1 R with Háček
The R with Háček (Ř, ř) is a unique sound found in the Czech language. It's a combination of a voiced alveolar fricative (similar to the 'zh' sound in "measure") and the alveolar trill (like a rolled R). This sound is quite challenging for non-native speakers to pronounce. It's very hard, and it almost took me three weeks to get it right.
It took me a full year to learn that.
2 Throaty H
The throaty H, also known as the voiceless pharyngeal fricative, is a sound that originates in the back of the throat, giving it a distinctively raspy quality. It is commonly found in Semitic languages such as Arabic and Hebrew. I am a native speaker of a language like this and still find myself sometimes missing it. It's very hard to do sometimes.
3 C in Xhosa
In the Xhosa language, the letter C represents a dental click, which is produced by placing the tip of the tongue against the upper front teeth and then releasing it quickly to create a sharp, clicking sound. This click is an integral part of the Xhosa phonetic system. To do the 'C' in Xhosa, pull the tip of the tongue away from the back of the upper front teeth: tsk, tsk.
If you don't know, Xhosa is a click language. It has three different clicks. X and Q are rather simple, but I find C to be very hard.
4 Actual Q
The actual Q sound, or the voiceless uvular stop, is a sound produced by closing off the back of the throat (the uvula) and then releasing it, creating a brief stop in the airflow. This sound is common in languages like Arabic and some dialects of Quechua.
5 Æ
The Æ sound, also known as "ash," is a vowel sound that is a combination of the 'a' in "cat" and the 'e' in "bet." It is found in languages such as Danish, Norwegian, and Old English.
6 Œ
The Πsound, called "oe" or "o-slash," is a vowel sound that is a blend of the 'o' in "bore" and the 'e' in "bet." It is used in French and some older English texts. I find so many people failing with this one because they expect it to be like "ce." Why didn't you say so?
7 Trilled R
The trilled R, also known as the rolled R or alveolar trill, is a vibrant sound produced by rapidly vibrating the tip of the tongue against the alveolar ridge, just behind the upper front teeth. This sound is common in languages such as Spanish, Italian, and Russian. Although I can do this sound now, it took me until I was five to do so.
I still don't know how to do this.
8 W
The W sound is a voiced labio-velar approximant, produced by rounding the lips and raising the back of the tongue toward the velum. It is a common sound in languages such as English, German, and Dutch. Personally, I find it hard to make this sound when it is not in my native tongue. I see many ESL speakers also pronounce it more like a V.
9 Th
The Th sound represents two distinct phonemes: the voiceless dental fricative (as in "think") and the voiced dental fricative (as in "this"). Both are produced by placing the tip of the tongue against the upper front teeth and allowing air to flow through the small gap. This sound is commonly found in English and Greek. For foreign speakers mainly, it sounds like some messed-up D.
10 Ng
The Ng sound represents a voiced velar nasal, produced by closing the back of the tongue against the velum and allowing air to flow through the nose. This sound is common in languages like English, as in the word "sing," as well as in various African and Asian languages. The fact is most of us pronounce this wrong.
The Contenders
11 LL in Welsh
The LL sound in Welsh is a voiceless alveolar lateral fricative, produced by placing the tip of the tongue against the upper front teeth and forcing air around the sides of the tongue, creating a distinctive hissing sound. This sound is unique to the Welsh language. There is actually an easy way to do it. The easiest way to do the LL in Welsh is to position your tongue as if you were going to pronounce the English th, open the bottom jaw, and keep the edge of your tongue touching the upper teeth. Then, move your tongue back a little behind your upper teeth and blow.
The LL is another one of the hardest sounds. What you do is put your tongue into the position of the English l and t, then you blow softly.
The LL is really hard because you have to blow with your tongue on top of your mouth.
12 The X in Pashto
The X in Pashto represents the voiceless velar fricative, a sound produced by constricting the airflow at the back of the mouth, near the velum. It is similar to the ‘ch’ sound in the German word "Bach" or the ‘j’ sound in the Spanish word "jalapeño." The X in Pashto is hard because to produce the sound of /ښ/, one needs to touch the back of the tongue with the uvula and let the air out to create a hissing sound. However, in the western (Kandahari) dialect, this sound is produced straight away in the fashion of /sh/.
ښ = x
13 The Polish ‘CZ’ and ‘SZ’
In Polish, the 'CZ' sound represents a voiceless alveolo-palatal affricate, similar to the English 'ch' in "chair." The 'SZ' sound is a voiceless alveolo-palatal fricative, akin to the English 'sh' in "ship." Both sounds are crucial elements of the Polish phonetic system.
14 (ړ) R in Pashto
The ړ sound in Pashto is a voiced retroflex flap, produced by quickly flicking the tip of the tongue against the hard palate. This sound is similar to the rolled R in some Indian languages and is unique to the Pashto phonetic system. The 'R' is very, very hard to pronounce. I can't even do it because you have to curl your whole tongue back and then quickly flap it down.
15 ع in Arabic
The ع sound in Arabic is a voiced pharyngeal fricative, produced by constricting the airflow in the pharynx (the back of the throat). This sound is unique to Semitic languages like Arabic and is often challenging for non-native speakers to pronounce.
16 õ in Estonian
The õ sound in Estonian is a close-mid back unrounded vowel, similar to the 'u' in the English word "hurt" but with the lips unrounded. This vowel sound is unique to Estonian and a few other Uralic languages. The sound is pronounced with the tongue in the same position as the o sound, but with the lips unrounded. It's kind of halfway between the e in get and the u in hung.
17 Lateral click x in Xhosa
The lateral click x in Xhosa is a sound produced by creating a suction effect on the side of the tongue against the upper molars and releasing it quickly to produce a clicking sound. This lateral click is a prominent phoneme in the Xhosa language and other Bantu languages with clicks.
18 The French ‘r’
The French 'r' is a voiced uvular fricative, produced by vibrating the uvula at the back of the throat while allowing air to flow through. This sound is distinctively throaty and is characteristic of the French language. The French 'r' is one of the two most difficult sounds in French. It's difficult for young French speakers and foreigners. To pronounce the French 'r,' try to pronounce it raspily in the back of the throat. It sounds like you're coughing up a hairball.
The French 'r' is one of the two most difficult sounds in French. It's difficult for young French speakers and foreigners. To pronounce the French 'r,' try to pronounce it raspily in the back of the throat. It sounds like you're coughing up a hairball.
19 Ы
The Ы sound is a Cyrillic letter representing a near-close near-back unrounded vowel, similar to the 'i' in the English word "bit" but with the tongue slightly retracted. This sound is common in Russian and other Slavic languages that use the Cyrillic script.
20 S in Arabic
The S sound in Arabic represents a voiceless alveolar fricative, which is similar to the English 's' in "sand." This sound is a common phoneme in Arabic and many other languages worldwide. It's very hard to say the 's.' To pronounce it, it's kind of like 's' but with the back of the throat constricted. It makes 'a' further back in the throat, 'I' into 'e,' and 'u' into 'o.'
21 Q in Zulu
The Q sound in Zulu represents an alveolar click, produced by placing the tip of the tongue against the alveolar ridge and quickly releasing it to create a sharp, clicking sound. This click is an integral part of the Zulu phonetic system and other Bantu languages with clicks. To pronounce the Q in Zulu, you have to place your tongue against the roof of your mouth and snap it downwards.
22 x̌ in Klallam
The x̌ sound in the Klallam language is a voiceless uvular fricative, produced by constricting the airflow at the back of the throat near the uvula without voice. This sound is similar to the German ‘ch’ in "Bach" but further back in the mouth. It is an essential phoneme in the Klallam language. The sound is made near the Adam's apple, a hard x sound.
23 R in Czech
The R sound in Czech is an alveolar trill, which is produced by rapidly vibrating the tip of the tongue against the alveolar ridge, just behind the upper front teeth. This trilled R is common in Czech and other Slavic languages, as well as languages such as Spanish and Italian.
24 X
The X sound typically represents a voiceless velar fricative, produced by constricting the airflow at the back of the mouth near the velum. This sound is similar to the ‘ch’ in the German word "Bach" or the ‘j’ in the Spanish word "jalapeño." It is common in languages such as Greek, Dutch, and Basque.
25 Q
The Q sound often represents a voiceless uvular stop, which is a sound produced by closing off the back of the throat (the uvula) and then releasing it, creating a brief stop in the airflow. This sound is found in languages like Arabic and some dialects of Quechua.