Micro‐Brillouin measurements on single crystal lead titanate were carried out at ambient conditions. We used a symmetrical scattering geometry that allows probing of all wave vectors within a given plane. All acoustic modes could be resolved. A central peak that is strongly coupled to the acoustic modes is observed. Detailed analysis of the coupling reveals the importance of the irreducible representation of symmetry E that is closely related to the ferroelectric phase transition at higher temperatures. © 2003 American Institute of Physics