Rule 4 of 6
After a vowel, drop the r
In Standard English, say r only when a vowel sound comes straight after it, even if that vowel starts the next word. In every other case the r is silent: car is kaa, hard is haad, and computer ends in tə. This removes one sound from the end of many words, which suits a Kinyarwanda speaker, since Kinyarwanda syllables end in vowels.
Sounds per word: without the r, Standard English words are shorter
Counted from the sound spellings in this guide; a long vowel counts as one sound. ● marks words that end in a vowel in Standard English, just like Kinyarwanda words.
- Standard English
- American
Show as a table
| Word | Standard English | Sounds | American | Sounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| car | kaa | 2 | kaar | 3 |
| more | moo | 2 | moor | 3 |
| hard | haad | 3 | haard | 4 |
| work | wəək | 3 | wərk | 4 |
| first | fəəst | 4 | fərst | 5 |
| water | woo-tə | 4 | waa-dər | 5 |
| better | be-tə | 4 | be-dər | 5 |
| computer | kəm-pyuu-tə | 8 | kəm-pyuu-dər | 9 |
In Standard English, car, more and computer end in a vowel, just like Kinyarwanda words.
The əə vowel
Without the r, words like work and first depend on one long vowel, əə. Make ə (tongue flat in the middle of the mouth, jaw half open, lips in their normal position) and hold it twice as long.
Check in a mirror that your lips don't move; the result must not sound like oo (walk) or aa (hard).
| Say əə | Not to be confused with | Play both |
|---|---|---|
| workwəək | walkwook | |
| firstfəəst | fastfaast | |
| heardhəəd | hardhaad | |
| burnbəən | barnbaan | |
| hurthəət | hearthaat | |
| turntəən | torntoon |
r before a vowel in the next word
Say the r when the next word starts with a vowel sound.
| Word | Say this (Standard English) |
|---|---|
far away | faa rə-wei |
four hours | foo rau-əz |
never again | ne-və rə-gen |