R sounds are rough, and L sounds are smooth: Cross-cultural study finds these associations may be universal

People around the world associate a trilled R sound with a rough texture and a jagged shape, and an L sound with a smooth ...
EurekAlert!

‘Rough’ words feature a trill sound in languages around the globe - study

In languages spoken around the world, words describing rough surfaces are highly likely to feature a ‘trilled /r/’ sound – a linguistic pattern that stretches back over 6,000 years, a new study ...
Science Daily

R sounds are rough, and L sounds are smooth, according to cross-cultural study

People around the world associate a trilled R sound with a rough texture and a jagged shape, and an L sound with smooth texture and a flat shape, according to the findings of a new study. Researchers ...
BBC

What a single sound says about you

Do you growl, roll or trill? The letter ‘r’ – and how we pronounce it – reveals a surprising amount about identity, fashion and history, writes James Harbeck. The ‘r’ sound is the Doctor Who of speech ...