Spanish sounds

Spanish is spelled almost exactly the way it sounds. Learn the five vowels and a handful of consonant rules, and you can read any word aloud, even one you have never seen before.

The Five Vowels

Spanish has only five vowel sounds, and each one is always pronounced the same way. Keep them short and pure: unlike English, they don’t slide into another sound at the end ("oh-oo", "ay-ee").

Every vowel is pronounced, even at the end of a word: noche is "NO-cheh", never "notch".

C, Z and S

In Latin America, c before e or i, z, and s all make the same sound: the "s" in "sun". This is called seseo. (In most of Spain, z and c before e or i sound like the "th" in "think", but you don’t need that sound for Latin American Spanish.)

• cielo - sky ("SYEH-lo")
• cinco - five
• zapato - shoe ("sa-PA-to")
• vez - time, occasion

Before a, o, u or a consonant, c is a hard "k": casa (house), cosa (thing), clase (class).

G and J

J is a breathy sound made at the back of the throat, like a strong English "h": jugo (juice), hijo (son).

G has the same sound before e or i: gente (people) sounds like "HEN-teh".

Everywhere else, g is hard like the "g" in "go": gato (cat), grande (big).

Qu and Gu

To keep a hard sound before e and i, Spanish adds a silent u:

• qu sounds like "k": queso (cheese) is "KEH-so", quince (fifteen) is "KEEN-seh".
• gu before e or i sounds like the "g" in "go": guerra (war) is "GEH-rra".

When the u should be heard after g, it gets two dots: pingüino (penguin) is "peen-GWEE-no".

H Is Silent

H is never pronounced on its own. Just skip it:

• hora (hour) is "O-ra"
• hombre (man) is "OM-breh"
• huevo (egg) is "WEH-bo"

The pair ch is different: it sounds like the "ch" in "church": chico (boy), noche (night).

Ll and Y

In most of Latin America, ll and y sound the same, like the "y" in "yes":

• llamar - to call ("ya-MAR")
• lluvia - rain
• yo - I
• ya - already

In Argentina and Uruguay you will hear them as "sh" or "zh" instead ("SHO" for yo). Both are correct.

When y stands alone, meaning "and", or ends a word, it is a vowel and sounds like "ee": rey (king) rhymes with "ray".

Ñ

Ñ sounds like the "ny" in "canyon": año (year), niño (child), mañana (tomorrow).

It is a single sound, and it is not the same as n. Mixing them up can change the word: sueno means "I sound", but sueño means "dream" or "sleep".

R and Rr

Spanish has two r sounds, and the difference can change the meaning of a word.

• Tapped r: a single r is a quick tap of the tongue, like the "tt" in American "butter": pero (but), caro (expensive), tres (three), hablar (to speak).
• Rolled r: rr is several quick taps in a row: perro (dog), carro (car).

A single r is also rolled at the start of a word, or after n, l or s: rojo (red), río (river), honra (honor).

B and V

B and v are pronounced exactly the same.

After a pause or after m or n, both sound like English "b": bien (well), vino (wine), un vaso (a glass).

Between vowels, the lips almost touch but don’t close completely, giving a softer sound: beber (to drink), huevo (egg).