{"id":66,"date":"2026-09-30T15:18:54","date_gmt":"2026-09-30T14:18:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/leweb2ks.dev\/vitrine-vocadial\/en\/resources\/spanish-alphabet\/"},"modified":"2026-09-30T15:18:54","modified_gmt":"2026-09-30T14:18:54","slug":"spanish-alphabet","status":"publish","type":"vd_ressource","link":"https:\/\/vocadial.com\/en\/resources\/spanish-alphabet\/","title":{"rendered":"The Spanish alphabet: letters, pronunciation and spelling in class"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 27 letters and their names<\/h2>\n\n

The pronunciation column gives the name of each letter in English sounds, stressed syllable in capitals. Treat it as a rough guide: the listen button gives you the real thing.<\/p>\n\n

Letter<\/th>Name<\/th>Say the name like<\/th>Example<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
a<\/td>a<\/td>ah<\/td>agua<\/span> (water)<\/td><\/tr>
b<\/td>be<\/td>beh<\/td>bocadillo<\/span> (sandwich)<\/td><\/tr>
c<\/td>ce<\/td>theh (Spain), seh (Latin America)<\/td>casa<\/span> (house), cine<\/span> (cinema)<\/td><\/tr>
d<\/td>de<\/td>deh<\/td>dedo<\/span> (finger)<\/td><\/tr>
e<\/td>e<\/td>eh<\/td>escuela<\/span> (school)<\/td><\/tr>
f<\/td>efe<\/td>EH-feh<\/td>fuego<\/span> (fire)<\/td><\/tr>
g<\/td>ge<\/td>heh, with a throaty h<\/td>gato<\/span> (cat), gente<\/span> (people)<\/td><\/tr>
h<\/td>hache<\/td>AH-cheh<\/td>hola<\/span> (hello), silent h<\/td><\/tr>
i<\/td>i<\/td>ee<\/td>isla<\/span> (island)<\/td><\/tr>
j<\/td>jota<\/td>HOH-tah, with a throaty h<\/td>jam\u00f3n<\/span> (ham)<\/td><\/tr>
k<\/td>ka<\/td>kah<\/td>kilo<\/span><\/td><\/tr>
l<\/td>ele<\/td>EH-leh<\/td>luna<\/span> (moon)<\/td><\/tr>
m<\/td>eme<\/td>EH-meh<\/td>madre<\/span> (mother)<\/td><\/tr>
n<\/td>ene<\/td>EH-neh<\/td>noche<\/span> (night)<\/td><\/tr>
\u00f1<\/td>e\u00f1e<\/td>EH-nyeh<\/td>ni\u00f1o<\/span> (child), Espa\u00f1a<\/span><\/td><\/tr>
o<\/td>o<\/td>oh<\/td>ojo<\/span> (eye)<\/td><\/tr>
p<\/td>pe<\/td>peh<\/td>perro<\/span> (dog)<\/td><\/tr>
q<\/td>cu<\/td>koo<\/td>queso<\/span> (cheese)<\/td><\/tr>
r<\/td>erre<\/td>EH-rreh, with a rolled rr<\/td>rat\u00f3n<\/span> (mouse), pero<\/span> (but)<\/td><\/tr>
s<\/td>ese<\/td>EH-seh<\/td>sol<\/span> (sun)<\/td><\/tr>
t<\/td>te<\/td>teh<\/td>tomate<\/span><\/td><\/tr>
u<\/td>u<\/td>oo<\/td>uva<\/span> (grape)<\/td><\/tr>
v<\/td>uve<\/td>OO-beh<\/td>vaca<\/span> (cow)<\/td><\/tr>
w<\/td>uve doble<\/td>OO-beh DOH-bleh<\/td>web<\/span>, wifi<\/span><\/td><\/tr>
x<\/td>equis<\/td>EH-kees<\/td>examen<\/span> (exam), taxi<\/span><\/td><\/tr>
y<\/td>ye<\/td>yeh<\/td>yo<\/span> (I), rey<\/span> (king)<\/td><\/tr>
z<\/td>zeta<\/td>THEH-tah (Spain), SEH-tah (Latin America)<\/td>zapato<\/span> (shoe)<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n

Spanish vowels are short and pure: e<\/span> is a clean “eh”, never the “ay-ee” glide of English “say”, and o<\/span> is “oh” without the “oo” at the end. Letter names are feminine: la hache<\/span>, la e\u00f1e<\/span>, dos erres<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n

Other names you will hear<\/h3>\n\n

The Spanish language academies recommend one name per letter, but traditional names are still in everyday use. None of them is a mistake.<\/p>\n\n

Letter<\/th>Recommended name<\/th>Other names<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
b<\/td>be<\/span><\/td>be alta<\/span>, be grande<\/span>, be larga<\/span> (Latin America)<\/td><\/tr>
v<\/td>uve<\/span><\/td>ve<\/span>, ve corta<\/span>, ve chica<\/span>, ve baja<\/span> (Latin America)<\/td><\/tr>
w<\/td>uve doble<\/span><\/td>doble uve<\/span>, ve doble<\/span>, doble ve<\/span>, doble u<\/span> (Latin America)<\/td><\/tr>
y<\/td>ye<\/span><\/td>i griega<\/span>, still very common everywhere<\/td><\/tr>
z<\/td>zeta<\/span><\/td>zeda<\/span>, less common<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n

What happened to ch, ll and rr?<\/h2>\n\n

Older textbooks and posters show 28, 29 or even 30 letters. They are out of date rather than wrong.<\/p>\n\n

  1. Ch and ll used to be letters.<\/strong> They had their own names, che<\/span> and elle<\/span>, and dictionaries filed every word beginning with ch after all the words in c.<\/li>
  2. 1994: new dictionary order.<\/strong> The Spanish language academies decided to file ch under c and ll under l, as in any other alphabet. Chocolate<\/span> now comes before cielo<\/span>, where it used to come after it.<\/li>
  3. 2010: out of the alphabet.<\/strong> The academies’ Ortograf\u00eda of 2010 removed ch and ll from the list of letters. They are digraphs, like qu<\/span>, gu<\/span> and rr<\/span>: two letters, one sound. People still call them che<\/span> and elle<\/span> (or doble ele<\/span>) when they spell.<\/li>
  4. Rr was never an official letter.<\/strong> It appeared on some school charts as erre doble<\/span> or doble erre<\/span>, and that is still how people spell it aloud.<\/li>
  5. \u00d1 stays.<\/strong> It is a letter in its own right and comes after n: nudo<\/span>, \u00f1u<\/span>, obra<\/span>.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n

    The 2010 Ortograf\u00eda also recommended erre<\/span> as the only name for r; the older ere<\/span> for a single r has been dropped.<\/p>\n\n

    Letters that sound different from English<\/h2>\n\n
    1. B and v sound the same.<\/strong> Both are a b: a full b after a pause or after m and n (vaca<\/span>, un vaso<\/span>), and a soft b with the lips barely touching between vowels (uva<\/span>, lobo<\/span>). This is why Spanish speakers ask \u00bfcon be o con uve?<\/span><\/li>
    2. C, z and qu.<\/strong> C before a, o, u sounds like k (casa<\/span>, cuatro<\/span>). C before e and i, and z, sound like the th of “think” in most of Spain, and like s in Latin America, the Canary Islands and parts of Andalusia (cine<\/span>, zapato<\/span>). Qu is always k, with a silent u (queso<\/span>, quince<\/span>).<\/li>
    3. G and j.<\/strong> J, and g before e and i, are the throaty h of Scottish “loch” (jam\u00f3n<\/span>, gente<\/span>). G before a, o, u is a hard g (gato<\/span>). In gue and gui the u is silent (guitarra<\/span>); with a diaeresis it is pronounced (ping\u00fcino<\/span>, verg\u00fcenza<\/span>).<\/li>
    4. H is always silent.<\/strong> Hola<\/span> is “OH-lah”. The pair ch, though, is the ch of “church”: chocolate<\/span>.<\/li>
    5. Ll and y.<\/strong> Most speakers today pronounce them the same, like the y of “yes” (pollo<\/span>, playa<\/span>). In Argentina and Uruguay they sound like the sh of “shop” or the s of “measure”. A minority, in some areas of Spain and the Andes, still keeps a separate ll sound.<\/li>
    6. \u00d1<\/strong> is the ny of “canyon”, a word English borrowed from Spanish ca\u00f1\u00f3n<\/span>.<\/li>
    7. R and rr.<\/strong> A single r between vowels is one quick tap (pero<\/span>, but). Rr, and r at the start of a word or after l, n, s, is rolled (perro<\/span>, dog; rosa<\/span>; Enrique<\/span>).<\/li>
    8. X<\/strong> is usually ks (examen<\/span>, taxi<\/span>). In some Mexican names it keeps an old spelling for the jota sound: M\u00e9xico<\/span>, Oaxaca<\/span>.<\/li>
    9. K and w<\/strong> appear mainly in borrowed words (kilo<\/span>, web<\/span>). W usually sounds like English w; in a few older loans it is a b: in Spain w\u00e1ter<\/span> (toilet) is said BAH-ter.<\/li>
    10. Y as a vowel.<\/strong> On its own or at the end of a word, y sounds like i: y<\/span> (and), hoy<\/span>, rey<\/span>.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n

      Accents and other signs<\/h2>\n\n
      • \u00e1, \u00e9, \u00ed, \u00f3, \u00fa<\/span>: the written accent (la tilde<\/span>) marks the stressed syllable. When spelling, say a con tilde<\/span> or a acentuada<\/span>.<\/li>
      • \u00fc<\/span>: the diaeresis (la di\u00e9resis<\/span>), only in g\u00fce and g\u00fci: u con di\u00e9resis<\/span>.<\/li>
      • \u00bf ?<\/span> and \u00a1 !<\/span>: questions and exclamations open with an upside-down mark: abre interrogaci\u00f3n<\/span>, cierra interrogaci\u00f3n<\/span>.<\/li>
      • Capital letters keep their accents: \u00c1FRICA<\/span>, \u00c1lvaro<\/span>. The academies are clear on this.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n

        The squiggle on \u00f1 is part of the letter, not an accent: without it, a\u00f1o<\/span> (year) becomes a rude word, which pupils never forget.<\/p>\n\n

        Spelling aloud: names and email addresses<\/h2>\n\n
        • \u00bfC\u00f3mo se escribe?<\/span>: How do you spell it? (literally “how is it written?”)<\/li>
        • \u00bfC\u00f3mo se deletrea tu apellido?<\/span>: How do you spell your surname?<\/li>
        • \u00bfMe lo puedes deletrear?<\/span>: Can you spell it for me?<\/li>
        • \u00bfCon be o con uve?<\/span>, \u00bfCon hache o sin hache?<\/span>: the two questions every Spanish speaker asks.<\/li>
        • may\u00fascula<\/span>, min\u00fascula<\/span>: capital, lower case.<\/li>
        • todo junto<\/span>: all one word; guion<\/span>: hyphen; guion bajo<\/span>: underscore.<\/li>
        • arroba<\/span>: @; punto<\/span>: dot; barra<\/span>: slash; punto com<\/span>: .com<\/li><\/ul>\n\n

          To avoid confusion, people often add a word: be de Barcelona<\/span>, uve de Valencia<\/span>, ese de Sevilla<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n

          Me llamo Harrison: hache, a, dos erres, i, ese, o, ene.<\/span>My name is Harrison: H, A, double R, I, S, O, N.<\/small><\/p>\n\n

          Mi correo es sam.jones arroba ejemplo punto com.<\/span>My email is sam.jones@ejemplo.com.<\/small><\/p>\n\n

          \u2014\u00bfVaca se escribe con be? \u2014No, con uve.<\/span>“Is vaca spelt with a b?” “No, with a v.”<\/small><\/p>\n\n

          Typical mistakes of English-speaking learners<\/h2>\n\n
          • English vowel names:<\/strong> saying “ee” for e<\/span>, “eye” for i<\/span> and “ay” for a<\/span>. When a pupil spells an email address, this is the error you will hear most.<\/li>
          • G, j and h:<\/strong> “gee”, “jay” and “aitch” instead of ge<\/span>, jota<\/span>, hache<\/span>.<\/li>
          • Sounding the h<\/strong> in hola<\/span> or hablar<\/span>.<\/li>
          • An English v<\/strong> in vaca<\/span> or vivir<\/span>.<\/li>
          • Ignoring \u00f1:<\/strong> “ano” for a\u00f1o<\/span>, “Espana” for Espa\u00f1a<\/span>.<\/li>
          • One r for two:<\/strong> pero<\/span> and perro<\/span> said the same way.<\/li>
          • Forgetting \u00bf and \u00a1<\/strong> at the start.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n

            In class: spelling routines<\/h2>\n\n

            Spelling aloud is a skill of its own. A daily minute keeps it alive long after the alphabet lesson.<\/p>\n\n

            1. Show a word: the word of the day, a pupil’s name, a town in the Spanish-speaking world.<\/li>
            2. One pupil spells it aloud in Spanish; the rest write it on mini whiteboards without looking.<\/li>
            3. Reveal the word and check the traps: be or uve, h, \u00f1, accents.<\/li>
            4. Reverse the roles: you spell a mystery word, the class writes it and says what it means.<\/li>
            5. Pass the role of speller to a different pupil each day.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n

              Quick games work well alongside: el ahorcado<\/span> (hangman), a “be or uve?” quick-fire round, and the traditional Spanish “I spy”, Veo, veo<\/span>: \u2014Veo, veo. \u2014\u00bfQu\u00e9 ves? \u2014Una cosita. \u2014\u00bfY qu\u00e9 cosita es? \u2014Empieza por la\u2026 pe.<\/span><\/p>\n\n

              Adapting to your class<\/h3>\n\n
              • A1<\/b>Recognise and say the letters; spell your first name: Me llamo Ella: e, ele, ele, a.<\/span><\/li>
              • A2<\/b>Spell a surname, a town, an email address; ask \u00bfC\u00f3mo se escribe?<\/span><\/li>
              • B1<\/b>Spelling rules: b or v, g or j, c, z or qu; dictation of unfamiliar words<\/li>
              • B2<\/b>Stress and written accents, and homophones: hola<\/span> \/ ola<\/span>, tubo<\/span> \/ tuvo<\/span>, vaca<\/span> \/ baca<\/span><\/li><\/ul>\n\n

                At KS2, a song and the vowels are enough to start. From KS3 to GCSE, spelling names and streets is a classic of listening practice.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                All 27 letters with their names and pronunciation, what happened to ch and ll, b or v, and routines to get pupils spelling aloud.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"menu_order":11,"template":"","meta":{"_seopress_titles_title":"Spanish Alphabet: Letters and Pronunciation | VocaDial","_seopress_titles_desc":"The Spanish alphabet letter by letter: names, pronunciation for English speakers, \u00f1, ch and ll, b and v, how to spell a name aloud, and classroom routines.","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_robots_follow":"","_seopress_robots_imageindex":"","_seopress_robots_snippet":"","_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_robots_breadcrumbs":"","_seopress_robots_freeze_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_custom_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_canonical":"","_seopress_social_fb_title":"","_seopress_social_fb_desc":"","_seopress_social_fb_img":"","_seopress_social_fb_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_height":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_title":"","_seopress_social_twitter_desc":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_height":0,"_seopress_redirections_value":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled_regex":"","_seopress_redirections_logged_status":"","_seopress_redirections_param":"","_seopress_redirections_type":0,"_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","_seopress_news_disabled":"","_seopress_video_disabled":"","_seopress_video":[],"_seopress_pro_schemas_manual":[],"_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable_all":"","_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable":[],"_seopress_pro_schemas":[],"_vd_topic":"alphabet","_vd_target":"es","_vd_module":"","_vd_level":"A1","_vd_minutes":"8","_vd_card_word":"a, be, ce\u2026","_vd_answer":"The Spanish alphabet has 27 letters: the 26 letters of the English alphabet plus \u00f1<\/span>, which comes after n. Their names are a, be, ce, de, e, efe, ge, hache, i, jota, ka, ele, eme, ene, e\u00f1e, o, pe, cu, erre, ese, te, u, uve, uve doble, equis, ye, zeta<\/span>. Since 2010, ch and ll are no longer counted as letters: they are digraphs, two letters that spell one sound.","_vd_faq":"[{\"q\":\"How many letters are there in the Spanish alphabet?\",\"a\":\"27: the 26 letters of the English alphabet plus \u00f1<\\\/span>. Ch and ll are no longer counted as letters since 2010.\"},{\"q\":\"Is ll still a letter in Spanish?\",\"a\":\"No. Since 1994 it has been filed under l in dictionaries, and since 2010 it is officially a digraph, not a letter. People still call it elle<\\\/span> or doble ele<\\\/span> when spelling.\"},{\"q\":\"What is the difference between the Spanish and English alphabets?\",\"a\":\"Spanish has one extra letter, \u00f1<\\\/span>, and different names for the letters: hache<\\\/span> for h, jota<\\\/span> for j, uve<\\\/span> for v. Several letters also sound different, such as the silent h and the throaty j.\"},{\"q\":\"Is y called ye or i griega?\",\"a\":\"Both. Ye<\\\/span> is the name recommended since 2010; i griega<\\\/span> is the traditional name and is still widely used.\"},{\"q\":\"How do you say @ in Spanish?\",\"a\":\"Arroba<\\\/span>. A dot is punto<\\\/span>, so an address ending in .com is read punto com<\\\/span>.\"},{\"q\":\"How do you pronounce \u00f1?\",\"a\":\"Like the ny in \\\"canyon\\\": Espa\u00f1a<\\\/span> is \\\"es-PAH-nyah\\\". Its name is e\u00f1e<\\\/span>.\"}]","_vd_key":"alphabet-es","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-66","vd_ressource","type-vd_ressource","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vocadial.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vd_ressource\/66","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vocadial.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vd_ressource"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vocadial.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/vd_ressource"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vocadial.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vd_ressource\/66\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vocadial.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=66"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}