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Repeating "butter" is actually a great way to teach people how to make the rolled R [r].

• School-Cotton 5y ago
  By "rolled r", do you mean the trill? The trill and flap are different sounds in some languages (for example, Spanish "perro" (dog) has the trill whereas "pero" (but) has the flap). The /t/ in Am.E. "butter" is the flap.
  • SamBam 5y ago
    I mean exactly the sound that is referred to as the "rolling R" or "[r]" in the original article. The flap is [ɾ]. In any case, as the sister comment says, the point is that in order to learn the rolling r (consciously, as an older person) you have to notice the flap, and repeated flapping can transfer into the rolled r. So, yes, you learn the flap first, but few people start out saying "I wish I could flap my rs," instead they're looking to learn how to roll them.
  • asveikau 5y ago
    If you start with a flap and add a little air and lengthen it, you get into trill territory. This is a good way to teach the trill. Once I recall I pronounced a drawn out /d/ when cold and startled, and a friend commented that I "rolled my D" and it was weird.