{"id":2256,"date":"2019-04-06T13:46:32","date_gmt":"2019-04-06T13:46:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/meditaspanish.com\/?p=2256"},"modified":"2019-10-12T22:49:57","modified_gmt":"2019-10-12T22:49:57","slug":"%d0%b8%d1%81%d0%bf%d0%b0%d0%bd%d1%81%d0%ba%d0%b0%d1%8f-%d1%82%d0%b5%d0%bb%d0%b5%d0%ba%d0%be%d0%bc%d0%bf%d0%b0%d0%bd%d0%b8%d1%8f","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/conversaspanishinstitute.com\/ru\/%d0%b1%d0%bb%d0%be%d0%b3\/%d0%b8%d1%81%d0%bf%d0%b0%d0%bd%d1%81%d0%ba%d0%b0%d1%8f-%d1%82%d0%b5%d0%bb%d0%b5%d0%ba%d0%be%d0%bc%d0%bf%d0%b0%d0%bd%d0%b8%d1%8f\/","title":{"rendered":"Tips to Get Your Spanish Spelling Going"},"content":{"rendered":"

Pronunciation is key when it comes to understanding a language, and therefore getting used to Spanish pronunciation is crucial. One great thing about Spanish is: if you know the alphabet and its sounds, then you can read every Spanish word. In other words, people talk as they write. So, if you know the alphabet and how to read it, learning and speaking Spanish will be much easier than you think.<\/span><\/p>\n

Vowels<\/b><\/h3>\n

First of all, let\u2019s start with the vowels. Like in English there are 5 vowels \u201ca, e, i, o, u\u201d, but unlike in English, Spanish vowels are ALWAYS pronounced the same. Five vowels, five sounds, that\u2019s it.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"CONVERSA
\u0427\u0438\u0442\u0430\u0442\u044c \u0434\u0430\u043b\u0435\u0435<\/strong>Video: Spanish-English false friends<\/span><\/div><\/a><\/div>

A <\/b>pronounced as AH
\n<\/span>E <\/b>pronounced as EH
\n<\/span>I<\/b> pronounced as EE
\n<\/span>O<\/b> pronounced as OH
\n<\/span>U<\/b> pronounced as OO<\/span><\/p>\n

Consonants<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Then, let\u2019s see now how vowels and consonants sound together. The words in brackets are the name of the letters in Spanish and its pronunciation:<\/span><\/p>\n

\"CONVERSA
\u0427\u0438\u0442\u0430\u0442\u044c \u0434\u0430\u043b\u0435\u0435<\/strong>Online Activity: Conjugate Spanish Verbs in Present<\/span><\/div><\/a><\/div>

A (A: AH)<\/b> Again, \u00a0you pronounce it AH. For instance, <\/span>A<\/b>di\u00f3s<\/span><\/p>\n

B (Be: BEH)<\/b> It sounds like English B. <\/span>B<\/b>uenos d\u00edas <\/span><\/p>\n

C (Ce: THEH)<\/b> It has two possible sounds: a soft and a hard one. When followed by A, O, U it\u2019s pronounced as the English K (<\/span>k<\/i><\/b>ale)<\/span><\/i> and when followed by E, I is has the Spanish Z sound (similar to the english <\/span>th<\/span><\/i> in <\/span>th<\/i><\/b>in<\/span><\/i>). Such as: \u00bf<\/span>C<\/b>\u00f3mo se di<\/span>c<\/b>e? <\/span><\/p>\n

D (De: DEH)<\/b> It\u2019s very similar to English, but the sound is not as vibrating. \u00bf<\/span>D<\/b>e <\/span>d<\/b>\u00f3n<\/span>d<\/b>e eres?.<\/span><\/p>\n

E (E: EH)<\/b> Remember? EH. \u00bfC\u00f3mo <\/span>e<\/b>st\u00e1s?<\/span><\/p>\n

F (Efe: EH-feh)<\/b> It\u2019s like <\/span>f<\/span><\/i> in father or <\/span>ph<\/span><\/i> in elephant. \u00a1<\/span>F<\/b>eliz cumplea\u00f1os!<\/span><\/p>\n

G (Ge: HEH)<\/b> Like letter C, its pronunciation will depend on the next letter: when followed by A, O, U, the G makes the same sound as <\/span>G<\/span><\/i> in <\/span>G<\/b>ARDEN. On the other hand, GE and GI are pronounced like the Spanish J sound (or similar to the H <\/span>h<\/i><\/b>otel<\/span><\/i> in english, but much harder). So what do we do to pronounce the soft G sound with E and I? We write a \u201cu\u201d in the middle: GUE, GUI.\u00a0 <\/span>G<\/b>enial, <\/span>g<\/b>racias, mucho <\/span>g<\/b>usto. <\/span><\/p>\n

H (Hache: AH-cheh)<\/b> In Spanish, it has <\/span>no sound<\/b>. For example: Hola \ud83d\ude42<\/span><\/p>\n

I (I latina: EE lah-TEE-nah)<\/b> Pronounced like the English EE. <\/span>I<\/b>gualmente.<\/span><\/p>\n

J (Jota: HOH-tah)<\/b> It sounds like <\/span>ge <\/span><\/i>or <\/span>gi. <\/span><\/i>This sound doesn\u2019t exist in English, but I\u2019m sure you\u2019ll learn the word <\/span>\u201cjam\u00f3n\u201d<\/span><\/i>, so you won\u2019t forget this sound. Buen traba<\/span>j<\/b>o.<\/span><\/p>\n

K (Ka: KAH)<\/b> There\u2019re very few words in Spanish that start or contain the K letter and they all originate on foreign languages. But it\u2019s pronounced exactly the same as in English, such as: <\/span>K<\/b>il\u00f3metro, <\/span>k<\/b>iwi, <\/span>k<\/b>ami<\/span>k<\/b>aze.<\/span><\/p>\n

L (Ele: EH-leh)<\/b> like L in love, same as the English L. Ho<\/span>l<\/b>a. \ud83d\ude42 \ud83d\ude42<\/span><\/p>\n

M (Eme: EH-meh)<\/b> Just like in English. <\/span>M<\/b>uy bien.<\/span><\/p>\n

N (Ene: EH-neh)<\/b> Just like in English. Bue<\/span>n<\/b>as <\/span>n<\/b>oches.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00d1 (E\u00f1e: EH-nyeh)<\/b> The \u00d1 sound is not exclusive to Spanish, but the letter <\/span>\u00d1<\/b> is<\/b>. <\/i><\/b>English language doesn\u2019t have this sound either, but you\u2019ve heard it multiple times in the words Espa<\/span>\u00f1<\/b>a, espa<\/span>\u00f1<\/b>ol.<\/span><\/p>\n

O (O: OH)<\/b> OH. Like in H<\/span>o<\/b>la, for example.<\/span><\/p>\n

P (Pe: PEH)<\/b> Like letter D and other letters, the Spanish P is almost the same, but less breathy. <\/span>P<\/b>or favor.<\/span><\/p>\n

Q (Cu: KU)<\/b> In Spanish, the letter Q basically represents the K sound in English. It is always written followed by the vowel u (but the u is not pronounced) and only used with vowels E and I. Remember the letter C isn\u2019t pronounced as K when followed by E and I? This is why: Spanish \/ca, que, qui, co, cu\/ = English \/ka, ke, ki, ko, ku\/ . \u00bf<\/span>Qu<\/b>\u00e9 <\/span>qu<\/b>ieres?<\/span><\/p>\n

R (Erre: EH-reh)<\/b> There are two different sounds for the letter R as well, soft and hard. Similar to how the R in <\/span>r<\/b>ope and in fathe<\/span>r<\/b> are slightly different in English, the same happens in Spanish but much more significantly. If a word begins with an R, then it\u2019s a hard R. If it is in between two vowels, the sound is soft. In the word <\/span>R<\/b>a<\/span>r<\/b>o, we can see this difference in sound. However, the strong R sound can also be found in between vowels, but in this case it\u2019s written with double R. Ca<\/span>rr<\/b>o.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

S (Ese: EH-seh)<\/b> Again, very similar to English S sound in words like \u201csound\u201d. Therefore: <\/span>S<\/b>oy e<\/span>s<\/b>pa\u00f1ol.<\/span><\/p>\n

T (Te: TEH)<\/b> Not exactly the same sound as in English in <\/span>t<\/b>ooth or <\/span>t<\/b>ea, but again, less breathy. \u00bfC\u00f3mo <\/span>t<\/b>e llamas?<\/span><\/p>\n

U (U: OO) <\/b>Pronounced OO<\/span>. <\/b>\u00bfY t<\/span><\/i>\u00fa<\/i><\/b>?\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

V (Uve: OO-beh) <\/b>In Spanish, its pronunciation is exactly the same as B (<\/span>b<\/b>oy). Hasta la <\/span>v<\/b>ista.<\/span><\/p>\n

W (Uve doble: OO-beh DOH-bleh)<\/b> There are very few words with W, but it\u2019s pronounced like in English. In fact, we only find the W in words we have borrowed from English and other languages. <\/span>W<\/b>hisky. Ki<\/span>w<\/b>i.<\/span><\/p>\n

X (Equis: EH-kis)<\/b> Its sound is like in English. Such as: Ta<\/span>x<\/b>i. <\/span><\/p>\n

Y (I griega: EE gree-EH-gah)<\/b>. Like in English, Y acts as both consonant (<\/span>y<\/b>ou) and vowel (bo<\/span>y<\/b>), the consonant sound is exactly like in English, and the vowel sound is like the Spanish I \/EE\/. <\/span>Y<\/b>a esto<\/span>y<\/b> bien.<\/span><\/p>\n

Z (Zeta: THE-tah)<\/b> It\u2019s very similar to the English TH sound in words like <\/span>th<\/b>in or<\/span> th<\/b>ink. It can only be followed by A, O, U since the E and I are written with the letter C, and so: Z<\/strong>A, C<\/strong>E, C<\/strong>I, Z<\/strong>O, Z<\/strong>U = \/THAnks, THErmic, THInk, THOrn, THUmb\/. For example: <\/span>Z<\/b>orro, <\/span>z<\/b>apato.<\/span><\/p>\n

Extra!<\/h3>\n

There are two non-recognised letters that we will not find in the alphabet, but that we use very frequently. They are: <\/span><\/p>\n

CH<\/b> (CHEH)<\/b> same as the English CH sound in words like church. For instance: <\/span>Ch<\/b>urros con <\/span>ch<\/b>ocolate.<\/span><\/p>\n

LL<\/b> (EH-yeh)<\/b> depends on the speaker\u2019s region, but in general it is pronounced like the Y sound when it is a consonant (<\/span>y<\/b>ou). \u00bfC\u00f3mo te <\/span>ll<\/b>amas?<\/span><\/p>\n

Useful Phrases when Learning Spelling<\/b><\/h3>\n