Spanish is spoken as it is spelled (phonetically), but what are some good rules for better pronunciation?

Your browser doesn’t support HTML5 video

Envoyer message Réserver session vidéo

Hello, my name is Alejandra and the question I'll be answering now is: Spanish is spoken as it is spelled (phonetically), but what are some good rules for better pronunciation? I’m assuming you know the alphabet. The vowels have pretty straight forward sounds. A E I O U. And they are always pronounced the same. Examples: Andar. Escribir. Interesante. Olvido. Uso. The letter D sounds like the TH in ALTHOUGH. Example: Dedo. Doble. The letter J sounds like a very rough H in HOT. And so does the letter G when paired with E and I. Examples: Jícama. Juan. Geranio. Giro. With the vowels A, O, U , the letter G sounds like the G in Goat. Examples: Gata. Gol. Gusto. And we can give the same sound to the vowels E and I, if we put a U in between. The U in this case, is silent: Examples: Guerra. Guitarra. And if we add two dots above the U, it’s not silent anymore. Examples: Güero. Güisqui. The H in Spanish is silent. But when paired with a C (CH) it sounds like the TCH sound in NOTCH. Examples: Bicho. Noche. Chiste. The letter Ñ is similar to the NY sound in the word CANYON. Example: Niña. Cañón. The letter R has two sounds. As a general rule, when you see a RR, then you have to roll your tongue. You also have to roll your tongue when you see a single R at the beginning of a word. The rest of the time, that is, when the single R is in the middle of a word, it sounds like R. Examples: Perro. Gorro. Cerro. Roberto. Restar. Ridículo. Pera. Esfera. Coro. Finally, when you see this: ´ which is called “tilde” or “acento”, you need to stress that syllable. Examples: Canción. Víbora. Hacía. I hope this cleared your doubts. Remember private sessions are also available if you would like ONE ON ONE learning. Feel free to message me to schedule a session. See you around and have a nice day!

Leçons associées

Corps humain
El Cuerpo Humano

Vidéos associées

What's the difference between "tú" and "usted"?
Ale Lorenzo
What is the difference between זֶה בֶּן “this is Adi” and זֹאת עֲדִי “this is Ben"? Why do they use different verbs?
Jonathan Benchlouch
How do you apply the masculine and feminine? Is it by speaker (ie. a man speaking uses the masculine regardless of who he is talking to), or it is who is being spoken to (ie. a man talking to a woman will use the feminine)?
Jonathan Benchlouch
What are the rules for using the imperative in French?
Ale Lorenzo
What's the difference between "bonne nuit" and "bonne soirée"?
Ale Lorenzo
What's the difference between אַהְלָן (alan), הַי (hai) and שָׁלוֹם (shalom)? Don't all three mean "hello"?
Jonathan Benchlouch
How do you say "have a good day" in Spanish?
Ale Lorenzo
What's the difference between "malo" and "mal"?
Ale Lorenzo
Changer de langue:
עִברִית