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SPANISH PRONUNCIATION 101
(La Pronunciación)
Did you know…
• That all of the sounds in Spanish are sounds you are already know?
– It’s true! General American English has about 41 different phonemes (or different clusters of letters that together make one sound) whereas Spanish only has 24. This means that you’ll only need about half of the sounds you probably already know to begin speaking a foreign language.
¡Comencemos! (Let’s begin)
Las Vocales
A(ah)
Las Vocales
E(eh)
Las Vocales
I(ee)
Las Vocales
• Why not (Oh)?• Notice that, when
pronounced, the English O ends with a slight “W” sound.– “Oh-wuh”
• The Spanish O does not end in a “W” sound.
O(just “o”)
Las Vocales
U(oo)
i e a o u
i e a o u
i e a o u
a e i o u
a e i o u
a e i o u
ai ao ae au ea
ei eo eu ia ie
io iu oa oe oi
ou ua ue ui uo
a e i o u
a e i o u
TONGUE TWISTER #1
Ese oso se asea.
Se asea ese oso.
N(eh - neh)
Ñ(eh - nyeh)
a e i o una ne ni no
nuña ñe ñi ño ñu
el niño la niñani - ño ni - ña
nene nena
ne na no ni nu
ne na no ni nu
u - no, u - na, u - na ne - na
Una nena.
M(eh - meh)
a e i o uma me mi mo
mu
la mano el monoma - no mo - no
ma mo mi mu me
ma mo mi mu me
ma no, mo na, mo no, mo ño, mo ña, ma ñamama, mamá, mimo,
mimóMi mamá me ama.Me ama mi mamá.
Mi mamá me mima.Me mima mi mamá.
Mi niño menea una mano.Menea una mano mi niño.
D(deh)
a e i o u da de di do
du
el dedo la donade - do do - na
El niño nada.
La niña nada.
L(el - leh)
Ll(eh - yeh)
=Y• Ll is treated as a
letter of its own in the Spanish alphabet.
• The Ll and the Y are used interchangeably depending on the word.
a e i o u la le li lo
lu
la leña la lluviale - ña llu - via
lla lle lli llo llu
(heh)
G
The “G” Rule• Not all G’s in Spanish are pronounced the
same.• Depending on what vowel precedes it, the G
may either be pronounced like the hard G in the word get, or like the H in the word hen.
• If G comes before A, O, or U, it is pronounced with a hard G.
• If G comes before E or I, it is pronounced like an H.For
example . . .
a e i o uga ge gi go
gu
el gato la gitanaga - to gi - ta - na
¡Ole!REMEMBER:
•The G before A, O, and U is hard as in get.• The G before E or I is pronounced “H” as in hen.
(seh)
C
The “C” Rule
• Similar to the G’s, C’s are also pronounced differently when coupled with an E or an I.
• For example:– the C before an A, O, or U is
pronounced like the “hard C” in can.– the C before an E or I is pronounced
like the “soft C” in cent. For example . . .
a e i o u ca ce ci co
cu
la calle el cieloca - lle ci - e - lo
(che)
Ch
• Ch is treated as a letter of its own in the Spanish alphabet, as well as in many other alphabets.
• It is pronounced as the “Ch” in chair.
a e i o u cha che chi cho
chu
la leche la lechugale - che le - chu - ga
Next is the letter R• First, try pronouncing the letter “R” as
you usually do.– Notice how only the sides of your tongue
touch the roof of your mouth. Try it!
• When pronouncing the Spanish R, the tip of your tongue should also touch the roof of your mouth.– Doing so will make your R’s sound
“swishy.”
The Trill: RR• Now, with the tip your tongue
lightly touching the roof of your mouth, exhale strongly.
• Doing so will cause a vibration between the tip of your tongue and the roof of your mouth. Try it!
• You have successfully trilled the R!
(eh - reh)
RNOT (air - rey)!
Notice the difference!
• Remember, it’s important to pronounce the Spanish R as accurately as possible.
• Practice, practice, practice!
a e i o u ra re ri ro
ru
la rosa el charroro - sa cha - rro
TONGUE TWISTER #2
R con R cigarra.R con R barril.
Corren rápido loscarros cargados deazúcar del ferrocaril.
(hoh - tah)
J• This letter is
pronounced (hoh - tah).
• When grouped with other letters, it is pronounced like the “H” in hen.
• (Recall that ge and gi are also pronounced like the “H” in hen)
a e i o u ja je ji jo
ju
el jamón el jugo de naranjaja - món ju - go de na - ran - ja
(ah - cheh)
H• As indicated, the
name of this letter is pronounced (ah - cheh).
• However, this letter makes no sound when grouped with letters other than C.
• That’s right: the Spanish H on its own is completely silent!
a e i o u ha he hi ho
hu
el helado Hondurashe - la - do Hon - du - ras
el cerillo
Ahora, el resúmen. ¿Están listos?
el gauchoel jarrón
las almohadas
el coche los girasoles
la democracia
