why does it sound like there is a "d" when the word "afuera" is spoken
I received the word of the day "afuera" I listened to it, to me it sounds like there is a "d" in the word but not
7 Answers
A single Spanish R, when between two vowels, is pronounced almost exactly like the DD in ladder.
So, it should indeed sound like ah-fweh-dah.
Spanish speakers often wonder why Americans pronounce an R (our R, of course) when the word has a D (or even a T).
The simple answer is: your D and your T in certain positions are almost identical the sound of our R (the flap one), and vice versa. Our D and T are different from yours.
A single Spanish R, when between two vowels, is pronounced almost exactly like the DD in ladder.
I think that one of the main difference here, perhaps, is that the Spanish "d," in this case, is an approximate, that is, the sound is generally made by bringing the tip of the tongue in close proximity to the back of the teeth (leaving a gap for air to escape); whereas, with the English "d," the tip of the tongue actually makes contact with the alveolar ridge (the place where the gums and upper incisors meet).
Aside from this, the Spanish "d" tends to be formed with the tongue tip positioned lower than is true of the English "d." As was mentioned earlier, the with the English "d," we typically witness the tongue tip making contact with the alveolar ridge, but with the Spanish hard "d" (the sound that is made when the letter "d" comes after a pause or after a nasal) we find that the tip of the tongue is often placed near the lower margin of the upper incisors or even between the upper and lower teeth. The approximate sound discussed above can then be made by "approximating" this position without fully closing the gap.
The sound that DD and TT make in the United States is the product of speaking fast and that is why you feel that the single "r" in Spanish sounds exactly like them. If you think about it, try to say slowly better, butter, ladder, try saying it by syllables. You will see that that sound is very different than the one of a single "r" in Spanish. Also think of the way those words are pronounced in Great Britain. Now, try saying the names of the letters "D" and "T" in English.The sound of them is very different that the DD or TT you are use to say. They do not sound at all like a single "r" in Spanish. Now, if you make the sound and say the name of "r" in Spanish, you will see that they are pretty much identical. The easiest part of Spanish, is that it sounds almost 100% the way is it written. Very different than English!
the single Spanish "r" can sound like the glottal stop in English.
Ian, that strikes me as really weird. I'm inclined to think that you've been away from England too long or, perhaps, Danish has affected your perception of English pronunciation (my total exposure to Danish amounts to watching one film so my impressions of that language are very vague).
The glottal stop is (by definition) formed at the back of the throat (hence the name). The single flap 'r' (and the "trilled" 'r', too, for that matter) involves the tip of the tongue.
The glottal stop is an important phoneme in Arabic so at one point in my life I was paying a lot of attention to it.
P.S. There are regional dialects in the vicinity of New York City that regularly pronounce "water" (and similar words) with a glottal stop.
I guess the single Spanish "r" can sound like the glottal stop in English.
as in the English wa'ter (from London)
or
This what you hear in the American water = wader.
Its just the slight roll of the r. It doesn't sound like afueDUH to me.
