Alphabet O to Z
Pronunciation guide to the basic Spanish Alphabet.
| LETTER | LETTER NAME | APPROXIMATE EQUIVALENT IN ENGLISH | NOTATION IN PRONUNCIATION KEY | EXAMPLE | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| o | o | oh | like English "o" in "tone" but shorter | (o),(oh) | oscuro | dark | ||
| p | pe | peh | like English "p" (but expelling less air) | (p) | pelo | hair | ||
| q | cu | koo | like English "k"; always followed by "u" but the "u" is silent | (k) | quieto | still | ||
| r | ere | eh - rreh | usually like "dd" in "ladder"; at the beginning of a word or between vowels, "r" makes a rolled "rrr" sound | (r), (rr) | radio | radio | ||
| s | ese | eh - seh | like English "s" | (s) | sopa | soup | ||
| t | te | teh | like English "t" (but expelling less air) | (t) | tímido | shy | ||
| u | u | oo | like "oo" in "noon", but shorter | (oo) | único | unique | ||
| v | uve ve corta ve chica ve baja |
oo - beh beh kohr - tah beh chee - kah beh bah - hah |
see "b" above; the two letters are pronounced exactly alike | (b) | venir | come | ||
| w | uve doble doble uve doble ve doble u |
oo - beh doh - bleh doh - bleh oo - beh doh - bleh beh doh - bleh oo |
like English "w" ("w" doesn't occur in native Spanish words) | (w) | whisky | whiskey | ||
| x | equis | eh - kees | generally [ks] (as in "ax"), occasionally a strong "h" sound (see "j") | (ks), (h) | Xilófono méxico |
xylophone Mexico |
||
| y | ye i griega |
ee ee gryeh - gah |
see the possible pronunciations of "II" above; "y" has the same | (y) | yarda | yard | ||
| z | zeta | theh - tah | variation like English "s" (or in some places, [th] as in "three") | (s), (th) | Zorro (Fox) | fox | ||