Bangla ত and ট: the two T sounds English does not have
English has one T. Bangla has two, and they are not interchangeable: তাল (taal, a palm fruit) and টাল (Taal, a tilt) are different words. English speakers almost always produce the retroflex ট for both, which makes ordinary words sound slightly wrong without the listener being able to say why.
Where the tongue goes
For ত, put the tip of your tongue flat against the back of your upper front teeth — further forward than any English T. For ট, curl the tongue tip back so it touches the ridge behind the teeth. The English T sits between the two, which is why it is heard as ট.
Now say these
Slowly first. Speed only after three faultless repetitions.
- তিন তালগাছের তলায় টুনি টিয়া টুকটুক করে।Under three palm trees, Tuni the parrot taps away.
- টাকা তুলে তালা টেনে তুলি টানল।Having withdrawn the money, Tuli pulled the lock.
- তোতা তোতলায়, টিয়া টানে, তবু তারা তরতর করে।The parrot stammers, the parakeet drawls, yet they hurry along.
- তেতুলতলায় টিনের টুপি।A tin cap under the tamarind tree.
- টগর তুলে তরুণ তরকারিতে টান দিল।Having picked a togor flower, the young man tugged at the curry.
The pair that goes wrong
Saying টাকা (Taka) with the English T for তাকা (taka, 'to look').টাকা is retroflex; তাকা is dental — the money and the looking are different sounds.Money comes up in every conversation in Bangladesh, so this is the pair a learner is heard getting wrong most often.