Guide to Pronunciation , Part 1 - A1

Guide to Pronunciation

Spanish spelling is an exact reflection of the pronunciation of the language. The pronunciation of each letter is subject to precise and consistent rules, and words are pronounced by adding together the sounds of each individual letter.

Vowels

The sounds of the vowels are clear and short. Pronounce the examples.

Letter	Pronounced like	Examples
a	the a in father	la casa, la tapa, Panamá, Canadá
e	two sounds: the e in café when final the e in set elsewhere	elefante, come, vive, verde, que pero, es, hotel
i	the i in machine	sí, cine, comida
o	two sounds: the o in hope the o in for if followed by r	oso, otro, hospital doctor, profesor
u	the u in rule written as ü when pronounced in güe and güi silent in gue and gui elsewhere	uno, tú, puro agüero, güira guerra, guitarra
y	Spanish i	y, soy, hay

Consonants

Letter	Pronounced like	Examples
b / v	the b in boat when they occur at the beginning of a breath group, or following l, m, or n softer elsewhere, produced through slightly opened lips	baño, burro, embargo, alba, el vino, el voto, invierno, vamos Cuba, la boca, Havana, la vaca

In Spanish, the b and v have the same sound. The sound of English v does not exist in Spanish

Letter	Pronounced like	Examples
c	the c in cat before a, o, u, or before a consonant the s in sail before e or i	camisa, color, concreto centavo, cita, cinco
ch	the ch in chum	chocolate, chorizo

Letter	Pronounced Like	Examples
d	Two sounds: • Like the d in dog at the beginning of a breath group, or following l or n. • Like the th in other elsewhere.	donde, falda, conde boda, poder, verdad, nada, cada, estudio
f	Like the English f.	futuro, fila, oficina
g	Two sounds: • Like the g in game before a, o, u, or a consonant. • Like the h in hat before e or i.	gato, gusto, grande genio, generoso, gitano
h	Always silent.	hombre, hasta, hablar
j	Like the English h (can also be given a slightly guttural sound).	Juan, ojo, mujer
k	Like the English k.	kayak, kilómetro, kiwi
l	Like the English l, but with the tip of the tongue touching the roof of the mouth.	el, hotel, mil, palo
ll	Like the y in beyond (or, in some regions, like the s in pleasure).	caballo, bello, llave
m	Like the English m.	menos, cama, marrón
n	Like the English n.	nota, nación, nariz
ñ	Like the ny in canyon or the ni in onion.	mañana, España, señor
p	Like the English p, but not explosive (pronounced without the puff of air).	papel, persona, pobre
q	Like the k in key (found only in the combinations que and qui).	Quito, queso, equipo
r	Two sounds: • Like the dd in ladder (a single tongue flap) when inside a word. • Trilled like rr at the beginning of a word or after l, n, or s.	caro, barato, para, hablar rosa, el río, Enrique, las rosas
rr	A strong trill or tongue roll (no equivalent sound in English).	perro, horrible, carro
s	Like the English s.	sopa, sala, blusa
t	Like the English t, but not explosive. Press the tip of the tongue against the back of the upper front teeth.	torta, talento, tesoro
v	Exactly like the Spanish b (the English v sound does not exist in Spanish).	See pronunciation for 'b'
w	Exists only in words of foreign origin; it is not traditionally part of the core Spanish alphabet.	Various foreign loanwords
x	Like the English x.	experto, examen
y	Same as the Spanish ll (like the y in beyond).	papaya, papagayo, ayer
z	Pronounced exactly like the English s in Latin America.	azul, brazo, luz