Home›Spanish›Spanish alphabet and pronunciation

The two r sounds

Pero (but) and perro (dog) differ by one sound: a single tap of the tongue or a quick roll.

Spanish has two r sounds, and they keep words apart. One is a single quick tap of the tongue tip against the ridge behind the upper teeth. The other is a trill, two or more fast taps in a row, the rolled r that many learners find the hardest sound in Spanish. Neither is the English r, which is made with the tongue pulled back and never touching anything.

The tap: one r between vowels

A single r between vowels is a tap: pero (but), caro (expensive), para (for), hora (hour). Many English speakers already make this sound in American pronunciations of butter, water and ladder, where the middle t or d becomes a quick flap. Say butter fast and listen to the middle: it is close to the r in para. The tap is also used after a consonant in the same syllable, as in tres (three), brazo (arm) and grande (big), and normally at the end of a word, as in hablar (to speak) and mar (sea).

The trill: rr and some single r’s

The double rr always trills: perro (dog), carro (car in much of Latin America, cart in Spain), tierra (land), arroz (rice). A single r also trills in two places: at the start of a word, as in rosa (rose), Roma and rojo (red), and after l, n or s, as in alrededor (around), Enrique and Israel. Spelling never writes rr in those positions, because the sound there is always a trill anyway.

Pairs that differ only by the r show why it matters: pero and perro, caro (expensive) and carro, coro (choir) and corro (circle of people). If you cannot trill yet, use a strong, slightly longer tap and keep practising. An English r does not sound like either Spanish r.

How to practise the trill

Start from the tap. Say para several times, then repeat tr and dr quickly: tres, tres, tres; padre, padre, padre. Keep the tongue loose and let the air push the tip so it flutters. Many learners first get the trill by holding the tap position and blowing a little harder. It can take weeks of short daily practice, and that is normal.

BackgroundThe letter r is called erre. Some people call it ere when they want to point to the single tap, but the RAE advises against this: a letter does not change its name with its sound, so erre is the only name it accepts today. A well-known tongue twister packs both sounds into one breath: Erre con erre cigarro, erre con erre barril, rápido ruedan los carros cargados de azúcar del ferrocarril. Roughly: R with R cigar, R with R barrel, fast roll the carts loaded with the railway’s sugar.

Quick check: if you say perro and a listener hears pero, make the trill longer. It needs at least two clear taps.

The grey hints under each line are rough English respellings, with the stressed syllable in capitals. Treat them as a first guess and copy the recording, which uses a voice from Spain.

para, pero, caro · for, but, expensive
pero, perro · but, dog
caro, carro · expensive, car
Roma y Enrique · Rome and Enrique
tres, grande, hablar · three, big, to speak
El perro come arroz. · The dog eats rice.
Erre con erre cigarro, erre con erre barril. · R with R cigar, R with R barrel.
Rápido ruedan los carros. · The carts roll fast.

pero	but
perro	dog
caro	expensive
carro	car (Latin America); cart
hora	hour
rosa	rose
rojo	red
tierra	land, earth
arroz	rice
tres	three
grande	big
mar	sea

¿Tienes perro? Sí, tengo un perro grande. ¿Cómo se llama? Se llama Rayo. ¡Qué rápido corre!

What does pero mean?
- but
- dog
- pear
What does perro mean?
- dog
- but
- cat
Which sound is the r in rosa?
- trill
- tap
- silent
Which sound is the r in caro?
- tap
- trill
- like English r
Which sound is the r in Enrique?
- trill
- tap
- silent
Which sound is the r in tres?
- tap
- trill
- silent
Which English word has a middle sound close to the Spanish tap (in American speech)?
- butter
- river
- cream
Where is rr written?
- Only between vowels
- At the start of words
- At the end of words
Type the Spanish word for dog.
How is the final r in hablar usually said?
- tap
- long trill
- silent
When do some people call r ere instead of erre?
- To point to the single tap
- In formal letters
- Only in Argentina

Key points

One r between vowels = tap: pero, caro.
rr, word-initial r, and r after l, n, s = trill.
pero ≠ perro, caro ≠ carro.