Production and Perception of English /l/ and /r/ by 4-, 5-, and 8-Year-Old Children

The English /l-r/ distinction is difficult to learn for some second language learners as well as for nativespeaking children. This study examines the use of the second (F2) and third (F3) formants in the production and perception of /l/ and /r/ sounds in 4-, 5and 8-year old native-English-speaking children. The results indicate that whereas the young children’s /l/-/r/ production was welldistinguished acoustically by its primary acoustic cue (i.e., F3), they were still developing in regards to how they integrated F3 and F2 in production, and particularly in perception, relative to native adults. These data are consistent with a rather long trajectory of phonetic development whereby native categories are refined and tuned well into childhood.