Linking r and intrusive r Definition

Rs, R's, r's
1. The eighteenth letter of the English alphabet. See also the three R's.

In some accents of English, a written r is not pronounced before another consonant or at the end of a word, so that cord is pronounced /kC:d/, and bar /ba:/. In other accents, such as Scottish English, such r's are pronounced. Accents of English can thus be divided between those that are r-pronouncing and those that are non-r-pronouncing.

However, even in non-r-pronouncing accents, an r at the end of a word is pronounced when the word that follows begins with a vowel, so that far away is pronounced /fA:rB'weN/. This is known as a linking r. It is signalled in the dictionary phonetics by (r), eg at radar.

In some accents, however, speakers go further than this and pronounce an r in such cases even where there is no r in the written word, as in the infamous phrase law and order, which then becomes /lC:rBnd'C:dB/. This is known as an intrusive r and, although often condemned, is simply another characteristic of the speech habits of sections of the English-speaking community.