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Intrusive /r/
Intrusive /r/ is a type of linking /r/ used in non‑rhotic accents of English between vowel sounds where there is no letter R.[1]
This occurs in the following vowel phonemes:
| Phoneme | Lexical sets | Example word(s) | Example utterances |
|---|---|---|---|
| ᴘᴀʟᴍ vowel phoneme /ɑ:/, with no following ⟨r⟩ | ᴘᴀʟᴍ lexical set, with no following consonant | bra, spa, etc | Her bra /r/ is black. |
| ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛ vowel phoneme /ɔ:/, with no following ⟨r⟩ | ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛ lexical set, with no following consonant | Waugh, jaw, law, saw, draw, awe, etc | law /r/ and order. |
| ɴᴇᴀʀ vowel phoneme /ɪə/, with no following ⟨r⟩ | ɴᴇᴀʀ lexical set, with no following consonant | idea, Korea, diarrhoea, Galatea, etc | Australia /r/ all out for 60. |
| 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮ᴀ vowel phoneme, with no following ⟨r⟩ | 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮ᴀ lexical set, with no following consonant | catalpa, quota, vodka, am(o)eba, panda, saga, sofa, saliva, Bertha, balsa, visa, acacia, dementia, neuralgia, drama, arena, opera, Cinderella, phobia, etc | A champagne supernova /r/ in the sky. |
For example, compare how Liam Gallagher of Oasis sings the line “A champagne supernova” v. how he sings the line “A champagne supernova /r/ in the sky.”[2]
Non-rhotic speakers may also, however, not use it, or use it only sporadically.
This can also occur in the middle of words, e.g. clawing, drawing, gnawing. But be careful of drawer.[3]
With h-dropping, linking /r/ can replace /h/, e.g. “I saw her" can be /aɪ ˈsɔ: rə/.
Rhotic speakers, and some high-end non-rhotic speakers, tend to disparage intrusive /r/ as "incorrect.” However, it is a fairy common and natural aspect of non-rhotic speech.
What may sound weird is if someone (such as an EFL learner) who normally speaks with a rhotic accent uses intrusive /r/. Even then however, it’s unlikely to hamper understanding.
