Why Jonathan Ross Can't Pronounce His Rs

tomscott.com - @tomscott - Jonathan Ross is known as "Wossy". He can't say his Rs. But there's a good chance that you've got the same speech defect he does, and you don't even know it.

[@elliott2602]

Came here to laugh at Jonathan Ross, got diagnosed with a speech impediment.

[@deneb_tm]

GuitarEmber ! xD

[@TheAGLover10]

GuitarEmber ! i hope your joking cause thats not funny its very serious. its not his fault he cant say them

[@funkeypigeon]

+TheAGLover10 you're*

[@vriskaserket8058]

"its very serious" oh go stick it up where the sun don't shine, mate. There is nothing serious about it.

[@funkeypigeon]

Vriska Serket Read the rest of the comments section ;)

[@varun5059]

"I wondered as a kid why I couldn't roll my arse" - Tom Scott

[@PekaCheeki]

Not funny... *DID LAUGH*

[@endelvelt7650]

Wait it doesn't sound like arse at all, it sounds like R's

[@miming1797]

@@endelvelt7650 it's the captions, it says arse

[@Seraholethysie]

@@miming1797 Only the automatic ones.

[@Mkemcz]

Gosh that was so funny I got a cough. 😁

[@goepe3490]

American "r"s are very different, ours are way further back

[@goepe3490]

@@TheSpiritombsableye ??? ...no?

[@JhoferGamer]

@@TheSpiritombsableye are u drunk?

[@TheSpiritombsableye]

@@JhoferGamer, thank you. I couldn't find this post.

[@JhoferGamer]

@@TheSpiritombsableye np bro :)

[@TheSpiritombsableye]

@@JhoferGamer, I agree with Geope.

[@yelir64]

Tom Scott saying "Ara Ara" *gives me life*

[@No-uc6fg]

Ara ara, viewer-kun. Want to learn about linguistics?

[@duckonaroll1913]

no

[@matthew-ph6xo]

When?

[@Adam-pk7go]

@@matthew-ph6xo 1:03

[@treesap2566]

@l o l it means 'my my' in Japanese. my friends who watch a lot of anime use it a lot, but I dont know if theres any deeper meaning

[@geekinthegarden3927]

As a kid I spent years in speech therapy saying that phrase. If ever I come across a ragged rascal he's really at risk of being rendered recumbent with the rugged rock.

[@zackstevenson2923]

🤣I love this so much

[@ulalaFrugilega]

You made my day, dear Geek!

[@wintermute8315]

Haha, you may have struggled with your Rs, but not with your jokes. Well done.

[@ayochill9716]

Hey speech therapy gang! I moved to America from England when I was very young and my accent was so thicc they put me in speech therapy all the way through elementary school and a lot of middle school.

[@zeruty]

I had to do speech therapy too. I don't think it lasted longer than 1 school year but I could be wrong. I was part of the wadical wadio wegiment. I think I had a couple of other lesser problems too but I don't recall them. When I was young, I sort of spoke my own language. That's how my parents described it. My younger brother would translate for me, or so I was told. I still talk way too fast and it's hard to avoid it because I'm usually trying to get it all out before I forget what I'm saying. Adderall helps. But I can still stumble over words so easy

[@samarvora7185]

"Stwike him, centuwion, vewy woughly."

[@flamingtarantula]

😂👌

[@peNdantry]

Fwee Bwian! :D

[@adrianbaker5916]

welease wodewick!

[@jxshannon2]

@@adrianbaker5916 WeWease

[@MirAbdulWajid]

Biggus dickus

[@shockthetoast]

Wow, this explains a lot. In elementary school I had to go to speech therapy because I couldn't make an R sound. Later in middle school when I started studying Spanish I couldn't figure out why I couldn't roll my R's, and I never have managed to since then... I must have been taught to make my R sound the "wrong" way. (I wonder if that was on purpose because it was easier to overcome my speech impediment that way?) It also explains some pronunciation issues I had when I tried to learn Japanese.

[@eagle0710]

rolling an r is kinda like a d. your tongue is in the same position, but instead of allowing air to build up and releasing it, you relax your tongue and forcefulyl blow air. took me ages to figure out, i have the same speech impediment

[@wooy1701]

i have a bit of a similar thing but reverse, in dutch pronouncing the R more similar to L is the wrong way so i learned to say it correct with speach therapy and now that i also say it the V way in dutch

[@AbrahamLure]

​@@eagle0710 bro this is the easiest I've ever been able to roll my Rs, THANK YOU. Godbless the D

[@Jhud69]

I can't pronounce it at all any way and I've been going to speech therapy most of my childhood, they literally gave up on me. I just speak awkwardly in general but I don't think I was ever diagnosed with why I speak like this. Might be something with how my mouth is shaped.

[@zorentradico5659]

@@Jhud69 ever tried to growl like an animal? you might actually find the right sound just by trying. And that's why furries know their R's!

[@dbohnenberger]

I don't use either of those methods to make my "r" sound. I do it in the back of my throat.

[@ijustdocomments6777]

Same, I was so confused. My tongue isn't touching anywhere when I make it.

[@cafeinoz]

Same. I pronounce R with teeth together, lips apart and tongue at the bottom of the mouth, like a S sound. But instead of making a hiss sound, I make an Ah sound at the back of the throat and partially cut it off with what is almost a glottal stop before going into the next vowel. No one has ever said my pronunciation was weird until I pointed it out.

[@capuchinosofia4771]

Same!

[@originalhazelgreene]

Same!! Tongue is suspended in the center of my mouth. And I cannot trill. Drives me nuts when trying to speak Spanish.

[@anfield22]

i think that’s the French ‘r’

[@walaakamy]

This vid made me start doing weird sounds alone in my living room

[@prim16]

Welcome to the life of a Phonologist (linguistics branch dealing with sound changes, or phonological processes)

[@walaakamy]

@@prim16 oh I didn't know that

[@walaakamy]

@Ghosssty Yolk same,but I just realized that this is called phonology

[@demoleramera]

So long as you don't start doing weird sounds in other people's living room while crowded, I think you'll be fine

[@averagecommunist3456]

So, Tuesday

[@beesree39]

We have a clip of Scott saying bruh

[@donaldolivier6786]

Ok this is epic

[@carsonyoung752]

Time stamp? Edit: I see it now

[@lauridscm1]

2:07

[@Nugcon]

Truly a bruh moment

[@AlexanderHawley]

bruh

[@vsl5455]

The sheer diversity of rhotic sounds is incredible. It really always has made me Wonder why the hell anyone would even group them up, since they are so vastly different (take uvular trill and labio dental aproximant) they have nothing in common, but yet they are both r and appear in the same places in related languages. And now for a weird flex: I can pronounce: [r], [ɾ], [ɹ], [ɻ], [ʁ], [ʀ], [r̝] and a faroese rhotic that I don't know the ipa sign for, which is (I think) all rhotics except for the japanese one :)

[@silver6380]

The Faroese rhotic is [ʐ], which is a voiced retroflex fricative. :)

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

Oh, somebody else who can roll like a spaniard and like a dane :D

[@callmeqt1269]

but the japanese one is like the easiest one how are you out here with multiple trills and stuff but then can’t hit that one? (no offense ofc)

[@hellishlycute]

isn't [ɾ] the japanese one?

[@vsl5455]

@@hellishlycute I'm not sure, in some dialects Yes, but others use [l] instead and afaik there are some that use something inbetween the two, which is what I was referring to

[@ThePanduh94]

Rhotacism is so odd. I spent years of my childhood in speech therapy learning to roll my R's, yet whenever I am around someone with rhotacism, I begin to slip back into it unconsciously. Linguistics are cooool thanks for the information as always.

[@sanaldahatkar9264]

So when too many people have this defect, the situation somewhat becomes like "Its not a bug, its a feature"?

[@sanaldahatkar9264]

@@weakspirit_ it was just a joke. But u had a great reply!

[@sanaldahatkar9264]

@@weakspirit_ 😂

[@rileywebb4178]

That's generally his language works

[@michaelwilliamson7]

- Todd Howard

[@JonatasAdoM]

Suddenly the norm becomes the exception.

[@morii2078]

i felt so much less welsh when realising i use the english "r" lmao

[@jf2801]

I'm learning Welsh, and I can safely say, as a native English speaker, you definitely speak a VERY different language. So different, sometimes it seems made up, but somehow it works for people who grew up speaking it. Still baffles me.

[@aegisethereal3178]

How about when you realised you speaak the English language?

[@charlieyeti3800]

@@jf2801 Are you Welsh?

[@sackiesack8492]

@@SlenLen theres welsh people who only speak english

[@saulsug1066]

The majority of Welsh people don't roll their R's. Especially not the North

[@cryptofacts4u]

Can't believe 10 years went by so quick Glad for every episode you did!! Thanks for all the knowledge ☮️✌️

[@siggi8893]

This is so interesting. I work as a speech and language therapist, working in my native tongue Swedish, and I've never had a case of someone switching /r/ for anything labial. In Swedish most cases end up either with /l/ or /j/ (both alvoeolar dental in Swedish), if not dissmissing the consonant completely (which is prefectly normal in some dialects). That sheer number of Brits who ends up with a /w/ sound, really shows how different the production of one single sound can be between languages.

[@AquaticDot]

My tongue is in the middle of my mouth, not touching either teeths.

[@timbsp]

that's because you produce a retroflex approximant, like me

[@Catishcat]

Teeths? DOORS TO THE LAND OF MOUSES AND GOOSES ARE OPEN TO YOU!

[@a1rh3add]

same here

[@a1rh3add]

I dont "retroflex". Mine's "bunched" apparently. "Retroflex" flexes your tongue up where "bunched" does almost the opposite and your tongue bunches up in the back of your mouth.

[@timbsp]

a1rh3add what do you mean by that?

[@HoneyballLP]

And as a German you have so many "R" sounds, everyone hates us. xD

[@FunielAudio]

I'm also German and have no idea how to roll my R's but at this point I'm too afraid to ask...

[@ukaszraczkowski6260]

*cries in hard r"

[@AkaiProtea]

Tom Scott and Honeyball/Honigball, I love when I see different KZbinrs I know commenting on stuff XD

[@blussawi9143]

In my experience, many Germans are incapable of pronouncing the English r correctly, thus right and white or risky and whiskey sound the same. They also mess up the v the same way, which make vase and video sound like “wase” and “whideo”.

[@redsunrises8571]

@@blussawi9143 there is at least one rhotic German dialect, Siegerländisch. I heard a poem read in Siegerländisch and it sounded almost like an American speaking German

[@paticusmaximus12]

The UK has over 200 regional accents(in an area the size of Missouri and Iowa!). BBC has an archive of of them online

[@TP-mv6en]

a lot of them are watered down though

[@violetviolet888]

The country of China has over 52 different languages all Chinese where they can't understand each other. This does not even include regional dialects. Imagine if America had 52 different versions of English where we can't understand each other.

[@SpinelessVermin]

And all 200 of them sound like nails on a chalkboard.

[@AlbertAlbertB.]

I say the 'r' from the throat, with the tong lying 'still' of pressing against my lower teeth, but I do not mistake the r for a v.

[@hecticfreeze]

Oh my god I've just learned why I cant roll my Rs after years of trying

[@sarahwyatte9554]

Same!

[@hbowman108]

Shouldn't somebody named "Corre" know that? (The rolled r doesn't have the tip of the tongue curled back. The contact is just behind the front teeth, on the "alveolar ridge").

[@vocassen]

Weirdly enough I can roll my Rs easily but just adopted the defective way of saying it in english, feels more natural

[@weirdlanguageguy]

I couldn't roll my rs until very recently, but I use the other type of r. So it's not dependent on which type of English r you use; it's simply a difficult sound to make

[@AllWordsAreDust]

Can someone who says it the "defective" way describe what they're doing with their mouth/tongue I can't seem to get anything like an "r" sound!

[@MDzaki-uk2ll]

I have a classmate who has rhotacism (this inability to pronounce "r" correctly) and another classmate who has lisp. It's kinda interesting when they argue

[@Abdega]

Whoever came up with those words is a jerkwad There’s an “r” in “rhotacism” and an “s” in “lisp”

[@azuregriffin1116]

@@Abdega rho is the Greek R, rolled like in Spanish.

[@MrWeedWacky]

@@Abdega the ashole who did it also invented dyslexic.

[@sals4659]

@@MrWeedWacky you mean dsylexic?

[@technicly.]

Sal S I see what you did there.

[@NIDELLANEUM]

Coming back to the original Language File video after yesterday's final one, I'm amazed at how consistent this series was in the way it was shown. The only way you can notice that these videos are 10 years apart is that Tom has aged in the meantime, but all 33 videos have the same style, and the same appeal

[@Persimmonyyy]

I think this explained a lot for me! I'm a native English speaker, but I'm learning to speak Italian, and I've had to learn how to roll my r's, something I haven't practiced at all previously. I've discovered that I can, but with one exception: If the rolled r is after a t, p, or b (as in train, prune, or brake), I can't roll the r. I'm just incapable of doing it. I didn't understand this, since my sibling is learning Spanish, and they think rolling r's, regardless of the consonant before the r, is perfectly easy. Now, I know that while my sibling pronounces r's the "correct" way, I pronounce them the "defective" way, so rolling r's is harder, and much much harder after certain consonants, because of the bilabial stop. I've particularly struggled with tr's, which is a little odd, since t was not one of the letters mentioned in the video, so maybe I've got it a bit mixed up, but regardless, I found this information absolutely fascinating! :)

[@lastyhopper2792]

so you can't say "machine gun go brrrrr" ?

[@musashi939]

@@lastyhopper2792 or fitting to the current situation. Money printer go brrrrrr. Jerome Powell probably, somewhere.

[@satyris410]

i can only roll it further back in my mouth, like a grrrr or purring noise but vocalised. it's because of my tongue tie restricting my tongues movement

[@inakilbss]

trying /tr/ myself, i think the problem with that might be that the /t/ is pronounced differently: instead of directly moving your tongue out of the way, try pushing up so you can build up more air, then when the air forces it down the tension should push it back up, at which point you can switch to trill strength

[@aidendombrosky8481]

Me: an American making the "R" sound in the back of my throat

[@_Painted]

Same, and I just realized I also shape my lips into the 'W' approximation of 'R', so I form my 'R's in two redundant ways simultaneously. Northern-US/Canada-border/Midwest accent.

[@apairofpetducks6203]

@@_Painted oh dear... exactly the same for me. Grew up mostly in Ohio, live in southern Canada now.

[@jared_bowden]

As I understand it the American r sound is bit different than both the ways Tom presents in the video; it's made by some combination of pulling the lips together, tightening the throat, and either bunching the tongue up or curling up towards the middle of the mouth - the details vary from person to person. (It's usually notated /ɻ/, but I guess if you wanted to watch the world burn you could notate it β͡ɻɰ).

[@kikosawa]

It is called "burr". It alters the way you pronounce "r" sound, but it's not exactly that "r" English speakers tend to use. Instead, it sounds as Russian and Italian "r".

[@minecraftman625]

Imagine saying Bruh with the w sound bwuh

[@Reggiland]

i think i use the 'L' version but probably because i come from wales where your ability to attract a potential mate is directly proportional to your ability to roll your r's

[@justiziabelle]

At least you don't have to shake it.

[@FoxDren]

I thought you just stuck the hind legs in your wellies

[@Snaily]

Oh so THAT'S where I'm going wrong.

[@lumpyfishgravy]

Not "baah" then.

[@frechjo]

I'm a Spanish speaker, now considering seriously to spend a few days in Wales... Rrrrrrr!

[@alexcrouse]

This is one of the earliest of your videos i've watched, and it's just fantastically presented, and legitimately interesting!

[@Xerxes2005]

As a North American French speaker using an uvular R, I usually touch the sides of my upper molars with the sides of my tongue and the tip curled up when I pronounce Rs in English. That's what came naturally to produce the sound. It never crossed my mind that you could produce an R sound with your front teeth and your lower lips. Like it never occurred to me you could pronounce some Ts with the back of your throat... You learn every day!

[@FaeriMagic]

"Transcwibing". I heard that.

[@AngryKittens]

I hewd that too. Sneaky widdle wabbit.

[@damien4197]

And it sounds completely wrong, also, how does anyone who doesn't consider this a problem differentiate between reed and weed?

[@austindrapen8959]

context.

[@damien4197]

"The reeds/weeds by the pond get worse every year" I chose my example carefully.

[@austindrapen8959]

Damien Bragg and yet both effectively communicate the message, you need something that would actually create a problem for the speaker or the audience.

[@gordonfreemanthesemendemon1805]

i cant wrap my head around how the L technique could possibly make an R sound

[@misteryA555]

I find if I move my tongue back so it's a little behind my teeth I can make the R sound, but up against my teeth it's just L

[@SylviusTheMad]

Learn Spanish. Spanish uses both Rs, and they mean different things. So Spanish-speakers easily switch between them.

[@RassionellMaddman]

@@SylviusTheMad not true? They strictly use the L technique only. I think you mean the Dutch and Belgians (they speak Flemish).

[@inigo8740]

@@SylviusTheMad I'm Spanish and can confirm, it's strictly the L technique. I actually had no idea the other existed.

[@SummerBayJournal]

It's funny, I can't for the life of me understand how the "top teeth on bottom lip" technique makes anything resembling an R. to me that makes a V sound.

[@chickenfeetfordinner5804]

Once again you Fascinate us all Tom.Thx

[@ryan1111111555555555]

I dont say my R's like either of the examples you gave.

[@LieseFury]

when i say "r" the sides of my tongue touch my top teeth and the front half of my tongue is relaxed while the back arches

[@raipogonowski8450]

I diagnose you with Pirate

[@90lancaster]

Seems to be the same gesture one does if imitating a cats purr.

[@kiri1082]

me too haha

[@rusticrapter3850]

Same

[@Efflorescentey]

Same!

[@Monocultured01]

Am I the only one that felt like I did neither ways of pronouncing r's? I find myself forming the sound much farther back in my mouth than either of the listed ways to say it.

[@darerd]

+Emily B. I thought the same thing. The way I pronounce Rs is by curling up the sides of my tongue. I also know I use an unconventional way to pronounce Ss, by pressing the tip of my tongue against my right-side incisor tooth. I can do both the right way, and it seems like a lazy alternative that I can't get in the habit of using.

[@TheRealFlenuan]

Both pronunciations are labio-velaraized and feel that way. It's just the front of the mouth that makes the slight distinction, which is the point of the video.

[@Shadow4707]

+dNıhıl I pronounce s the same way.

[@Gaubizi]

+Emily B. It's called retroflex, i.e. curling back your tongue. You would probably be a speaker of American English or Australian English.

[@franzluggin398]

+Gaubizi German here and I do the same. Not when saying 'r' in Italian words, though. Then I basically position my tongue like with an L, but don't press it against my palate, and instead let it tremble. Sounds a bit like a cat purr, if done for a longer time.

[@masonfarnsworth6730]

The entirety of Europe cant say "The" before the word hospital so give john a break.

[@noctisocculta4820]

I'm assuming you think( or thought 7 months ago) that Europe is an English-speaking country? Lmao.

[@anonymoususer2756]

Why do Americans say “Europe” when they mean the UK? Most of Europe doesn’t speak English?? Also, you don’t need the word “the” when saying “in hospital” in the same way that you don’t say “at the school” or “in the church”.

[@GodZefir]

As someone that always had problems with Rs, this video actually helped me out quite a bit. Speech therapist I had as a kid could not explain it this well.

[@Joshua-fr9fi]

From reading comments, it appears there’s a third way for us Americans where our tongue doesn’t touch the palate, instead kind of hooks while the middle of the tongue bridges from molar to molar

[@darbyburbidge8976]

This is how I do it, and I also seem to have the speech impediment referred to, but mine may have faded (I don't listen to myself speak much so it's usually from others that I hear about it).

[@axie4777]

Thats how I do it! Although for me, my front top teeth do touch my lower lip so I guess this is the V type of saying it.

[@jerryveve3397]

Here we go! I was like, huh. I'm neither, apparently

[@formernifb6864]

Australians say it different too

[@HiFisch94]

It's funny, I only have it when speaking English. It sounds way to harsh, but when I'm speaking German, I'm talking "normally"

[@floridmonkey2723]

I use the V technique, but I can roll my r's too.

[@ferncat1397]

Me too!

[@thepoopenator7341]

Me too, I thought only posh people used the L method (at least in the English speaking world)

[@rlenn6512]

+ThePoopenator Americans don't as far as I know. Our R is quite different and distinct imo. At least mine is. I have a Midwestern "no-accent" (in America what television reporters are often trained to speak with).

[@thepoopenator7341]

I feel in the south of England, where I'm from, people would generally use the V method, then maybe more would use L in the north of England. Probably L in Wales. Then definitely L method in Scotland. Maybe back to V in Northern Ireland. That could be completely wrong, but that's what I seem to have noticed from people from these areas of the UK. We have too many accents :D

[@drax9609]

I use V in English but in Swedish I roll the R

[@saadnasir2922]

I’m bilingual and I got so confused cuz I pronounce ‘r’ two different ways. I use the hard ‘r’ while talking in Hindi, while I use a softer ‘r’ while talking in English

[@izzypt17]

same here with italian and english

[@madlad255]

Same, I speak both Dutch and English. (also a bit of French, but I can't pronounce the French r in the slightest, it hurts my throat) For certain combinations of r with another sound, I do occasionally use the Dutch, hard r, but not always. (e.g. "break")

[@MD-vy9jb]

I feel you, I am Polish spreaker who has learned English as a kid. We had to *learn* english R (it's so different from Polish), so I didn't really understand the problem as Tom stated it :) And it kind of makes me feel better that I can do it both ways :)

[@anthonybanderas9930]

I was also quite confused. Saying "round" with the hard r sound wrong, so is using soft r in kurwa.

[@kaikunai4226]

I also use the "hard R" but people consider it offensive xD

[@marchwhitlock6455]

What about the throaty “R” from languages like French and German?

[@CatherineCane]

I speak German and English and its formed totally differently so you don't really confuse them, Germans seem to use the "correct" way of pronouncing R though, when they speak English.

[@TheDundeeBiscuitLuvU]

I'm Scottish, it's gonna take a lot to get rid if my r's :')

[@krashd]

Ahh, the rolling R. Howdy, byrraway!

[@geministargazer9830]

Did you know Scottish English and American English are both rhotic? (They keep the r’s) I find it interesting

[@bigpiper2103]

Actually there is research that shows that some Scots are losing their rhoticity (i.e. stop pronouncing r after vowels), e.g. some working class speakers in Glasgow pronounce "hut" and "hurt" in a similar way to an unaccustomed (e.g. southern English) ear.

[@geministargazer9830]

@@bigpiper2103 interesting, since the English 'r' is uncommon in languages maybe there's a preference for dropping it which is why most Englishes aren't rhotic and why Scottish is dropping it

[@rishabhpal9845]

Auhrrrihhght ladddayhz, oll abaudd

[@lyadmilo]

The most important thing I learned in this video is the Jonathan Ross apparently loves Adventure Time (the Marceline background on his twitter page).

[@neilwilson5785]

He only likes it because there are no W's in Adventure Time. He never mentions World of Warcraft.

[@oscarzt1652]

ooh yeahh

[@oscarzt1652]

adventure time, come on gwab your fwends.

[@croozerdog]

i genuinely love your channel, I can seriously watch a 10 year old video and it feels like one of your slightly lower effort recent ones. you even look the same.

[@TitusX49]

This is a vewy good and infowmative video on this topic! I feew vewy infowmed! This is why Tom Scott is one of the best educationaw channews on KZbin.

[@jounik]

2:36 "... and when transcwibing..." ;)

[@weesalikesmilktea4829]

twanscwibing*

[@reapd2576]

uwu

[@Joshua-fr9fi]

Followed by a “Jonathan Woss”

[@probablyro]

Was looking for this

[@ChoppedCarrots1]

Anyone else say the 'r' sound completely different than the ways he explains in the video?

[@RassionellMaddman]

If you are French or German you may say it with your actual throat.

[@BlackStrawberry79]

I say mine just comes from the back of my mouth and throat

[@susannam3923]

@@RassionellMaddman yeh but you would be able to recognise that it's a completely different sound if your English is good enough to watch this video I think

[@shurdi3]

@@RassionellMaddman almost all Germans do a uvular trill for the R sound. The exception of course being in Bavaria...which is in the south.

[@RassionellMaddman]

@@shurdi3 I see, I thought it was the other way around

[@GunTaco]

Watching this in 2021 and wow a video that gets to the point in under 3 mins without a 1min advert for RAID SHADOW LEGENDS.. how refreshing!

[@Ethelberd]

I did speech therapy when I was a wee lad, and I pronounce my R just fine, but I don't position my mouth or tongue in any of the ways described in this video. I can also pronounce my R the various ways French Canadians do (with the throat) + I can tongue roll, though I only do so when reading words of languages that roll their R.

[@jacobflisberg4296]

"Siwi can you wecommend a westauwant?" "I'm sorry Bawwy"

[@InfernalBanana]

Hewwo, my name is Bawwy Cwipke, and I’m hewe because you towd me thewe was gonna be a wa-ffle. Whewe is the wa-ffle? (Note: spelt raffle like that to discern from waffle, the food.)

[@peripheralzx11]

Sowwy *

[@harshsrivastava9570]

@@peripheralzx11 no, siri's speech is perfectly fine

[@TheSpiritombsableye]

@@InfernalBanana, still read it as waffle. Try using the phonetic symbol.

[@TheZotmeister]

The term 'rhotacism' is used to describe the impediment of pronouncing "r" as "w". But since its sufferers can't SAY "rhotacism" (talk about an evil blow), the term 'wotacism' sprung up. I miiiiight have submitted that to the Urban Dictionary ages ago.

[@Frewster]

What is it with words like rhotacism and lisp being like taunts to those afflicted? :')

[@TheZotmeister]

@@Frewster I know, right?!

[@Al-isthatyou]

I was just thinking about that and wondered to myself, "Is this ableist somehow?" What gives people who named these impediments?!

[@BrightyLighty_]

see also: hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia

[@nibbletrinnal2289]

@@Frewster The cool thing about words is that the way some words are pronounced can actually reflect their meaning. In words related to sounds, it's especially easy to make the pronunciation related to the meaning. It's called sound symbolism. For example, the word "dental" is pronounced with sounds very close to the teeth, or "bilabial" has sounds(/b/), that are pronounced by touching your lips, and "nasal" and "plosive" feature nasal and plosive sounds, respectively. Its also found in some adjectives like "quick" vs "slow"; you pronounce "quick" rather quickly, but "slow" rather slowly. The word "big" sounds bigger than "tiny", etc. It's just that people have a tendency to include the sound in the word that represents the sound itself.

[@thothtahuti5509]

I never thought about it like this but it's true that a massive amount of those around me have these issues...

[@bobaloo2012]

I've been hearing this for years but when I've tried to point it out to other people they can't hear it, thanks for letting me know I'm not the only one...

[@fedos]

This explains a bit about why my dad is so frustrated that I can't roll my r's. Also all those hours of speech therapy to learn how to not pronounce l as w.

[@hskpc]

+fedos how do you say your R?

[@midnightmagic800]

fedos I can't say my r either :( and I want to be a Broadway actor I have a. American accent and I'm kinda sad about it. I'm even more sad because this is my last year in Speech therapy most likely because they say that how I talk is fine because people can understand me. Hopefully it isn't because R is used a lot and with me having to pronounce not effortlessly is terrible cause it's one R after the other

[@dew8363]

+midnight magic I have a speech problem, too. I firstly always made the V sound instead of r, and now I just make the L sound. I've been in speech therapy for 8 years and nothing helped! Because of this problem, I now have social anxiety. I can't even talk to strangers without making full sentences or I just ignore them. I can only talk to people if the sentence doesn't contain any Rs.

[@dew8363]

This only helps if you can say words like ray, rain, row, ect. Hi, I've been in speech therapy for 8 years and I may have something that can help. (I'm still in speech therapy, but this is what I'm learning.) I'm not sure if this will help, but record yourself say "Rainier" and "Layer" If it sounds wrong, then okay. Now, here's what I want you to do. If you can say your beginning Rs then that's great. Now, record yourself say "Rainyr" or "Layr." When you say it, it'll sound wrong. Very, very, very wrong. But play the recording and hear what it sounds like. It should (if you can say your beginning Rs correctly) sound correct. If it doesn't, then sorry. This is just what I am learning.

[@Tsuristella]

fedos h-hewwo?

[@_Painted]

I'm American and I just realized that when I say 'R' sounds, I am doing something like both techniques simultaneously. I pull my tongue back in my throat, similar to making an 'L' sound, but farther back and flatten/arch the tongue against the roof of my mouth, constricting the flow of air without actually tapping/touching the roof of my mouth like I would for an 'L'. This forces the air to resonate in my mouth/throat/nose with an 'R' sound, but without forming a trilled 'R' by actually tapping/fluttering my tongue against the roof of my mouth. Simultaneously, I form my lips into the shape of the 'R' equivalent that is similar to 'W'. I think this is why some American dialects have the most-emphasized sounding 'R', because we're forming the 'R' in a way that uses multiple redundant techniques and resonates the sound in the nose/throat. Our 'R' sounds very distinct from 'L' or 'W'. My accent is from the Northern-US/Canada-Border/Mid-West.

[@daughterofthestars08]

Me and my british partner started saying r’s and trying to figure out what we used for like 30 mins. As an american i definitely use something closer to the L sound but like you said - a bit further back and more resonate, and with the lips sometimes “assisting”. I have to concentrate to make an r sound with just one isolated technique! (Partner uses v mouth, if they try too hard to do the roof of the mouth r they start lisping, and cannot roll their r’s at all)

[@Bmike5117]

I do the same as you Painted. from US Midwest

[@whizzerbrown1349]

Aye same here, Canadian born

[@yaboicolleen]

OK that helps, I'm also from the Midwest and I started mildly panicking when I couldn't figure out if I was closer to L or V

[@2ndamendmentandy]

Bro really over explained this way too much, like if this was the script for the video it would be longer than the acrual video

[@patrickcain2452]

Both! I use both. The soft V is more natural for me but I did classical choral singing as a child, which needed the rolled R, then later in life I learned Welsh, which always needs it. I change which one I use in English without thinking about it.

[@Peter-er3cd]

Hi Tom, love your clear ideas and presentations. Could you do a clip on a similar problem as R/W but with not putting the G at the end of ......ing words. Sam Harris for example. The ing stops at the N. Why?? It drives me nuts but it seems some people can not do it. Any ideas?

[@CritterKeeper01]

Tom Scott, you say you couldn't roll your Rs, and then proceed to demonstrate the sound perfectly. Please tell me how you learned to make that sound!

[@Robstar100]

Disclaimer: I'm not an expert or anything, I'm just a guy on the internet Put your tongue a centimeter behind the teeth, relax your tongue, breath heavily through your mouth, if you're only breathing through your nose, then move your tongue away from your gum and while exhaling again through your mouth, slowly move it back where it was, don't use the very tip, just slightly behind it. That's the best advice I can give on that. Also I've heard trying it while lying down helps as gravity already pulls it down to make the tap for you

[@joshuaham1022]

That's what I've been asking my whole life but for the r sound

[@stevenwhite3.1415]

It took me a solid 3 months of practice to roll my rs. What i did was kept making the noise rarararara with my mouth slightly more open and i eventually did it accidentally. Then i learned how to do it on purpose

[@GewelReal]

Use tea spoon

[@Ritaaw1]

Steven White it took me 13 years

[@oceanhill6614]

You: *asks the viewers to say 'THAT'* Everyone with rhotacism: *cries* wound and wound the wugged wock the wagged wascal wan.

[@jamiesonjones]

*cwies

[@KindredBrujah]

As a Scot, the idea of a 'L' and a 'V' sounding similar is hilarious. We also don't shape our mouths very similarly between a 'L' and a 'R' either, for that matter. Our tongue is curled for the 'R', which gives us the flexibility to roll our 'R's, since the tip is anchored by the stronger tongue shape behind.

[@Marcos_P_F]

Similar to a palm of a hand if you tried to hand someone something delicate right?

[@williamrussell2768]

Suddenly getting recommended this 8 years on

[@AMan-xz7tx]

So what you’re saying is... Jonathan Ross speaks in “uwu”?

[@nicoludoc1117]

here before 10k likes

[@nicoludoc1117]

@waffeltek r/woooosh

[@sirrivet9557]

It used to be when you said your r’s wrong people thought you were weak now you have to deal with them thinking you’re a furry.

[@alexbireta4668]

Sir Rivet What’s the difference

[@_Pike]

🤮

[@BlackenedSalvation]

This is the only channel I’ll let myself get lost, found, confused, and recollected all at once.

[@AlecHamilton]

I have literally no idea how the W mouth position could possibly make an R sound. I cannot wrap my head around it

[@TheRenegade...]

For me it's the same way the schwa position can make the r sound in most dialects

[@eeevie_]

I just experimented with this a lot and I think that might be because of the way you make the v sound, because for the v it doesn't matter as much what your tongue is doing, however for the "v" way of the "r" sound it does. So if you already have your tongue in the r position when saying v this is really similar and the only difference really is how close your lips are, but if you have anothwr way of saying v, it's a totally different thing

[@anonymoususer2756]

It’s more of a V mouth position than a W. If you try saying “rabbit” over and over again but with /ʋ/ it starts to sound more and more normal. I find it so fascinating.

[@himselfe]

Well this explains my problem with Rs perfectly. Thanks!

[@Mameyaro]

Well I had a vewy good fwiend in wome called Biggus Dickus!

[@AsitorCorporation]

Welease Woger!

[@Mameyaro]

Welease Woger!

[@oskariosthefirst7429]

What is so funny about Biggus Dickus?!

[@Mameyaro]

It's a joke name, sir!

[@theRealRindberg]

Thanks for this well executed comment thread... it maid my day :D

[@Roch_C]

i use my throat to make the "R" sound...

[@ibahart3771]

Are you french?

[@Roch_C]

yes

[@mindmaster_osu]

So is it in chinese

[@entropyzero5588]

German does that, too

[@LivePastTheEnd]

Same here, I'm Australian XD

[@chillinatmyhouse]

Was watching Tom Scott video. Randomly wondered why some people can't roll their Rs when speaking. I search up for a video about it. What do I find? A Tom Scott video about it. I prefer his videos anyway so this is perfect LMAO

[@redstonulo]

I really like to watch these videos in 2021. they're so well done I just didn't realize they were made in 2013. seriously guys you were living in the future ore something.

[@citroenboter]

Yeah I'm Dutch so I need my rolling R.

[@Sander_Datema]

Same, but I don't use it in English...

[@ashmckinlay1402]

+Sander Datema you can use it en english, people habitually do it in some parts of northern UK like Manchester, Liverpool and Scotland, and in Wales :) it's just been lost in southern England, North American English and Australian English.

[@itscomingoutofbothends8385]

Huh? The Dutch exchange students I knew at uni had very soft Rs almost as soft as us Aussies under pronounce Rs at the end of a word.

[@Arlae_Nova]

yes, because we are learned that the English R isn't the same as the Dutch R. This means, when we speak English, we use another sound.

[@jlammetje]

Yup, I always need to "hold back" my R when speaking English, because a Dutch rolling R would sound weird :P

[@juliansmith4295]

1:59 correction: Why Japanese confuse R and L "They don't distinguish between the two. They're the same (_____?) " This is not quite accurate. There are two reasons Japanese people confuse R and L. 1. It's not a matter of not distinguishing between the two in Japanese, because neither sound exists in Japanese. 2. They have a sound which is between the two, which results in what's known as L1 interference (L1 being ones mother tongue, interfering with ones ability to pronounce something in a new language.)

[@confounded_feline]

I find when I go to make an L sound my tongue touches the back of my front teeth. When I make an R sound my tongue feels like it curls towards the back of my mouth tracking close to the roof but without touching it. When I try to make what I think is the Japanese sound, my tongue takes a position similar to the R sound but moves like the L sound but instead of touching the back teeth it *almost* touches the roof of my mouth getting close enough to almost make a softer version of the 'lift of' (don't know the correct way to describe that) sound that the L makes. Almost like trying to say D but moving to L last minute. I don't know if this is right. How is the Japanese sound formed?

[@marmac83]

In some dialects of Japanese, they confuse "l/r" and "d."

[@juch3]

Not all japanese pronounce the liquid consonant as the alveolar flap, most can also roll their R, even though they may alternate between the flap and a lateral (L) but some pronounce it purely as an L (most likely because of rhoticism, which is not an issue when speaking japanese anyway)

[@nogfgoodnight]

@@marmac83 In no dialect of japanese is r and d merged. There is also no L sound in any form of japanese, but the r sound is somewhere between r, l, and d.

[@ADeeSHUPA]

@@nogfgoodnight uP

[@qwertyuiop.lkjhgfdsa]

1:10 I say it in neither way My lips when i say r and when i say o are similar, maybe slightly different when I'm speaking fast if anything

[@jackpabich763]

I love how I never know if the Tom Scott video I'm watching is new or nearly a decade old

[@pierferekatze2370]

You forgot to mention the retroflex r ⟨ɻ⟩, which some speakers also use Edit: There is also the bunched/molar r that is used (particularly in the US) in certain situations

[@prim16]

I was thinking the same thing. It is particularly more common in the US.

[@reverse_engineered]

That's the one I use (Canadian brought up on American media). I had no idea there was another way!

[@irreleverent]

I mean, english dialects do a lot of weird stuff with r's so it can kinda go all over the place. I mean hell, we even turn them into weird vowels in a lot of dialects.

[@MrJDOaktown]

"bunched molar" ...very interesting. Is this what Dolly Parton & Sierra Ferrel do???

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

And what about [ʁ] and [r̝]?

[@bruhmoment1835]

Am an Indian, and I have literally no idea how the v-like r sound is made. I tried and sounded like a chainsmoker with whooping cough. That said, new party trick!!

[@Emily_Dwyer]

English, and I can't figure out how to say it the other way.

[@arshgoyal6323]

indian, I use both to switch between english and hindi

[@skystudygirlera6414]

@@arshgoyal6323 woah same

[@AshleyWilsonAU]

Indian Malayali here. We have lots of words with "ഴ" (spelt in latin alphabet with "zha"), which is similar to how native English speakers tend to pronounce R. But we don't have separate glyphs for "W" and "V", so it was hard for me to learn to pronounce words which started with those. I think that's the case for Hindi as well, and possibly for lots of other Indian languages. Most Malayali words use V; in fact I don't think there are any words which use a W in the way it's pronounced by native English speakers. For example, we pronounce "Welcome" as if it was spelt "Velkam"

[@multiversetraveller3118]

@@AshleyWilsonAU Tbh I always felt 'zha' was inadequate for ഴ. It is a similar sound but it misses the 'r' component of the sound.

[@jasonsgroovemachine]

I think Terry Jones had this too, to a point. And someone that reads some audio books I listen to goes the W route with their R's.

[@AthanImmortal]

November 2021, and youtube seems to have decided I need to know about Wossy. It's a Tom Scott video so naturally the next 3:15 of my life are his.

[@thesourcefinder]

Just noticed that towards the end Tom started pronouncing the "r" with the tongue roll (0:04 - "round and round"). And then ended with the "wuh" sound.(2:36 - "And when twanscwibing").

[@tomaspalma5168]

I used to have a speech impediment that didn't let me say the letter r correctly, but my mom took me to speech therapy sessions and now I can say every letter in the alphabet. Thanks mom!

[@anonimosanha]

You are lucky...i didn't have anyone my mother never cared and in my 30s now..I still suffer 🤐..☹️😔

[@BionicTenshi96]

I still have it at my 30s too, but considering, according to my mother, that i started to talk later than normal (i still remember being taken to a center to treat speech impediments) i can't complain, could've been worse. 😐

[@KoczulMoczul]

​@@anonimosanhait matters who you are, not how you pronounce the letter God bless you ❤

[@circuit10]

The tone of this makes me think there's meant to be a joke or sarcasm here somewhere but maybe not

[@a.t.3569]

good for you tommy

[@maddy3852]

Did I seriously just watch all of Tom's language files in one afternoon? Yes, yes I did.

[@TheMrlittletooth]

This just blew my mind.

[@Skeggi]

Since I'm Dutch I pronounce my R's in the back of my mouth. So neither of your ways.

[@billydeano]

Cool

[@solidus784]

I'm Irish and that's the best way I could describe the way I pronounce my "R"'s

[@unclepodger]

Sorry that you have a speech impediment cuz the Dutch r is in the front of the mouth like "l" /s

[@solidus784]

@@unclepodger oh look a dickhead.

[@unclepodger]

@@solidus784 my bad that sarcasm doesn't come out clearly on the internet

[@Marlesden]

Tom: to many trained ears it sounds the same Eric Singer: hold my beer

[@cmdrvimes72]

I use both for different r's, and can feel the swap as I move from the growl at the beginning of brother to the roll as it moves to the o

[@emgrey]

I don’t remember the music being here last time I watch this

[@Treblaine]

2:35 "Twanscwibing"

[@mikepennington8088]

And at 2:45 "Jonathan Woss"

[@monowavy]

uwu

[@gabiotta]

It turns out, I use both, in different contexts. I think this probably has something to do with growing up in a bilingual, English/Spanish, household.

[@EnanoPancracio]

Gabiotta i imagine so, as a Mexican speaker I understand the need for rolling the r's. Maybe you would have had it (the speech impediment) had you not been raised in that context.

[@sebastiandawes]

I use both too, spanish/english background

[@RilianSharp]

Uh, I use the alveolar flap / roll in spanish, and the english r (not one describe in the video) when speaking english. because pronunciation is part of the language.

[@phs125]

I use different ones in ala.ara and ava.ara I rolled it when I said it with L. I don't know why

[@DZrache]

To me, the "non-defective way" is for when I speak Japanese. It's always sounded specifically both R and L to me.

[@ProtyG]

0:37 Look what anime did to him

[@m0Rzx]

I feel educated yet violated, thank you Tom , big up the algorithm

[@harz632]

When I speak english I apparently have a speech impediment, when I speak german I roll my rs like Ramstein

[@TheCrossfire951]

This! I never knew there was a way to pronounce the English R similarly to the German one.

[@EggheadDash]

Never expected British talk show hosts to be such big Marceline fans

[@flutters.mp4]

GAH ITS F#$KING RAINBOW DASH

[@somethingwithbungalows]

The Weird Part of KZbin i hate when that happens

[@Jk-cx7ko]

It’s so weird, when I speak German I can perfectly pronounce the „R“ but when I speak English or Russian my ability to pronounce „R“ just kinda vanishes

[@applejuice8271]

For ne it's the opposite, even tho english is my second language, i ace the Rs, and in my mother tongue im a failure XD

[@eagle0710]

english and russian have different rs though, in russian you roll your rs

[@cat1312.]

i can only say the “rolled r” :(

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

It's a different version of the letter. besides [r:] and [r] on one hand and [ʋ] on the other hand there are also [ʁ], [r̝], [ɾ], [ɹ], [ɻ], [ʁ]

[@tuluppampam]

​@@HappyBeezerStudios how would you go on about pronouncing a raised trill? What does that mean?

[@mookymookymooo]

Thanks, I've noticed that in British speakers for years and wondered what was up

[@maddie9602]

Years of trying and failing to roll my r's, to find out that all this time it's because I've been using the wrong part of my mouth to pronounce my r's

[@bates64]

I have a speech defect! Yayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy.

[@bates64]

***** I tried. I failed.

[@StandardToasterScratcher]

Me too

[@Williamslamaeiland]

I have been diagnosed with a speech defect by a British guy on the internet

[@cheerio4000]

Anyone else got a tom scott ad? I didn’t even think it was possible to choose to put an ad on only one creators videos

[@QUIKScopersclan]

When I speak English, my R is in my throat. When I speak spanish, I speak the L way

[@Gribbo9999]

Interesting I'm English and also speak Indonesian and do the same as you. I Iived in Scotland for a few years before I learned Indonesian so actually I found rolling my arse quite easy to master.

[@AN-ou6qu]

So... rolled r? I don’t think that’s what he’s talking about

[@isaacmoraesdornelasdesouza4830]

I think that’s why I can do both. I speak English, Portuguese and Spanish and in Portuguese, the way you pronounce R is either the L way or the way people who speak English say the letter H. A word in Portuguese that has both pronunciations is Rodoviária. If an American were to be pronouncing it, it would be like Hodoviaria. I also believe this is why I don’t really have a difficult time with the r’s/l’s in Japanese. PS the Portuguese I speak is from Brazil from the state of Minas Gerais. Other countries even states can speak differently than us.

[@jan-seli]

Okay but mine sounds like and R and his sounds like a W.

[@triton_152]

its crazy how i always have to look at the age of the video because they are still exactly the same today

[@RJSRdg]

I remember going to a recording of Just A Minute a few years ago where Jonathan Ross was given the subject of rollercoasters....