How to pronounce the French ‘R’

Video clip for practice using three common examples of French words that are difficult to pronounce because of the French ‘R’ sound:
Merci – Thank you
Mercredi – Wednesday
Restaurant – Restaurant

Listen to very young French children and you may occasionally hear them exaggerate the ‘r’ sound in words like ‘meRci’ or ‘meRcredi‘ for fun, or maybe even because they are exploring them.
It is a good idea to try that, in private if you prefer …
However, here is happy news:
After gargling (?!) and trying to get that ‘r’ sound to vibrate in your throat, here is a HOT TIP: It is better hardly to pronounce the ‘r’ at all than to over-exaggerate the sound if you are having trouble with it!
Gliding over those horrible ‘r’s rather than struggling with them can work very well.

Here are three very short youtube videos for oral practice using: ‘merci’, ‘mercredi’ and ‘restaurant’:

Merci: