@SpamHamEggs]

From a native german: Think of the english word "heir", which has an almost-silent "h" at the beginning and a soft ending. Now remove the almost-silent "h" from the beginning, and put the emphasis on the ending, thus removing its softness. Et voilà: You got the sound of the german "R".

[@carlisophie]

Super funny episode by you, Ryan! 😂

[@milianhardt2652]

A friend of mine studied linguistics and explained to me that i.e. the „E“ has iirc 20 different ways to be pronounced in the German language.

[@xnoreq]

If you think that Germans mispronounce some letters then you should not look up Bavarian / Austrian dialects. We not only skip letters, we change/skip entire syllables and use some different words altogether. I think it's mostly about comfort and laziness, being able to say a lot while barely having to open your mouth.

[@afjo972]

0:19 you’ve watched like 50 videos about Germany and you’ve heard Germans speaking their language… where have you heard them pronouncing the „r“ the American way?

[@stef987]

It kind of reminded me of my grandfather, though, who was a war prisoner of the Brits during/after the war, which meant for some time he was surrounded by people speaking English every day. When someone later asked him how the r is pronounced in English, he said "the same as in German".

[@77dreimaldie0]

Love how that one woman assumed-with absolute conviction-that the German "R" was simply the default. And everyone internationally must be aware that their Rs are a bit off the norm

[@afjo972]

1:13 please don’t. Bavarians roll the „r“. They say they don’t even speak German

[@leobeck8074]

This warm light looks fantastic!

[@LythaWausW]

LOL " even Germans don't know what they're doing."

[@MsPataca]

It's normal, people speak their mother tongue naturally, without thinking about what they're doing or why.

[@TF2CrunchyFrog]

German has the socalled "rhotic R". Some regional accents in USA do also still use the rhotic R! But Germans roll the R only slighty in the North, it gets stronger when you get to Swabia, Bavaria, and to Austria and Switzerland. I mean, we _can_ roll the R really exaggeratedly if we want to, but that's usually only done if you want to sound theatrical. And British people can roll or trill the R, too, just listen to the voice actor voicing the character of Cazador Szarr in Baldur's Gate 3 video game... or course, Czador is a 400+ year old vampire. So they went for some old-fashioned sounding pronunciation for that character.

[@Al69BfR]

There is a whole region in the middle of Germany where they pronounce „r“ exactly like Americans do. From a distance you can‘t tell wether they are Americans or Westerwälder just from listening to them speaking. So in Germany basically there are at least 4 ways to pronounce „r“. As „a“ like in „Meer“, more in your throat like the middle „r“ in „Lehrer“, let it roll that your „Zäpfchen“ seems to swing back and forth as fast as a starting airplane and make it sounds like a F1 Ferrari starting from pole position, or the American way.

[@Cheruka]

I am 36 years old, and I live 31 years in germany. I still cannot speak the german hochdeutsch R. I still use the russian R which is the same like the italian one. So there is a reason people in the video are confused. And do not forget. The video is made in Berlin. Franks in Bavaria use the hardest rolling Rs. Because of my russian roots, poeple always ask me if I am a frank. "I always say, no I'm not even german"

[@eyeofthasky]

Some of your attempts were really good! You can "roll" an R-like sound in almost all places U have dangly bibbly bits and pieces, sowith the tongue Tip, or with the thing that hangs in ur throat, or even with ur lips. The difference is language usually only use one of those places for rolling and dont know the others. Almost all languages use the tongue tip for that, only french German dutch danish (all in one area mind u) _and_ hebrew use the throaty one -- thought they differ in how strong or subtle it is done

[@moreInkOre]

Made my day! xD well done Ryan! (There is a tiny Murlock in many Germans it seems - I'm fine with that :D heheh grlrrgrl) I also imagine you had to really think about pronunciation, when learning to pronounce the American way to say "R" when learning your name back then, right? It comes naturally after a while. Oh! Something I always got weirded out by as a German, was when I heard "Germans" talk in English shows/movies. They ALWAYS had a Bavarian in there whom I didn't even understand. /o\ It's so different!

[@bastiennietveld7128]

😅 Grrrreat! In the north of the Netherlands we use à rolling 'r' ( like in the south of France) with the point of the tongue. The air pushed from the back of the throat fibrating the tip of the tong against the back of your frontteeth. Very impressive !

[@RalfJosefFries]

In german we have an old saying: "rede, wie dir der Schnabel gewachsen ist..." (translated: Speak like your "pecker" is grown...) - and I am sure if you ask "normal" people - means: no germanists, no teachers, no linguistic specialists - you will quickly discover that there are some 100 000 000 different ways (that´s the number of people that speak some kind of german as their native language) to speak german - at least (because many german-speakers even have different styles to speak german - especially the consume of alcoholic fluids can changed the kind of german you are speaking and how you pronounciate things in an very astonishing way) !

[@pragmatastic]

Moral of the story: don't ask people on the street about language. Here are the basics: don't pronounce the 'r' at the end of a word or the end of a syllable. It can alter the vowel sound, but that's all. Elsewhere, pronounce it 'at the back', basically the same as French (but normally less grating). Don't try to roll it at the back, as only newsreaders do that. Only roll it at the front if you're Bavarian.