Learn Spanish

Que / Qui – Gue / Gui

Que Pronounced as “ke” in kept

Qui Pronounced as “kee” in keep

Gue Pronounced as “ge” in guest

Gui Pronounced as “gee” in geese

Share This

Consonants

b, v - bueno             The Spanish “b” and “v” are both almost exactly the same as an     
                                    English B.

c – cara                     The Spanish “c” has the English “k” sound except when it     
                                    comes before “e” and “i”.  Before “e” / “i” has a “th” sound.

c – Barcelona           The Spanish “c” has the English “k” sound except when it     
                                   comes before “e” and “i”.  Before “e” / “i” has a “th” sound.

ch – pecho               The Spanish “ch” is the same sound as “ch” in cheese

d – dado                  The Spanish “d” is the same sound as “d” in door. When it
                                  comes at the end of a word, it can have a “th” sound. 

f – fútbol                  The Spanish “f” is the same sound as “f” in foam

g – guante               The Spanish “g” before a, o or u is as “g” in get.

g – gitano                When it comes before e or i is more emphatic.

h – hotel                  In Spanish, “h” is always silent. 

j - jaula                    The Spanish “j” is a strong sound similar to “ch”

k – kilo                    The Spanish “k” is the same as the English “k”. It is
                                 uncommon in Spanish.

l – luna                    The Spanish “l” is the same as “l” in English.

ll – calle                  The Spanish “ll” is the same sound as “y” in yes.

m – mamá             The Spanish “m” is the same sound as “m” in English.

n – naríz                 The Spanish “n” is the same sound as “n” in English.

ñ – española          The Spanish “ñ” is the same sound as “ny” in canyon.

p – papa                 The Spanish “p” is the same sound as “p” in English.

q  - queso               The Spanish “q” is like the “k” in kick in English.

r – ruinas                The Spanish “r” is similar to the English “r” but stronger.

rr – ferrocarril        The Spanish “rr” does not exist in English. It is a very
                                  strong r.  For English speakers is very difficult to
                                  pronounce.

s – sol                      The Spanish “s” has two sounds. It is pronounced the same
                                  as English except when it comes before n, m, l, g, d and b.

s – mismo              The second  sound is the “zzz” when it comes before 
                                 before n, m, l, g, d and b.

t – tasa                   The Spanish “t” is very similar to the “t” in English. In
                                 Spanish the tongue is placed closer to the teeth and there is
                                 less aspiration.

x – extraño            The Spanish “x” is similar to the English pronunciation and 
                                 it has a “ks” sound.

z - zapatillas         The Spanish “z” has the “th” sound in the English thin.

Share This

Semi-Consonants

ie / y: piensa              The Spanish “ie / y” is like  the sound of “y” in yes in English.
ue: trueno                  The Spanish “ue” is like the sound of “wi” in “win” in English.

Share This

Diptongs

ai / ay: maíz       The Spanish “ai / ay” is like  “try” in English

au: baúl               The Spanish “au” is like the “ou” in “sound” in English.

ei / ey: rey           The Spanish “ei” is like the “ea” in “break ” in English.

eu: reunión        The Spanish “eu” has no equivalent in English. Is like the    sound of “e” and “u” together.

oi /oy: hoy          The Spanish “oi/oy” is like the “oy” in “boy” in English.

Vowels

a: papá  The Spanish “a” is a short sharp sound like “rat” in English

e: oreja  The Spanish “e” is like the “e” in “red” in English.

i: vino    The Spanish “i” is like the “i” in “ring” in English.

o: bola    The Spanish “o” is like the “o” in dog in English.

u: uva The Spanish “u” is like the “oo” in “moon” in English.

Share This