How to roll your Rs in Spanish

For many new Spanish language learners, the absolute hardest part of picking up the language is figuring out just how to roll your r’s. Many novice Spanish speakers fear that they will sound stupid or awkward when they attempt it – but you’ve got to start somewhere! There is a common misconception that if you didn’t grow up speaking Spanish and practicing the r roll from a young age, you’ll never learn. Well, we’re here to say that in this case, you CAN teach an old dog new tricks. Have no fear and buckle up; with a little practice, you’ll be rolling your r’s like an expert in no time.

Did you know? Many languages roll their r’s besides Spanish – including Czech, Thai, Hungarian, Tagalog, Italian and Portuguese. But, it’s not really present in English, so many native-English speakers find it extraordinarily difficult when learning Spanish. Don’t feel bad – even many native speakers of these languages have some difficulty with rolling Rs, even well into adulthood. It’s tricky!

5 steps to help beginners roll their r’s like a native Spanish speaker

1. When English speakers make a typical R sound, is made by the movement made by tongue movement between your bottom lip and your top teeth. Conversely, the Spanish rolled R is produced by vibrating the tongue against the back of your top teeth. Create this picture in the back of your mind and visualize it for a few moments before every time you start to practice.
2. Warm up your tongue and mouth with these vocal exercises, such as blowing a raspberry, then slowly adding a vocal sound. More vocal warm-up exercises can be found here.
3. You will have to relax your tongue in order to get it to vibrate. Focus first on keeping your tongue completely relaxed in your mouth while breathing out.
4. The movement described it step 1 is actually more similar to the tongue placement for the pronunciation of “D” or “T” in English. Practice these letters out loud a few times, and see how different it is from the English “R”. Say these a few times to warm up your tongue. Then say some words in quick succession that incorporate this tongue position, like “butter butter butter putter putter putter matter matter matter.” Go faster and faster until you hit your max speed, then take a break and repeat.
5. Once you have mastered the proper tongue placement, you are ready to graduate onto practicing with some real Spanish words:

Spanish words with rolled R's

Frequently asked questions about rolling your Rs in Spanish

What does rolling your R mean?

It is simply pronouncing the letter ‘r’ in a trilled fashion by moving your tongue very rapidly against the top of your mouth while vocalizing. In many languages that use this sound, a rolled r can change the meaning of the whole word. In Spanish, a rolled r is written as “rr”.

Why can’t I roll my Rs?

It is harder for some people to learn, yet comes very naturally to others. If your native language does not have this sound (looking at you, English), it can be very hard to develop the skill. If you grew up speaking Spanish, it would be second nature since as far back as you can remember. However, for most people, there is usually not an actual physical limitation preventing you from rolling your rs unless you have a tongue tie or lip tie. Both of those physical attributes can make it much harder to learn.

How do I teach myself to roll my Rs?

If this article is not enough to set you on the right path to rolling your rs, the best place you can turn to is YouTube.

How long does it take to learn to roll your Rs?

Unfortunately, there is no great answer for how long it will take to learn to trill. Some people get it right away, and others have to practice long and hard. Still, others do it for years the wrong way, only to discover their error and have to relearn it correctly.