Hebrew alphabet · Lesson 20 of 22

Resh ר

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Meet Resh

The twentieth letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Resh makes the Hebrew r sound. Many Israeli speakers make it at the back of the mouth, near the uvula; others tap or trill it with the tip of the tongue. You don’t need to roll your r. Resh has no final form: it looks the same at the start, in the middle and at the end of a word.

Resh Hebrew Letter (ר): Sound, Words & Practice

What you’ll learn

Recognize Resh: ר.
Know the ways Resh is pronounced, and that a rolled r isn’t required.
Read Resh in real words like רֶגֶל (foot) and רַק (only).

How Resh sounds

The Hebrew letter Resh (ר) is the twentieth letter of the Hebrew alphabet. It represents the Hebrew r sound. Many modern Israeli speakers produce it with the back of the tongue near the uvula, the small hanging part at the back of the mouth. Other speakers use a tap or trill made with the tip of the tongue. A rolled r is not required.

Resh across speakers and traditions

In this course, r is a simple spelling for the Resh sound, not an exact phonetic symbol or an instruction to use the English r. The pronunciation varies across speakers and traditions. Medieval descriptions of the Tiberian tradition of reading Biblical Hebrew distinguish two pronunciations of Resh; there was no single pronunciation shared by all Hebrew traditions. The bracketed readings in this lesson are learning aids, not IPA. Hyphens separate syllables. Use a as in 'father', e as in 'bed', i as in 'machine', and a pure o without the English 'oh' glide.

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Resh in real words

Read three words with Resh and see how each one is pronounced, then read five more words aloud for reading practice.

Words to Practice:

רֶגֶל

regel

foot

The Hebrew word 'רֶגֶל' (pronounced [re-gel], with stress on re) means 'foot' or 'leg' in English. It consists of three letters: Resh (ר), Gimel (ג), and Lamed (ל). The Resh, with a segol (ֶ) beneath it, produces the [re] sound. The Gimel, also paired with a segol, gives the [ge] sound, with g as in 'go'. The Lamed produces the [l] sound and closes the second syllable: re-gel, two syllables.

רֶגַע

rega

moment

The Hebrew word 'רֶגַע' (pronounced [re-ga], with stress on re) means 'moment' in English. It consists of three letters: Resh (ר), Gimel (ג), and Ayin (ע). The Resh, with a segol (ֶ) beneath it, produces the [re] sound. The Gimel, with a patah (ַ), gives the [ga] sound. In the common modern pronunciation taught here, the final Ayin has no separate consonant sound. Some speakers retain a throat consonant for Ayin. The absence of a vowel mark does not by itself make a letter silent.

רַק

rak

only

The Hebrew word 'רַק' (pronounced [rak]) means 'only' or 'just' in English. It consists of two letters: Resh (ר) and Qof (ק). The Resh, with a patah (ַ) beneath it, produces the [ra] sound. The Qof gives the [k] sound. Together, 'רַק' is pronounced [rak], one syllable.

Reading Practice

Try reading these words aloud. Some words review earlier letters. Reading guide: רַדְיוֹ — ra-dyo, with stress on ra; y is like the y in 'yes'. דְּרָקוֹן — dra-kon, with stress on kon; start with dr, without an extra vowel. חָלָב — cha-lav, with stress on lav; ch is like the sound in Scottish 'loch', and the final v is voiced, as in 'very'. סַבּוֹן — sa-bon, with stress on bon; pronounce a single b in modern Hebrew. לִימוֹן — li-mon, with stress on mon. Each word has two syllables.

רַדְיוֹ

radyo

radio

דְּרָקוֹן

drakon

dragon

חָלָב

chalav

milk

סַבּוֹן

sabon

soap

לִימוֹן

limon

lemon

Conclusions

Well done! You’ve now learned the twentieth letter of the Hebrew alphabet: only two letters are left. In today’s lesson, you met Resh (ר), whose r sound varies across speakers and traditions. Now it’s time for the exercises, which will help you remember what you’ve learned.

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Your practice results

Use your results to decide what to revisit.