Spanish (Spain)
Spanish pronunciation: every letter and sound
Spanish is spelled almost exactly as it sounds: learn what each letter does and you can read any word aloud. The vowels are always pure, and a handful of consonants change with the letter after them. Tono scores Spanish against the Spain model, so z and soft c are given as the th of “think”; the notes say where Latin America differs.
Vowels
Five vowels, always short and pure. There is no glide at the end and no schwa: every vowel keeps its full sound, stressed or not.
- a/a/Open, like the a in “father” but shorter.casa, mapa, hablar Practice
- e/e/Between the e of “bed” and the ay of “day”, without sliding into a y.mesa, leche, verde Practice
- i/i/Like “ee”, short and pure.sí, libro, vivir Practice
- o/o/Rounded, without the English glide towards w.foto, todo, ocho Practice
- u/u/Like “oo”, short and pure. Silent in que, qui, gue and gui.luna, tú, uno Practice
Letters that change sound
These are the letters where Spanish spelling works differently from English.
- b · v/b β/The same sound. A full b at the start of a phrase and after m or n; between vowels the lips only come close, a soft [β].beso, vaso, cabeza, uva Practice Spanish B and V guide
- c/k θ/Like k before a, o and u. Before e and i it is /θ/, the th of “think”.casa, cosa, cena, cineIn Latin America ce and ci are said with an s. Tono scores against the Spain model. Practice
- d/d ð/A full d at the start and after n or l. Between vowels and at the end of a word it softens towards the th of “this”.dos, donde, cada, verdad Practice
- g/ɡ x/Like the g in “go” before a, o and u. Before e and i it is the same scrape as j.gato, lago, gente, giganteIn gue and gui the u is silent (guerra, guitarra); with two dots it is said (pingüino). Practice Spanish J and G guide
- hsilentAlways silent.hola, hacer, ahora Practice
- j/x/A scrape at the back of the mouth, like the ch in Scottish “loch”.jamón, ojo, mujer Practice Spanish J and G guide
- ll · y/ʝ/Most speakers say ll and y the same, a y sound with a little friction.llamar, calle, yo, playay on its own or at the end of a word is a vowel: y, hoy, muy. Practice Spanish LL and Y guide
- ñ/ɲ/Like the ny in “canyon”, said as one sound.año, niño, España Practice
- qu/k/A k sound; the u is silent.que, queso, aquí Practice
- r · rr/ɾ r/A single r between vowels is one quick tap. rr, and r at the start of a word, is rolled.pero, perro, rojo Practice Spanish rolled R guide
- x/ks/Usually ks. In México and a few old names it is the j sound.examen, taxi, México Practice
- z/θ/The th of “think”.zapato, azul, luzIn Latin America z is said like s. Practice
Letters close to English
These sound much as they do in English, with one difference: p, t and k have no puff of air after them.
- ch/tʃ/As in “church”.chico, ocho, leche Practice
- f/f/As in English.fácil, café, fuego Practice
- k/k/Only in borrowed words.kilo, karate Practice
- l/l/Always the light l of “leaf”, never the dark l of “full”.libro, sol, mil Practice
- m/m/As in English.madre, cama, mismo Practice
- n/n/As in English.nada, mano, pan Practice
- p/p/No puff of air after it.padre, papá, sopa Practice
- s/s/Always a hiss, never a z sound.sol, casa, más Practice
- t/t/The tongue touches the back of the top teeth; no puff of air.tomar, todo, gato Practice
Keep going
How to roll your R Spanish minimal pairs Spanish tongue twisters Spanish pronunciation practice