alphabet

Question 1

a

Answer 1

Letter Name - ah

Letter Pronounced - ah

A de Alicante (City in Spain)

Close to “ah.” This sound does not exist exactly in English, but a close approximation can be found by saying “my” omitting the last “ee” sound.

Question 2

b

Answer 2

Letter Name - beh

Letter Pronounced - beh

B de Bilbao (City in Spain)

After a pause or the letters l, m, or n, it sounds much like an English b. However, in all other cases, the lips do not even touch, producing a more whisper like sound almost close to the pronunciation of the letter v.

Question 3

c

Answer 3

Letter Name - ceh

Letter Pronounced - k

C de Cádiz (City in Spain)

Sounds like k in most cases. Before e or i, it sounds like an s (or th (thick) in many parts of Spain).

Question 4

ch

Answer 4

Letter Name - cheh

Letter Pronounced - ch

CH de Chocolate (Chocolate)

Sounds like the ch in “cheese” in English.

Question 5

d

Answer 5

Letter Name - deh

Letter Pronounced - d

D de Dinamarca (Denmark)

After a pause or the letters l, m, or n, it sounds much like an English d except you should place your tongue to your upper teeth instead of the roof of your mouth. However, in all other cases, the tongue touches nothing, creating a whispery th sound like “the”.

Question 6

e

Answer 6

Letter Name - eh

Letter Pronounced - eh

E de España (Spain)

Close to “eh.” This sound does not exist exactly in English, but sounds much like the a in mate.

Question 7

f

Answer 7

Letter Name - effe

Letter Pronounced - f

F de Francia (France)

Sounds like the f in English.

Question 8

g

Answer 8

Letter Name - ge

Letter Pronounced - g / h

G de Girona (City in Spain)

After a pause, or the letters l, m, or n, it sounds much like an English g. Before e or i, it sounds like a harsh h (much like the Spanish j).

Question 9

h

Answer 9

Letter Name - hache

Letter Pronounced - silent

H de Huelva (City in Spain)

In general, this sound is silent. However, words with foreign spelling and no Spanish equivalent, the breathy aspiration is maintained: Hawái, Hollywood, etc. * Many newly introduced words are written in italics to highlight their foreign origin (hámster, hip-hop, etc.).

Question 10

i

Answer 10

Letter Name - i

Letter Pronounced - ee

I de Italia (Italy)

Close to “ee”, but short. Before vowels a, e, and o, it forms a y sound.

Question 11

j

Answer 11

Letter Name - jota

Letter Pronounced - h

J de Jaén (City in Spain)

Close to the English h sound, but it varies from country to country. In some places, the sound is very harsh in the back of the throat (like you are trying to spit something up). It never sounds like the English J.

Question 12

k

Answer 12

Letter Name - kah

Letter Pronounced - k

K de Kilo (Kilo)

Uncommon in Spanish, but sounds much like the English k with less breath.

Question 13

l

Answer 13

Letter Name - ele

Letter Pronounced - l

L de Lugo (City in Spain)

Close to the English l, but with the tongue raised closer to the roof of the mouth rather than dipped down

Question 14

ll

Answer 14

Letter Name - elle

Letter Pronounced - y

LL de Llamar (Call)

While this is not considered a letter anymore by the RAE, it has a distinct y sound (like in use) in most countries. In other countries it can sound like the g in genre.

Question 15

m

Answer 15

Letter Name - eme

Letter Pronounced - m

M de Madrid (City in Spain)

Just like the English m.

Question 16

n

Answer 16

Letter Name - ene

Letter Pronounced - n

N de Navarra (Province in Spain)

Just like the English n.

Question 17

ñ

Answer 17

Letter Name - eñe

Letter Pronounced - ni / ny

Ñ de Ñoño (Geek)

A completely separate letter from the n, it sounds much like the ni combination in onion or the ny combination in canyon.

Question 18

o

Answer 18

Letter Name - oh

Letter Pronounced - oh

O de Oviedo (City in Spain)

Close to “oh” as in so, but shorter.

Question 19

p

Answer 19

Letter Name - peh

Letter Pronounced - p

P de Portugal (Portugal)

Close to the English, but with less breath aspirated

Question 20

q

Answer 20

Letter Name - koo

Letter Pronounced - koo

Q de Queso (Cheese)

Always followed by the letter u, it makes the same sound as the letter k

Question 21

r

Answer 21

Letter Name - ere

Letter Pronounced - d

R de Roma (Rome) RR de Borracho (Drunk)

Similar to the d sound in caddy in most cases. When following a pause or the letters l, n, or s or in the combination rr, it has a trilled sound. * To trill the rr, try to say brr, but instead of using your lips, use your tongue. When you exhale, the tongue should be raised and widened so it touches the upper teeth.

Question 22

s

Answer 22

Letter Name - ese

Letter Pronounced - s

S de Sevilla (City in Spain)

Just like the English s.

Question 23

t

Answer 23

Letter Name - te

Letter Pronounced - t

T de Toledo (Spanish Municipality)

Softer than the English t, the tongue touches the teeth and there is no explosion of breath after moving the tongue away.

Question 24

u

Answer 24

Letter Name - u

Letter Pronounced - oo

U de Único (Sole)

Close to the “oo” in food, but shorter.

Question 25

v

Answer 25

Letter Name - uve

Letter Pronounced - beh

V de Valencia (City in Spain)

Much like the Spanish b where the lips do not touch and there is less aspiration.

Question 26

w

Answer 26

Letter Name - uve doble

Letter Pronounced - w

W de Doble Uve (Name of letter)

Not native to Spanish, but with the same pronunciation as the English w.

Question 27

x

Answer 27

Letter Name - equis

Letter Pronounced - j

X de equis (Name of letter)

Between vowels and at the end of a word, it sounds like the English ks. At the beginning of a word, it sounds like the letter s. * Not too long ago, the x sounded more like the letter j which can still be seen in words such as Mexico and Oaxaca.

Question 28

y

Answer 28

Letter Name - y griega

Letter Pronounced - y / I

Y de Yugoslavia (Yugoslavia)

Most of the time, it sounds like the English y in yes. At the end of a word, it functions as a vowel and sounds like the letter i. * Many books in Spain will say the sound is different from the ll, but the difference is small and you will be understood pronouncing both as y

Question 29

z

Answer 29

Letter Name - zeta

Letter Pronounced - th / s

Z de Zaragoza (City in Spain)

Mostly pronounced like the English s, but can sound like the th in thin in many parts of Spain.