GUIDE TO PRONUNCIATION

VOWELS:

letter

Pronounced like

examples

The a in father

Casa, tapa, panama

There are two sounds:

the e in caf when final

Elefante, come, vive,

verde,que

the e in set elsewhere

pero, es, hotel
I

The i in machine

Two sounds:

Si, cocina, comida

the oin hope

Oso, otro, hospital

the o in for if followed by r

doctor, profesor

The u in rule

Uno, t, puro

CONSONANTS:

Letter

Pronounced like

examples

B,V

The b in boat when they

Bao, burro, embargo,

occur at the beginning of a

embargo
breath group, or following l,
m or n
el vino, el voto, invierno,
vamos
softer elsewhere, produced
through slightly opened lips. cuba, boca, habana, la vaca.
In spanish the b and v have
the same sounds. The sound
of english v does not exist in
english.
C

The C in cat before a, o, u or Camisa, color , concreto

before a consonant.
The S in sail before e or i
centavo, cita, circo

CH

The ch in chan

Two sounds:
The d in dog when it
occurs when it occurs at the
beginning of breath group,
or following l or n

Chocolate , chorizo

Donde, falda, conde

The th in other elsewhere

Boda, poder, verdad, nada.
F

English f

Futuro, fila, oficina

The g in game before a, o

u or before a consonant

Gato , gusto, grande

The h in hat before e or i

Genio, generoso, gitano
H

silent

Hombre, hasta, hablar

English h ( it can also be

given a slighty gutteral
sound)

Juan, ojo , mujer

English k

Kayak, kilometro, kiwi

English L , but with the tip

of the tongue touching the
roof of the mouth

El, hotel, mil, palo

English M

Menos, cama, marron

English N

Nota, nacin, nariz

The NY in canyon

Maana,Espaa, seor

English P, but not plosive

Papel, persona, pobre

The K in key (found only in

the combinations que and
qui)

Quito, queso, equipo

The dd in ladder (a single

ongue flap)

Caro, barato, para, hablar