THE SOUND OF SPANISH AND THE PROPER ARTICULATION AND PRONUNCIATION OF THE SPANISH A

The sound of the Spanish A is not difficult.  However, for someone who is not a native Spanish speaker, this sound can be mistaken for our English A at times.  The Spanish pronunciation of the A is precise.  It has that same sound that the A has like in the word “father”.   This sound never changes.  This is the sound of Spanish.

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE IN THE SOUND OF THE SPANISH A?

Spanish learners make the mistake of mispronouncing this letter, especially when the word they are saying is similar to an English word.  The sound of the Spanish A is simple but can easily be mispronounced.  I have also notice that tendency to get lazy on the pronunciation of this letter when the word ends in the letter A. Remember to be strict with the  Spanish sound of this letter, whether the word is spelled the same as our English word or  if the letter ends the word.  Stay true to the sound of the Spanish A, keeping the sound the same all the time.   See examples in my video.

Commonly mispronounced A words:

Analizar vs. Analyze             Animal vs. Animal

Spanish to English translations for the drills: Continue reading →

THE SOUND OF THE SPANISH E VOWEL SOUND IS THE VOWEL THAT IS THE MOST MISUNDERSTOOD AND MISPRONOUNCED.

The sound of the Spanish pronunciation of the vowel E is, in my opinion, the most misunderstood.  Be careful with this letter.  A Spanish student tends to change the pronunciation of the this letter depending on where it falls in the word.  Please remember that the Spanish E is crucial to your proper Spanish accent and pronunciation.   If you want to sound Spanish-speaking, then you must practice your E’s.

How do I imitate a native speaker’s sound of the Spanish E?  What is the difference in the way I pronounce the E and that way that a native Spanish speaker pronounces his E?  You must learn to tune your ear to the sound of each letter.  for instance,  the E sound in Spanish is pronounced like the E sound in the English word ‘wet’, ‘let’, or ‘set’.   English speakers learning Spanish have a tendency to pronounce the E as if it has an i after it: ‘ei’ like in the word ‘weight’.   Can you hear the difference in the sounds?  (wet vs. weight)

Example: The sound of the Spanish word ‘de’ should be pronounced with the same vowel sound in the word ‘jet’.  If you pronounce the word like ‘dei’, using the vowel sound of the word ‘weight’, then you are pronouncing the word incorrectly.   Let’s practice…

THE SOUND OF THE SPANISH E:

The Spanish E sounds like the ‘e’ sound in the words:
Emily, Eddy, Best

1. Most commonly mispronounced words using the letter E:
Alfredo vs the mispronunciation of ‘Alfreido’    Continue reading →

LEARN TO ARTICULATE AND PROPERLY PRONOUNCE THE SOUND OF THE SPANISH I

The sound of the Spanish ‘I’ can be easily mispronounced when the word in Spanish is similar to the sound of the word in English.   The ‘I’ must be pronounced with the same vowel sound like in the word ‘free’, ‘tree’ or ‘me’.  None of these words have an ‘I’ in them, but this is the sound for the Spanish I.   This sound does not change.

The sound of the Spanish ‘i’ verses sound in English

Spanish students tend to ‘downplay’ the Spanish ‘i’ pronunciation.  For instance,  the sound of the Spanish I in the English words ‘win’, ‘in’, or ‘him’ are the incorrect pronunciation for the Spanish I.  In fact, the vowel sound in those words does not even exist in Spanish.   How does a native speaker pronounce the sound of the Spanish ‘I’?

Example:  Each ‘I’ in the word ‘indicar’ must be pronounce with with same vowel sound like in the word ‘free’.   NONE of the I’s should sound like the ‘I’ sound in the word ‘in’.  Can you hear the difference in vowel sounds?  ‘in’ vs. ‘free‘

Commonly mispronounced words with the spanish ‘i’ sound:

Inactivo (inactive)       Posibilidad (possibility)       Inglés (English)      

Mil (thousand)

Spanish to English tranlations for the Drills: Continue reading →

THE SOUND OF THE SPANISH O IS NOT EXACTLY THE SAME AS THE SOUND OF THE ENGLISH O

How does a native Spanish speaker pronounce the ‘O’?  What is the difference in the Spanish sound of the ‘O’ and the English sound of the letter ‘O’?

The Spanish O and the English O sound similar, but there is a slight difference.  The sound of the Spanish O is short and crisp as opposed to the English O which is spoken in a sing-song manner.

Although the Spanish sound of the O is the same in English as it is in Spanish.  The mouth position in Spanish makes the sound slightly different.   The word ‘no’ in Spanish is not exactly the same as the word ‘no’ in English.

Because our vowel sounds in English change so often.  I find that Spanish students, unknowingly, change the sound of the Spanish ‘O’ at times.   The O in Spanish should never be pronounced like the ‘O’ in the words ‘not, ‘ton’, ‘stop’ or ‘rot’.   The Spanish ‘O’ is ALWAYS pronounced like in the words ‘no’, ‘go’ and ‘show’.

example: The sound of the Spanish ‘O’ in the word ‘ocular’ should not be pronounced like the ‘O’ in the word ‘not’.  I should be pronounced like the ‘O’ in the word ‘no’.  Can you hear the difference in the sound of Spanish and the Sound of English?  ‘not’ vs. ‘no’

The sound of the  Spanish O sounds like the O in the word No.

Commonly mispronounced word: Continue reading →

THE  SOUND OF THE SPANISH U IS PRONOUNCED AS THE U IN THE WORD IMPROMPTU OR THE DOUBLE ‘O’ SOUND LIKE IN THE WORD TOO.

The sound of the Spanish U is always pronounced the same.  But it has the tendency to be mispronounced when a word in Spanish is similar to the word in English.

What is the U sound in the sound of Spanish? How does a native speaker pronounce the U?

The sound of the Spanish ‘U’ should always be pronounced like the the vowel sound in the words ‘too’, ‘you’ or ‘who’.  In is never pronounces like the U in the words ‘under’, ‘fun’ or ‘thunder’.

Example:  The ‘U’ in the Spanish word ‘mundo’ should not be pronounced like the word ‘fun’.  It should be pronounced like the vowel sound in the word ‘who’.  Can you hear the difference in the Spanish vowel sounds?  ‘fun’ vs. ‘who’. 

The Spanish ‘U’ sound should never be pronounced as if there is a ‘y’ before it unless there actually is a ‘y’.   The sound of the Spanish ‘U’ NEVER changes.

Commonly mispronounced words:

Unidad vs. Unity

Música  vs. Music

Spansih to English translation for Drills: Continue reading →

The Sound of  Spanish – The Alphabet

The Spanish alphabet is made up of 30 characters instead of only 26 characters like in the English Alphabet.  The key to good Spanish pronunciation to words is learning and understanding how each letter should sound.  The sound of the Spanish alphabet is the Sound of Spanish.

THE DIFFERENCES IN THE SOUND OF SPANISH AND THE SOUND OF ENGLISH

Most Spanish language students and teachers will tell you that the only differences in sounds (when comparing English to Spanish ) are the sounds of the following: b/v,  d, t, h, j, ll, r, t.   This leaves all other letters to be pronounced the same as we pronounce them in English.   Surprise, Surprise!!!  If you want to sound like a  native Spanish speaker, we must make other changes in the Spanish  pronunciation.  Even the most slightest of changes are important to the Spanish sound.  Small changes in addition to the bigger changes will have you speaking and sounding  closer to a native Spanish speaker in no time.

In close examination the Spanish letters that do not differ, even in the slightest way, from the English sound are f, m, n, and p.   This means that all letters must be studied, understood and practiced for a proper Spanish sound. I will break down the pronunciation of each letter within words in future lessons.

In this lesson we will first learn to name each letter in the alphabet in Spanish.   See the video below.  This is the beginning of the Spanish sound.

THE SOUND OF SPANISH AND SPELLING.

Practice spelling while you learn Spanish

The sound of Spanish begins with memorizing the Spanish alphabet.  Learning how to spell is part of the sound of Spanish.  It helps with your Spanish accent, especially when others spell new words to you.

In this lesson, I have added a few tips on how to spell in Spanish.  What is the Spanish equivalent to our version of the  “M as in Mary” technique that we use in English?  Can you remember the 4 new Spanish letters?  Can you spell your name off the top or your head in the Spanish language?  This is the sound of Spanish.

This is a test.  Let’s see what you know.

1. Spelling Drills.

Can you spell these words in Spanish without looking?

THE SOUND OF SPANISH SPELLING DRILLS

Arroz  (Rice)

KiloQuién (who)

Jamón (Ham)

Continue reading →

The sound of the Spanish Vowels

Please pay close attention to these five very important Spanish sounds.  The sound of Spanish vowels are responsible for a major part of the Spanish accent.   If you desire to sound like a native Spanish speaker,  you must learn to pronounce your vowels properly.  Most students tend to focus on the pronunciation of the rolling Rs and forget to practice the rest of the Spanish Accent. But just like that Spanish R, the Spanish vowel sounds are also the sound of Spanish.

Each distinct vowel sound of spanish

All 5 vowels have their own distinct sound of Spanish.  These sounds are NOT shared with each other.  Each vowel has it’s own sound and cannot be used for any other vowel.  What do I mean?  English vowel sounds are interchanged between one another.  For instance notice the words Father vs bother.  The A and the O are two different vowels but in these words they are sharing the same sound.   Spanish vowels are stingy.  Thye do not share their sounds with one another.  If you follow this very crucial rule you will eventually manage the sound of Spanish.

Spanish vowel sounds are ALWAYS the same in sound.  In English we change the sound of our vowels frequently.  Example:  her vs. here.  Both E’s are pronounced differently. Remember, there are no rules in Spanish which would allow you to change the sound of the Spanish vowel.  In addition, ALL vowel sounds are pronounced.  There are no silent vowels in Spanish.   Lets Practice!

Spanish vowel sounds and pronunciations each have their own distinct sound.  These sounds do not change.  They are always the same.  Staying true and faithful to each sound will enhance your ability to speak without an accent.  THIS IS THE SOUND OF SPANISH.

The vowels sound like:

A = Father      E = Emily      I = See        O = No         U = Impromptu Continue reading →