How to pronounce TH before R? | American English pronunciation

Hey guys, it's Hadar.

And this is the Accent's Way.

And today we're going to talk about the vicious and evil combination

- TH and the R, as in the word 'three', 'thrill', and 'through'.

I think this is the one question I get asked the most: How to pronounce

the transition from the TH to the R.

Because first of all, these two consonants are really difficult for non-native

speakers, most non-native speakers.

Sorry, if that's not difficult for you.

So, it's usually difficult for most non-native speakers, but also people

who do know how to pronounce the TH and then the R, they get this weird

middle sound like a trilled R in the middle, like 'thRee' and 'thRoat'.

So today we're going to talk about how to make this transition and how to avoid the

trilled R when making this transition.

So, to make the TH sound, you already know, I hope, that the tongue needs

to be outside, and the air has to pass between the tongue and teeth in

order to create this friction sound.

Same quality as an F or an S, but you need to create this quality of sound while the

tongue is outside touching the top teeth.

If your tongue is going to be inside, or it's going to be pressed tightly against

the teeth, it's going to sound like a T.

And then the word 'three' will sound like 'tree'.

So, the tongue has to be out.

And then you need to shift to the R sound, right?

And to make the R sound, the tongue has to be in the middle of the mouth.

So basically, the tongue is standing there in the middle of the mouth

pointing up, but not touching anything.

And the sides of the tongue touch the insides of the upper teeth: 'ur'.

And the lips round.

'ur'.

Now, think of the transition from the TH to the R, visualize your tongue.

You start with the tongue out and then you need to pull it in to

the middle of the mouth - 'thur'.

The thing is that a lot of people just bring the tongue up and

in, and then on the way in and up, it touches the upper palate.

Cause it's just waiting there for you.

So instead of hearing 'three,' you may hear 'thRee'.

You're flapping your tongue against the upper palate, instead of pulling

it down and in for a pure R - 'thur'.

Three.

And again, visualize your tongue coming down and in, hold out the R - 'thurrr',

and then continue with the word.

Three.

Thrill.

Not 'thRill'.

'through'.

So bring the tongue in, round your lips for the R, and finish

it up with the 'uw' as in 'food'.

Through.

Think like there is an extra W there at the end.

Through.

Okay.

So, the key here is to prolong the R, to take it slowly, and to

know exactly what your tongue is doing in every step of the way.

That's the only way to overcome old habits and acquired new habits, like

the pronunciation of the TH and the R.

Okay?

Good.

So, I hope this was helpful.

Let me know in the comments below if it is.

And if not, what's still difficult for you, and come on over to my website to

check it out because there is a lot of great content just waiting for you there.

Have a great week.

And I will see you next week in the next video.