学美音发音的一点体会：如何读/d/这个辅音，以ORDER这个词为例

学美音发音的一点体会：如何读/d/这个辅音，以ORDER这个词为例

Of the two syllables of the word “order, both of them are difficult to pronounce as they all involve the /R/ sound which is complicated and won\'t be talked about here.

The consonant sound /d/ in the second syllable is easy to pronounce by itself, but I found it sometimes hard to pronounce fluently when it goes with /R/ sound in syllable such as in syllable /DER/ in word order, especially when it comes in the past form of ordered.

The key point here is the position of the tip of the tongue when pronoucing the consonant /d/.

Usually we put the tip of the tongue behind the upper teeth to pronounce the sounds /d/ and /t/, specifically speaking, the tip is put between upper teeth and the bump behind the upper teeth (also called: tooth-ridge or alveolar ridge). Teachers told us to do so, and it is indeed pronounced that way when saying the sound per se.

However, in normal conversation and in readings, the tip of the tongue is usually put onto the top of the bump (the alveolar ridge) instead of between the teeth and the bump, with this way of sounding it is easier to switch to the /R/ sound following it, like in the /DER/ sound, and the sound would be smooth and fluent in the context.
Otherwise, if we stick to the habit of putting the tip just behind the teeth to say the sound /d/ in the word order, it seemed stiff and felt weird, especially in the past form ordered.
I have consulted one of my colleagues here, a native Canadian, she agreed with this. She said that she didn\'t pay attention to that, but when she pronounced the word /ORDERED/ slowly she confirmed the tongue tip position.
Also, she mentioned that when pronouncing the /OR/ sound in /order/, say /ou/ first, then glide to /R/ sound quickly; don\'t say it too slow in normal conversation, but agreed that over-exaggeration is needed when practicing it.