Lips
Slightly rounded and relaxed, mouth mid-open. Hold this shape steady: unlike the gliding vowels, this one barely moves.
R-coloured vowels · American English
/ɝ/ · /ɚ/as in nurse
The American "er": one steady, r-coloured vowel. The voice and the r shape happen at the same time, from start to finish.
Example words: nurse, bird, her, work, first
/ɝ/ is the stressed form (nurse, bird, her); /ɚ/ is the light, unstressed one at the end of words like letter and doctor. The tongue shape is the same.
Mouth
How do you pronounce the /ɝ/ · /ɚ/ sound?
Tongue
Curl the tip up and back, or bunch the middle of the tongue upward. Either works. The tip must never touch the roof of the mouth: it floats.
Length
Can be held as long as you like. Keep the r colour running for the entire vowel, not just the end.
Video lesson
/ɚ/ (letter, doctor) has its own lesson:
Try it
- Curl your tongue tip up and back, or bunch the mid-tongue, without touching anywhere.
- Turn your voice on and hold one steady "errrr".
- Check the tip is still floating: no taps, no trills.
- Try it in words: nurse, bird, her.
Check
Hold "errrr" for three full seconds. The r colour should stay even the whole time, and your tongue tip should never touch the roof of your mouth. If the sound flickers, the tip is tapping.
Common trap
Dropping the r entirely so "bird" sounds like "bud", or tapping and trilling the tongue against the roof. There is no contact and no vibration: just a held shape.
Practice: /ɝ/ · /ɚ/
Words
nursenˈɜɹs
birdbˈɜɹd
herhɜɹ
workwˈɜɹk
firstfˈɜɹst
Sentences
The nurse works early every Thursday.ðə nˈɜɹs wˈɜɹks ˈɜɹli ˈɛvəɹi θˈɜɹzdˌeɪ.
Her first word was really funny.hˌɜɹ fˈɜɹst wˈɜɹd wʌz ɹˈiəli fˈʌni.
I heard a bird singing this morning.ˌaɪ hˈɜɹd ɐ bˈɜɹd sˈɪŋɪŋ ðɪs mˈɔɹnɪŋ.
She learned German at work last year.ʃˌi lˈɜɹnd dʒˈɜɹmən æt wˈɜɹk lˈæst jˈɪɹ.
Turn left at the third street.tˈɜɹn lˈɛft æt ðə θˈɜɹd stɹˈit.
🔊 plays the app's native voice. 🎤 records you so you can play it back next to it. Your recording stays in your browser.
Sounds in the same group
Is /ɝ/ · /ɚ/ one of yours?
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