The Flap T! American English Pronunciation

[@rachelsenglish]

Good ear. That is a True T b/c of the syllable -- it begins a syllable with secondary stress, and any time the T is beginning a stressed (even secondarily stressed) syllable, it's a True T (like 'attend').

[@rachelsenglish]

This sound is made with the tip of the tongue. Best, Rachel

[@rachelsenglish]

It sounds like that to you because of your native language. The Flap T / Flap D in American English sounds like the R in Spanish. But it doesn't sound anything like the R in American English. :)

[@rachelsenglish]

Watch the video on how to make the T and D sounds -- then make the T between vowels like the D. Best, Rachel

[@rachelsenglish]

Yes, both of those words will usually have the Flap T when spoken by Americans. Flap T sounds just like the R in some languages, so depending on your native language, you're exactly right.

[@rachelsenglish]

1) What you're hearing is the T merging with the D to make just one sound: wuh-duh (...you think? you need? etc) 2) That wouldn't sound right. T followed by 'you' can make a ch sound: He won't forge-chew. I have a video on that. :)

[@rachelsenglish]

Thanks for your question. I write those words in IPA with an əɹ ending, which does put the T between two sounds. Can you say the word DRINK properly? If so, drill the dr, dr, dr sound. Then slowly add it to the word: LEH-dr, LEH-dr. Letter.

[@rachelsenglish]

Hi Tomas, Good for you for doing such great work on your accent! The only way to keep from loosing your English skills is to keep using English --- watch TV if possible, but also keep talking, even if you're just talking out loud to yourself! Reading and writing important too.

[@rachelsenglish]

I'm not sure I understand your question! But when T is with H like in THINK, THROUGH, etc, it's a different case.

[@rifataraurmi9908]

hi. I am Bari. from bangladesh. actually how time is needed to learn English. please.

[@rachelsenglish]

Thanks for your question. The flap d sound is the same as the flap T. :)

[@JustTonio]

I think flap T is very similar to our Spanish single "r" when it's between vowels (phoneme /ɾ/). I just pronounce this /ɾ/ with a quick movement of my tongue, like tapping the roof of my mouth.

[@rachelsenglish]

Both 'literally' and 'literal' have the same kind of T, a flap. I pronounce 'liter' and 'leader' the same way. 'Litter' has a different vowel. (ee vs. ih)

[@rachelsenglish]

Yes, a flap T sounds like a D between two vowels: matter = madder. That's why I use the [d] symbol for it.

[@rachelsenglish]

Yes, it's not really the same as D as in 'day', but the same as a D between vowels. (So, matter = madder.)

[@rachelsenglish]

1) What you're hearing is the T merging with the D to make just one sound: Whuh-duh-yuh-think? 2) That wouldn't sound right. T followed by 'you' can make a ch sound: He won't forge-chew. I have a video on that. :)

[@rachelsenglish]

Thank you!! :)

[@cb7324]

It's nice to see Stuyvesant Park again. I lived across the street on 15th St for 10 years. The changing seasons are so beautiful there. And I loved to feed the squirrels. Such characters!

[@rachelsenglish]

Thank you @cb7324!

[@rachelsenglish]

Do you mean in IPA? There is a symbol that some use for the flap T. I chose to use [d] because 'matter' sounds the same as 'madder' and I wanted to keep it simple.

[@rachelsenglish]

Yes!

[@carlosbruce1155]

2023 and I'm here watch this Wonderful vídeo. Thanks , Rachel.❤😊

[@rachelsenglish]

You're so welcome Carlos!

[@rachelsenglish]

I am not originally from New York. I've lived in a variety of regions throughout the US.

[@rachelsenglish]

There are rules for when flap a T -- check out the link at :27 in the video above. METAL -- you can flap that T, and most Americans will: [ˈmɛd əl]

[@rachelsenglish]

That one comes after an R and before a vowel. I have a video on that -- do a KZbin search on "rachels english party"

[@valdezenglishcourses]

Excellent video and your explanation is very good. You are right when you say that the sounds are linked and if there is a vowel sound after the t a flat t sound is produced when we speak English.

[@marianoaguirre5857]

Very good video Mrs. Raquel, thank you very much 💯!

[@rachelsenglish]

You're very welcome Mariano and thanks for joining our membership community! :)

[@rachelsenglish]

Yes, it's like a Spanish R, but like an American D. It's not at all like the American R.

[@rachelsenglish]

Both of these phrases are grammatically correct! But, most likely a speaker would use a contraction: I've just thought of another.

[@rachelsenglish]

It's not incorrect, but in America it won't sound quite right. I believe in the UK they always use a True T.

[@ebtsamhussien6134]

You are the best Rachel

[@samurai50062]

I put thumb up before video starts because I know your videos are really great, thanks so much Rachel

[@sunlight9574]

This video is so amazing that I'm watching it in 2021.

[@rachelsenglish]

Thank you!

[@rachelsenglish]

That is because the R in your native language sounds likes the T or D between vowels in English ... But the American R sounds nothing like this sound. :)

[@zoubirboukhedra129]

Thank you Reachels for this lesson about flap "T"! What a lovely landscape in new York ! Are you in spring season?

[@rachelsenglish]

Hello! Thank you! We are still waiting for Spring at the moment - Winter has stayed longer than expected!

[@chh295]

Good examples of how English vowel sounds go beyond the five orthographic vowels (a, e, i, o, and u).

[@nguyenhuuanhtuan5360]

We love you Rachel

[@rachelsenglish]

Thanks you!

[@nguyenhuuanhtuan5360]

Now I'm student so I don't have opportunity to donate for your Rachel's English learning american accent system but I'll when I have a job and make money because I really like your lesson which help me a lot at school when I'm speaking toward my class. In a word, Thank you very much Rachel :) . Love the U.S.A

[@hellocambridge.hellobritai2026]

I have shared this with my friends from Pakistan. They really really like u

[@rachelsenglish]

Thanks a lot for sharing!

[@michaelluvu7117]

hi,so in pretty the e is semi-long e and you don't wanna make it too long. another question is the i vowel in the word city the same as the i vowel in words like did or sit

[@KaremRaad]

It's a pretty video .

[@rachelsenglish]

Thanks for watching @KaremRaad!

[@roquejr83]

Hi Rachel, It's just an observation about the following phrase: "I just thought of another" , that I saw in this excellent video. My question is , the correct way would be -> I have just thought of another

[@rachelsenglish]

Unfortunately, there is no rule! :(

[@hawraaalhilali1092]

you are the best .

[@rachelsenglish]

Thanks!

[@radmaj78]

Thank you

[@rabeemotar8007]

If it were in my hand I would give you the biggest award Noble Rabee from Iraq

[@rachelsenglish]

Thanks!

[@dhaka4040]

Already heard such t's pronounced as d's. But just learnt they are called Flap T's. Thanks Rachel.

[@hamedalbar]

thank you very much

[@iamdmitrii]

I noticed that it’s not D sound, it’s sound at alveolus who starts like T, but the tip of the tongue almost doesn’t touch alveolus. I suppose it’s not same. I don’t know, maybe just in my language “D” is more colorful so.

[@jihunbak2025]

Thank you!

[@hungpure]

Your videos are so helpful. Thank you :D

[@naveenroshan4530]

Hi Rachel can u please make a vedio on how to pronounce aren't

[@nicoachkasov]

Thanks

[@elmastone1672]

Thank you! But I am still so confused about the word "pretty"

[@phoenicius]

I think flap T is a mixture of D sound and R sound. As an Arab I hear it as D and sometime as R.

[@menglee4338]

hey rachel thank you so much for answering!i figure it out tho!the"t" in little is between "I"and "l",while "L"is half vowl.

[@rachelsenglish]

Hmm. That doesn't sound right to me.

[@farshadshad1]

awesome...thanks a lot

[@tomasemilio]

Dear Rachel, I hope you get to read this message. I have one little question. I lived the US for quite a long time (I'm a spanish speaker) and with your videos, a lot of practice and effort I could speak almost like a native "californian". Now, I'm back in my country and I am afraid of losing my English. Any advice on how to keep it? Thank you, I love your videos. Tomas.

[@PabloFernandez-rp8ie]

Thanks for the videos, very nice!!

[@englishhobby1870]

Love the lesson, very informative. Can you show some words those are starting a stressed syllable in between the 2 vowels? Thank you in advance.

[@TheDoom75]

Amazing the New York City ! Nice Video

[@rodml]

Hi Rachel, love your videos. Why not include the flap D also? Is is gonna be covered in another video? Thanks.

[@briandweiss2451]

Cool video, People from eastern europe, spain/sth america, arab countries and indians struggle with flap t.. its really hard to learn..I know people hwo live in US for decades and still have trouble with this sound How abt words 'photo' and 'pattern'...they become phoddo and padern? I actually hate saying these words as im afraid if i use too much 'd' or 'r'...or if i use real 't' sound, it wont sound good. BTW,To me it sounds more like 'R' then 'd'.

[@kinganand2080]

Hi Rachel , I saw your many videos n I've learned many things .Now i m going to take an IELTS test next month, Will American Accent help me to get excessive band in IELTS or should I learn British Accent? Pls reply me.

[@nicoachkasov]

Can you teach how to pronounce and link 'ther' endings?

[@gikon79]

2:25>> Rachel, look at this tree! Isn't it so pretty?

[@sidneyrodrigues6198]

aaaa Peguei a manha eh igual um R do espanhol ''pero'' so que quando vc tiver rolando esse R vc tem q coloca um d sutil no final fikaria Prehdy ou algo assim. Vai a dica ai para os brasileiros...

[@mohamedhussein3433]

Thanks! But I hear words like "ninety, seventy" with a flap T although the T within them is not between vowels. Also, in a sentence like ' second of" I heard flap D. Please highlight this case.

[@kelberadriangutierrezramos550]

Hi, Rachel, greetings from Peru. I have a question: The flap "T" is like a Latin "( r )" ? Thans very much for your answer.

[@yyjbf]

how about “relative”，“meeting”， are them a falp T ？

[@rachelsenglish]

Hi! Yes, you can use a Flap T for those! :)

[@leninastrojildo]

I can't hear any [d] sound in the word as little, pretty, and matter, instead I hear a sound alike the [r] in the words as bury, very, Larry, berry. Has the flap [t] a really [d] sound dear Rachel? Am I wrong? Am I right? I don't no. I'm confused!! By the way. Rachel For President ♦2012♦ I ♥ Rachel's English Channel.

[@ahmadhandasa]

@rachelsenglish Hello Rachel, Thanks for your support ! I have a Q which is : When do we pronounce TH sound as /t/ as in ( Thomas ,Thompson, Thompstone, Thomson, Thun, Thuron, Lesotho, Thames, Thai, and thyme ) ! Is there any rule for it .? Kind regards,

[@mohammedalsulaiman5903]

Love it

[@shanghaipurplenite]

How about the word "sweater"? Should we flap the t & change it to a "d" sound?

[@gidalvopinheiro-ho5qb]

Boca linda sim prof ❤❤❤❤

[@jimmypk1353]

Beautiful spring day, but not as beautiful as U. And yes, that tree is really pretty, still; not as pretty as U.

[@rachelsenglish]

Ha! Thanks Jimmy!

[@jimmypk1353]

@@rachelsenglish Thank you for replying. Just wanna add that your channel is an indispensable resource for learning American English. You are a great teacher, an inspiration and a role model. Sincerest Respect!

[@0804198508041985]

👋👋👋Rachel you are too pretty in this costume

[@rafana02]

thank u Rachel for this vidos,it was really helpful, but i have a question about glottal stop, i mean when we use it?? thx

[@rachelsenglish]

They do not flap the T, so it is a true T.

[@kekkoutsutayaiku]

Thanks fogretchen greate tip ad always :) Just out of curiosity, are you originally from N.Y or some other place?

[@jegheterjonny]

Love your videos! Sometimes it can be hard for me to say words with flap T. Especially words that end with r. So I have a question; The word "daughter". When it´s pronounced the last e is silent as far as I can hear. So you go straight from the flap T the R. So it´s not really between two vowels. It can be so hard to say naturally! Same goes for the words "better", "letter" and "latter". Why is that?

[@leandrosparker4136]

hi Rachel when can T before L be omitted? ex: ATLanta-> æ´lænə or something like that. thanks

[@michaelluvu7117]

hi after thinking about the flap t sound i figured out that flap t has two sounds first is more of a clear or maybe slow D sound like in party or city or sweaty however u can pronounce city or sweaty like the second sound which is more of a less clear or faster D sound like in better or battle or water and i think you can clearly spot the difference between words like party and better which both have the flap t sound that means t flap has two sounds is it right what do you think? another question please is the flap in pretty the same as in better or party?

[@rachelsenglish]

Hi! My flap Ts feel like they are the same in all of those words! But, if I had to choose one - I would say that 'pretty' is more like 'better'! :)

[@michaelluvu7117]

thanks

[@giovanifm1984]

Hello Rachel, can I flap all Ts? is there a specific rule or exceptions? I'm a big fan of Heavy Metal music and I never heard americans saying "meDal" rather than "meTal". Thanks a lot! I love your videos! they are helping me a lot to improve my english! =)

[@awdalysaleh4045]

Rachel , you really , pretty .

[@arthurrr2006]

Great as usual, Rachel. ;) But I have 2 questions about it: 1)When I watch american movies, for ex., it sounds like in interrogative questions containing "What do you...(want/think/need)?" it occurs a flap T there. So, could you explain me what happens exactly? I mean, you "merge" the WHAT+DO resulting in "WhaDa you...?" or "cut" the auxiliary "DO" resulting in "WhaD you...?"; assuming on both these D= flap T. 2) Is it ok to put a flap T before "you" as in "he won´t forgeD you"? Thanks!

[@leninastrojildo]

I do the same thing.

[@emanueleberaldo6636]

Hi rachel could I ask how many ways are there to pronunce the flap t?...because sometimes I hear americans pronuncing it as a soft d and sometimes as an r...

[@hamedalbar]

thank you very much i just want to know do we spell the flap t exactly like d because i do not hear them the same

[@JonatanFTChannel]

Rachel, if I pronounce E in "pretty" with schwa sound, will that sound okay?

[@rachelsenglish]

Hi! Sometimes the IH as in SIT vowel and the schwa sound very similar to each other, especially when speaking quickly. However, since that syllable is supposed to be stressed (and you cannot stress a schwa sound), I think it is probably more useful to think of the vowel sound in the stressed first syllable of "pretty" as the IH as in SIT vowel.

[@ksugiarto9057]

ɪ=ee ə=uh=short ʌ /pɹədi/ = pruhdee /prɪdi/ = pridee

[@JonatanFTChannel]

@@ksugiarto9057 she already answered it, and that was absolutely clear.

[@manhhungnguyen2316]

With these words : thirty, forty, turtle, lot of,.... I always pronounce them with Flap T, do i pronounce properly?

[@Nieminez]

How do I pronounce T in words like mountain or the name Martin?

[@eleanorhare]

Is the flap t originally from AmE?

[@SweetHomeSalalah]

Is it right that literally has flap R ,and literal has stop T? I having trouble to distinguish between the following Liter(litre)~ leader~litter

[@merrick166]

I have some problems when after the flap t we have r like in matter, I just can't get it right, pls can you help me

[@shkumbinsadriu5298]

that wistle sound is breaking my nerves down.

[@JustTonio]

I was thinking about the word "military" as an exception for the flap T between vowels. Am I right?

[@NoHealerJustPain]

Is this somewhat otherwise in British English? I have heard they just drop the T letter at all, as in word le..er, letter...

[@josueeeeeee96]

I LOVE YOU

[@rachelsenglish]

Check out this video: watch?v=1FDjhKY8HwM It might help!

[@zoozo3]

thanks so much to me its like /r/ not /d/ am i right ?

[@Hiko2120]

I don't understand one think. I often hear some people pronounce some words such as 'romantic' with flap T?