Broad L Broad L

Let’s have a look at the variations of the broad L sound in Gaelic.

The broad L sound is made by resting your tongue behind your front teeth while pronouncing the letter, and occurs when the L is next to an a, o, or u. The broad L can be heard in latha (a day):

latha

a day

latha math

a good day

The broad L can be heard in the middle of a word in balach (a boy):

balach

a boy

The broad L sound can sound a bit different when combined with another consonant at the beginning of a word, such as in sload (pull) or cluich (play):

sload

pull

cluich

play

Finally, the broad L can be heard at the end of words such as ceòl (music), as well:

ceòl

music