Questions tagged [pronunciación]

Normas o consejos de pronunciación. // Rules or advice about pronunciation

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How to pronounce the consonants "y" and "ll"?

ENGLISH I have heard y/ll pronounced in two different ways: [j] (like 'y' in "yellow") [ʒ] (like 's' in "measure") Do native speakers use both interchangeably? Or is it pronounced [j] in some ...
Alan C's user avatar
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3 answers
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Historical pronunciation of letters "b" and "v"

In another question, a Wikipedia article was quoted saying: The letters ⟨b⟩ and ⟨v⟩ were originally simply known as be and ve. However, there is no longer any distinction between the sounds of ...
jrdioko's user avatar
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6 votes
6 answers
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Voiceless vs voiced stops / Plosivas sordas vs sonoras

About unaspirated voiceless consonant and voiced consonants. For example, in pa.pe.pi.po.pu and ba.be.bi.bo.bu, ta.te.ti.to.tu and da.de.di.do.du, ca.co.cu and ga.go.gu, their pronunciations are too ...
bruce's user avatar
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45 votes
2 answers
25k views

Why is the "x" in "México" or "Texas" pronounced as the letter "j"?

Even as a native speaker I don't know the reason for this: why is the "x" in México, Texas or Xavier pronounced as the letter "j"?
Alfredo Osorio's user avatar
36 votes
4 answers
3k views

Are there other words in Spanish that can't be written? (like sal-le)

Recently, I learned that there is at least one Spanish word that can be pronounced but not written. It is the imperative form of 'salirle'. It is pronounced as 'sal-le' and the written form should ...
Sergio Cinos's user avatar
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21 votes
8 answers
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In what ways is the letter “s” (or the /s/ sound) pronounced in Spain?

I’ve heard varying things regarding the varying pronunciations of the “s” sound in Spain. However, no one was willing (or at least, able) to explain these variations to me. How is the “s” sound ...
Richard's user avatar
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17 votes
6 answers
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¿Por qué la diferencia entre s y z/c solo se da en España?

La pronunciación en el centro y el norte de España, como sabemos, pronuncia la "ce" y la "zeta" en forma diferente a la "ese" que es el único sonido que se utiliza para estas tres letras en ...
Cecilia Trevino's user avatar
17 votes
5 answers
76k views

Why is the 'b' and 'v' pronunciation inconsistent?

I've learnt that the v sound in Spanish is pronounced as a "b", however why are some words such as "por favor" and "Revolucion" pronounced as a "v"? Also, is this type of pronunciation Spanish (spoken ...
Lschk's user avatar
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8 votes
3 answers
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How should I pronounce the Spanish consonant 'd'?

I was taught that Spanish d has two pronunciations: at the beginning of the word it is a hard d; between vowels, it is pronounced /ð/, much like th in English the. Please look at this sentence: ...
lampe's user avatar
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34 votes
11 answers
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Can I learn to roll my R's?

Whenever I try to say words like perro or arroyo, I sound like I'm telling a pirate joke. I can identify the sound I'm supposed to make and I've been told how my tongue is supposed to move, but I can'...
Jon 'links in bio' Ericson's user avatar
15 votes
8 answers
6k views

Why does Latin America not “lisp” consonants, having learned its Spanish from Spain?

I am referring to the sounds made by the letters ⟨z⟩ and the soft ⟨c⟩ the way they’re said in Spain, like in the Spanish words zorro and cena. (This is the unvoiced dental fricative sound heard at ...
Java Riser's user avatar
13 votes
2 answers
933 views

Distribution of Spanish speakers regarding 's' and 'c' pronunciation

We know that following groups of syllables se, si, sa, so, su ce, ci, za, zo, zu can be pronunced in 3 different ways: Context distinción seseo ceceo "s" + vowel /s/ /s/ /θ/ "c/z&...
bluish's user avatar
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10 votes
2 answers
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Are there any dialects of modern Spanish which preserve a phonemic distinction between b and v?

Are there any dialects of modern Spanish which preserve a phonemic distinction between b and v? I understand that by the 1600s it was largely gone from Castillian Spanish, but since some other ...
Some_Guy's user avatar
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8 votes
1 answer
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Paso de B a U: ¿evolución fonética o falta de ortografía?

A raíz de la pregunta ¿Existe alguna reminiscencia en el español actual de la confusión "u/v" de la Edad Media? y de esta su respuesta, me ha surgido una duda. Tomemos dos ...
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6 votes
3 answers
3k views

Is there a rule for s-aspiration?

I noticed that my Spanish teacher sometimes does not pronunce the letter "s" in some syllables. For example, she says Ih-rael instead of Israel. Or she says "mah" instead of "mas". The thing is, she ...
srhat's user avatar
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8 votes
11 answers
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Exception to the Phonetic Rule

As we all know that Spanish is a Phonetic Language, i.e. the way it's written is the way it's pronounced. I am just curious to know if there are any exceptions to this phonetic rule. I mean, when we ...
Rahil Arora's user avatar
7 votes
2 answers
5k views

Do Mexicans still pronounce the "x" in any Nahuatl place names the Nahuatl way?

I have yet to find a Nahuatl place name that Mexicans pronounce the original way. Examples: Mexico Spanish pronunciation: [ˈmexiko] Nahuatl pronunciation: [meːˈʃiʔko] Xochimilco Spanish ...
Andy's user avatar
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6 votes
1 answer
996 views

¿Se pronuncia "judo" con la "j" española en alguna parte?

Encuentro en el diccionario lo siguiente: yudo Del jap. judo, de jū 'amable', 'discreto' y dō 'camino'. m. Sistema japonés de lucha, que hoy se practica también como deporte, y que ...
Charlie's user avatar
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5 votes
2 answers
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If certain words undergo a spelling change from "z" to "c" in order to preserve the soft sound of the "z," is there a "hard z" in Spanish?

I was recently reviewing a page over at Span¡shD!ct and though I had read the following (or something similar) numerous times before, I have never stopped to really think about why the "z" ...
Lisa Beck's user avatar
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2 votes
4 answers
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¿Es correcto pronunciar "hiede" con una h sonora?

No sé si sea correcto, pero le he escuchado a mucha gente (e inconscientemente es la primera pronunciación que se me ocurre cuando pienso en la palabra) la pronunciación de hiede con una h sonora (...
c.p.'s user avatar
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31 votes
12 answers
23k views

Are there native-born Spanish speakers that can't trill their R's?

ENGLISH It seems that one of the greatest difficulties some native-English speakers have is learning to trill their R's. Some, it seems, are completely incapable of performing this task. Is this ...
Richard's user avatar
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27 votes
10 answers
9k views

How to pronounce 'C++' in Spanish

I'm doing a presentation in Spanish class, and I'll be mentioning the programming language C++. I'm not sure if it should be pronounced the same way as in English, or if there's a different way to ...
Levi C. Olson's user avatar
17 votes
5 answers
19k views

¿Por qué razón en España suelen pronunciar los extranjerismos de acuerdo a las reglas del español y no a las reglas del idioma original?

En México y América Central los extranjerismos más recientes suelen pronunciarse de acuerdo a las reglas del idioma original, o más comúnmente aproximaciones o deformaciones de estas acercando la ...
jachguate's user avatar
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10 votes
1 answer
501 views

¿Por qué no existe una palabra escrita «hoder» (en vez de la versión con «j-»)?

Se me ocurre que el verbo e interjección malsonante joder parece ser una excepción a la regla (o más bien, a la ley) que nos dice que cada palabra (que no sea cultismo) que en latín comienza una f‑ + ...
tchrist's user avatar
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9 votes
4 answers
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Do any dialects of Spanish still pronounce "h"?

In most dialects of Spanish, "h" is a silent letter (except when appearing in the digraph "ch" or loanwords e.g. hámster). Indeed the RAE notes that in standard Spanish it is silent. But this letter ...
jacobo's user avatar
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8 votes
2 answers
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Pronunciación letras "d", "b" y "v" entre vocales

Mi lengua nativa es el español y recientemente me percaté que al momento de pronunciar la letra d, como en el caso de cada, asado, soldado, jugada, nado y la letra b (o v como fonema b) como en ...
jecarfor's user avatar
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8 votes
4 answers
507 views

Pronunciación de la letra uve a final de palabra

Aprovechando que han subido la serie de Evangelion a Netflix España con una nueva traducción y doblaje, es el momento de ir planteando aquí algunas preguntas sobre el idioma que dicha serie me está ...
Charlie's user avatar
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4 votes
1 answer
3k views

The Castilian Spanish S pronounced as (kind of) Sh

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aDN_eoPVQdY Please skip to 3:37 and take a look at how the s at the end of estamos(h) and entendais(h) are little bit different from the English s. It seems like in-...
Mint.K's user avatar
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18 votes
6 answers
48k views

What is the difference between allí and ahí ("there")?

English What is the difference between allí and ahí? Is there any difference in pronunciation between the two? Are there any contexts where one is correct and one is wrong, or are they completely ...
jrdioko's user avatar
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16 votes
14 answers
8k views

Do any Spanish words exist that aren't pronounced as expected from their spelling?

English is a language that does not have a consistent system for the pronunciation of words with similar spellings (e.g. compare rough with through), this can lead to a situation where it is not ...
JEllis's user avatar
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15 votes
3 answers
3k views

Audio maps of Spanish dialects?

Apart from vocabulary differences, the Spanish language has an enormous and fascinating diversity in pronunciation and accents. In my country (Argentina) people from the central inland region have a ...
leonbloy's user avatar
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12 votes
2 answers
2k views

¿Cómo se llama la característica que tiene el español, y otros idiomas, por la que las vocales siempre se pronuncian de la misma manera?

Me gustaría saber cómo se llama cuando los sonidos de las vocales escritas suenan siempre de la misma manera al pronunciarlas. Una vez me topé con la definición, pero esta vez no tuve mucha suerte en ...
rraallvv's user avatar
  • 409
11 votes
1 answer
2k views

Pronounce and distinguish "ñi" and "ni"?

I'm new to Spanish and I'm trying to learn pronunciation first. I listened to a few materials and I'm finding it difficult to distinguish "ñi" and "ni", for example "niñito". And it's even harder to ...
iBug's user avatar
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10 votes
1 answer
896 views

How are words with "ps" or "pt" pronounced?

Here are a few examples: psicología ptosis Ptolomeo Interestingly "sicología" is also found in the RAE but most of the time I've seen it written as "psicología". How are they pronounced?...
Alfredo Osorio's user avatar
10 votes
3 answers
6k views

What accents do not use yeísmo?

Something I've wondered ever since I started learning Spanish about 8 years ago. One often hears that the sound for "ll" and "y" is merged in "most accents". Wikipedia's IPA for Spanish guide, for ...
Jonik's user avatar
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8 votes
1 answer
501 views

How to hispanicize (rather unknown) German toponyms with umlaut?

If one is interested in proper names in German, like München or Zürich, one easily knows the Spanish translation, and if not, one goes to Wikipedia and finds the translation. But what to do with ...
c.p.'s user avatar
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8 votes
2 answers
474 views

Is there a difference in the pronuciation of a single vowel or multiple vowels in a row?

There are several phrases, most of which are easily distinguished by context, that have very similar, if not the exact same pronunciation. The distinction I'm curious about is a single vowel in a ...
Rachel's user avatar
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7 votes
3 answers
3k views

Pronouncing years in Spanish

In English 1886 would be pronounced "eighteen-eighty six." In Spanish, is there something similar? Or do people outright say: El año mil ochocientos ochenta y seis
Gᴇᴏᴍᴇᴛᴇʀ's user avatar
6 votes
2 answers
362 views

cAusa but veAmos (strong, weak vowels)

Could you explain to me why the combinations of two vowels are stressed differently? Are both of these combinations diphthongs? Thank you Edit: I found the proper explanation here http://www.learn-...
Logan Xav's user avatar
  • 115
6 votes
1 answer
927 views

¿Por qué al conjugar "adecuar" la tilde es optativa?

Acabo de encontrarme lo siguiente en un artículo de prensa: [...] el sistema se adecua a la perfección a las necesidades de los niños e impide que se frustren al no ser capaces de llegar a un ...
Alicia's user avatar
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6 votes
2 answers
455 views

What is the Spanish Homophonic Group?

From the math.stackexchange question: The homophonic group: a mathematical diversion: By definition, English words have the same pronunciation if their phonetic spellings in the dictionary are the ...
BCLC's user avatar
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6 votes
1 answer
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México vs Méjico in pronunciation throughout history and countries

Is the country México or Méjico? addresses the spelling of the noun México. However, it does not address the pronunciation. I have heard México pronounced both as if it was written with a "x" (as ...
user's user avatar
  • 165
6 votes
4 answers
2k views

¿Cómo se pronuncia RAE?

En el lenguaje hablado, ¿cómo se pronuncia las siglas RAE (Real Academia Española)? ¿Es con letras separadas, como si fuera una palabra unida, o algo más?
jrdioko's user avatar
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5 votes
2 answers
3k views

Ceceo vs Seseo vs "distinción" - which school to follow?

OK, I know about the differences and I know a little bit about the situation in the Spanish-speaking world. The thing though is that I'm moving to Spain in a few months (do not know the exact ...
Dr.Kameleon's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
2k views

Letras "ã õ ũ ẽ" en español antiguo

Hace unas semanas me encontré con un texto antiguo donde ã õ ũ ẽ sustituían a las silabas an on un en. Por ejemplo "ẽtõces" en lugar de "entonces". No pude encontrar otra vez ese texto. Quisiera ...
Maurocrispin's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
585 views

¿Cómo se escribe el grito de Chimo Bayo?

Chimo Bayo es un personaje productor de música electrónica que se hizo famoso en los 90 con éxitos como Así me gusta a mí y Bombas. En el primero de ellos, Chimo introduce el que será su grito más ...
user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
637 views

El fenómeno de la pérdida del -d- en los participios, ¿puede ocurrir en palabras que no sean participios?

Sé que es común que en el habla uno no use la -d- en la última sílaba de los verbos participios, por ejemplo, que diga 'partío' en lugar de 'partido'. ¿Pero ese fenómeno es posible con palabras que ...
Shinpai's user avatar
  • 107
3 votes
3 answers
3k views

¿Qué diferencia había entre la grafía ſ y la s?

En 1741, el abecedario del español se componía de la siguiente forma: Como se ve, la actual letra s minúscula se escribía entonces usando la grafía ſ. Sin embargo, había casos en los que sí se usaba ...
Charlie's user avatar
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3 votes
3 answers
399 views

Jumping between pronunciations of "y" in Spanish songs

I've heard a few songs (off the top of my head, A Dios Le Pido) where they pronounce "y" both with a y-sound and an English j-sound at times. In some songs, the different pronunciations occur when ...
Voriki's user avatar
  • 1,003
3 votes
1 answer
4k views

Is the v in "vino" pronunciated as a b or v? [duplicate]

I am learning Castillian Spanish and have been given different information by 2 people from mainland Spain (Europe). I understand that the v sounds like a b (also I've heard it described as a soft b) ...
Dave's user avatar
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