掲示板 Forums - how to pronounce japanese r?

its not necessarily similar to 'L'. Your tongue will touch the top of your mouth, and it sounds closer to a 'dhu' sound on its own. I think a good word to practice with is ありがとう. (Or if you specifically need a -ru word there are plenty to choose from: 食べる、ルール, etc)

If you spend some time listening to the pronunciation through music, anime, etc. you will pick up on it very quickly

This is not entirely accurate. The pronunciation of the らりるれろ consonant can be variable, but it is most often described as an apico-alveolar tap, which is pronounced with the tip of the tongue making brief contact with the ridge behind the front teeth. There IS a lateral version of the consonant in free variation, but is not made with the blade of the tongue against the roof of the mouth (palate).

For OP, if you're an English speaker you can practice making this sound by saying a word like "butter" or "water" quickly without enunciating, so it sounds more like "budda" or "wodda" -- the placement of the tongue for the consonant in the middle should be similar to when you say D or L, but only the tip of the tongue touches the ridge behind your teeth, and instead of holding there or releasing downwards, it immediately pulls back. That's a good approximation of the らりるれろ consonant.

But if you have trouble with it, you'll still be understood fine if you pronounce it like R or L. Unless your test is specifically grading you on native-like pronunciation instead of on intelligibility, I don't imagine you would be marked down for pronouncing it with an accent.