El El abecedarioabecedario

A=a (“ah” as in all ) avion

B = be (pronounced beh)

like English b bota

C = ce (pronounced seh)

“k” sound, except for “ce” and “ci” which make the “s" sound

carro

D = de (pronounced deh) put tongue on back of teeth disco compacto

E=e (“eh” as in egg ) elefante

F=efe (pronounced ehfeh) fruta

G=ge (pronounced heh) hard “g” sound as in go, except “ge” and “gi” which make the

“h” sound

gato

H=hache (no sound)

helado

I=i (“ee” as in eel)

iglesia

J=jota (pronounced hotah)

English “h” but more gutturalo sound

jarra

K=ka (pronounced kah)

like the English k

kayak

L=ele (pronounced ehleh) like English l

leche

LL=elle (pronounced ehyeh) like English y

Lluvia

M=eme (pronounced ehmeh)like English m

manzana

N=ene (pronounced ehneh) like English n

nariz

Ñ=eñe (pronounced ehnyeh) like the English ny in canyon

ñu

O=o (pronounced oh as in boat) ocho

P=pe (pronounced peh) like the English p, but less aspirated

perro

Q=cu (pronounced coo)

like the English k

queso

R=ere (pronounced ehreh)

like the English d; put tongue on palate just above front teeth

raton

When 2 r’s are together like in perro, the rr is trilled; words that start with R are trilled also

S=ese (pronounced ehseh)

like the English s

Sopa

T=te (pronounced teh)almost a “th” sound; tongue is slightly between teeth

tigre

U=u (pronounced “oo” as in pool)

uñas

V=ve, ve pequeña (pronounced veh)

like the English b, though sometimes a softer sound; never English v

vaca

W=doble ve / doble oo(pronounced dohbleh veh / dohbleh oo)

like the English w; used only in words of foreign origin

wafle

X=equis (pronounced ehkeys)makes a “gs” sound; an “h” sound in Mexican words of Indian

origin xilófono

Y=i griega (pronounced ee gree-eh-gah )

like the English “y”; sometimes is a vowel and makes the “ee” sound

yogur

Z=zeta (pronounced sehtah)like the English “s”

zapato