R-Controlled Vowels
Syllabic Vowel-r
The vowel
/ɚ/ sound is one of the 14 vowel sounds in American English (or one of the 15 vowel sounds in English)
When a vowel is followed by an "r", it makes a special sound. These are called
r-controlled vowels, or
r-colored vowels and the sound is
/ɚ/.
The sound of syllabic or
vowel-r,
/ɚ/, is third highest in general usage among the fifteen vowel sounds in English.
r-controlled Vowel: schwa + [r] = /ɚ/
The r-controlled Vowel is a sound with schwa /ə/ and /r/ sound next to each other to form the /ɚ/ sound.
The syllabic [r]: Because the schwa + [r] has no discernible vowel sound, it is considered a syllabic consonant. Syllabic consonants include a vowel in the spelling, even though that vowel is not pronounced. When learning about r-controlled vowels, syllable stress is important because any unstressed syllable containing an [r] may be pronounced as /ə+r/, no matter which vowel is included in the spelling.
The American English r-controlled vowels
American English has four widely recognized r-controlled-vowels: schwa+r, ar sound, or sound, and air sound. These sounds deserve special attention from any learner striving for American pronunciation. This is due to the fact that American English pronunciation is rhotic, meaning that the r sound is pronounced during r-controlled vowels, even if the following sound is a consonant sound. This is in contrast to British Received Pronunciation.
r-controlled vowel Key Words:
schwa + [r] /ɚ/:
stir - the back of the tongue is bunched high so the sides of the tongue touch the back side teeth (same as the r sound)
[ar] sound /ɑr/:
star - the tongue is set low, inside the bottom teeth, then the sound moves into an r sound
[or] sound /ɔr/:
store - the tongue is pushed back and held middle-low, then the sound moves into an r sound
[air] sound /ɛr/:
stair - the tongue is slightly rounded upward in the middle of the mouth, then the sound moves into an r sound
The schwa+r pronunciation is unique in that it includes no vowel sound (it sounds identical to an r sound when spoken in isolation); however, it retains the vowel-like quality of being syllabic, forcing a syllable to occur. The three remaining r-controlled vowels are combinations of a vowel sound plus the r sound.
Complicating the pronunciation of r-controlled vowels is the fact that there are two options available for pronouncing the r portion of each sound:
- the bunched method, in which the sides of the back of the tongue are raised
- the tip-up method, in which the tip of the tongue is raised and curled back behind the tooth ridge
Since either option will produce an acceptable and correct sound, non-native speakers should experiment with both options to discover which is personally easier.
The following are major spelling patterns with percentage for frequency of occurrence:
/ɚ/
Group 1:
er+(
consonant) he
r (40%)
Group 2:
ir+(
consonant) si
r (13%)
Group 3:
or+(
consonant) wo
rld (7%)
Group 4:
ur+(
consonant) fu
r (26%)
The "er", "ir", "or" and "ur" make a
/ɚ/ sound.
PART 1: Major Spelling Patterns with the
/ɚ/ sound by vowel:
Aa
/ɚ/
Group 1: a
silent+
r+(
consonant) alta
r, backwa
rd
Ee
/ɚ/
Group 1: e
silent+
r+(
consonant) he
r
Group 2: ea
silent+
r+
consonant ea
rn, hea
rd
(In this group 2, the "ea" is silent and only the
/ɚ/ is pronounced before the following consonant. The consonant is obligatory in this pattern)
Group 3: e+
r+e
silent (exception) we
re
Ii
/ɚ/
Group 1: i
silent+
r+(
consonant) si
r
Group 2: ie
silent+
r+(
consonant) soldie
r
Oo
/ɚ/
Group 1: o
silent+
r+(
consonant) wo
rld
Uu
/ɚ/
Group 1: u
silent+
r+(
consonant) fu
r, nu
rse
Group 2: u
silent+
r+e
silent treasu
re, su
re, pictu
re, inju
re
(This group 2 of words have an unaccented syllable "ure"; the "u" is silent and the preceding consonant is palatalized before the vowel
/ɚ/ sound with the
/ʒ/,
/ʃ/,
/tʃ/,
/ʤ/ sounds.
PART 2: The sound
/ɚ/ following other vowels:
The pronunciation of vowels in combination with the
vowel-r sound,
/ɚ/, varies among speakers of English.
Following vowel sounds in combination with vowel-r by vowel:
Aa
/ɑɚ/
Group 1:
ar p
ark
Group 2:
ar+ge l
arge
Group 3:
ar+e silent
are
/eɚ/
Group 1:
air p
air
Group 2:
ar+e silent sh
are
Group 3:
ar+(r) m
arry
/oɚ/
Group 1:
ar w
ar
Ee
/eɚ/
Group 1:
er+e silent th
ere
Group 2:
eir th
eir
Group 3:
er+(r) v
ery
Group 4:
ear w
ear
/iɚ/
Group 1:
ear ear
Group 2:
er+e silent h
ere
Group 3:
eer b
eer
Ii
/ɑɚ/
Group 1: o+
ir no
ir, meno
ir
(This group spelled with "oir" is pronounced
/wɑɚ/, the "o" is /w/ and the "ir" is
/ɑɚ/)
Oo
/oɚ/
Group 1:
or+e
silent m
ore
Group 2:
or+(
consonant) f
orm
Group 3:
our f
our
/uɚ/
Group 1:
oor p
oor
Group 2:
our t
our
Group 3:
or+e silent m
ore
Group 4:
or st
ory
Uu
/jɚ/
Group 1:
ure c
ure
(This group spelled with "ure" are preceded by /j/ sound called palatalization of the consonant, for the combined pronunciation of
/jɚ/)
/juɚ/
Group 1:
ur f
ury
(This group spelled with "ur" are preceded by /j/ sound called palatalization of the consonant, for the combined pronunciation of
/juɚ/)
Following Diphthongs sounds in combination with vowel-r by vowel:
The diphthongs preceded the
vowel-r change the pronunciation to a palatal sound called palatalization:
The diphthong 13.
/aɪ/ change to
/aj/
The diphthong 14.
/aʊ/ change to
/aw/
The diphthong 15.
/oɪ/ change to
/oj/
Aa
None.
Ee
/ajɚ/ (13.
/aɪ/ + 12.
/ɚ/)
Group 1:
er buy
er
(In this group the palatal sound /aj/ precedes the sound
/ɚ/ for the combined pronunciation of
/ajɚ/)
Ii
/ajɚ/ (13.
/aɪ/ + 12.
/ɚ/)
Group 1:
ire h
ire
Group 2:
iar fr
iar
Group 3:
ir cho
ir
(In this group the palatal sound /aj/ precedes the sound
/ɚ/ for the combined pronunciation of
/ajɚ/)
Oo
/awɚ/ (14.
/aʊ/ + 12.
/ɚ/)
Group 1:
our fl
our
Group 2:
ower p
ower
(In this group the sound /aw/ precedes the sound
/ɚ/ for the combined pronunciation of
/awɚ/)
/ojɚ/ (15.
/oɪ/ + 12.
/ɚ/)
Group 1:
oyer c
oyer, empl
oyer
(In this group the sound /oj/ precedes the sound
/ɚ/ for the combined pronunciation of
/ojɚ/)
Uu
None.
Note:
Rhotic and non-rhotic accents:
English pronunciation can be divided into two main accent groups:
-
Rhotic speakers pronounce the letterr after vowels in in all positions, including after a vowel in words like world.
-
Non-Rhotic speakers do not pronounce the letterr after vowels in words like world. They do pronounce it before a vowel.
A rhotic speaker pronounces a rhotic consonant in words like
hard /ˈhɑɚd/, water /ˈwɑ:tɚ/, and
butter /ˈbʌtɚ/; a non-rhotic speaker does not. That is, rhotic speakers pronounce /r/ (English R) in nearly all positions of a word, while non-rhotic speakers pronounce /r/ only if it is followed by a vowel sound in the same phrase or prosodic unit (see "
linking and intrusive R"). Therefore, when pronounced by a non-rhotic speaker, the word
butter would sound like
butta /ˈbʌtə/ to a rhotic speaker. Non-rhoticity is featured in many accents in England, Australia, and the North Eastern region of the USA, among others.
What is transcribed as "r" in reality represents several distinct sounds:
1- Before a stressed vowel /r/ denotes a continuant produced with the tongue tip slightly behind the teethridge. This sound is usually voiceless when it follows a voiceless stop, as in
pray,
tree, and
cram.
2- In Received Pronunciation "r" is sometimes pronounced as a flap /
ɾ/ in the same contexts in which /t/ and /d/ occur as flaps in American English. Occasionally the flap may be heard after consonants, as in
bright and
grow.
3- In some dialects, especially those of the southeastern U.S., eastern New England, and New York City, "r" is not pronounced or is pronounced as /ɚ/ after a vowel in the same syllable. Such dialects are often referred
to as r-dropping dialects. This term is somewhat misleading, since speakers of such dialects will often pronounce an "r" in certain situations where speakers of non r-dropping dialects will not have an "r".
