The Postalveolar approximant
The postalveoar approximant is produced
by the tip of the tongue being raised towards the area just behind the
teeth ridge, leaving a narrow open space along the ridge. The SBE /r/
is not rolled, i.e. it does not touch or tap the teeth ridge. This variant
is found in many regional varieties of English. The American variety
is produced when the tip of the tongue is curved backwards toward the
palatoalveolar area. To Norwegians, the traditional SBE poses greater
production difficulties than most dialectal varieties. The postalveolar
approximant is generally voiced, except when preceded by unvoiced sounds
like /p/, /t/, /k/, /f/, /s/ etc. After short vowels it may be replaced
by a quick tap.