Ch 50 · Lesson 8Spanish · Chapter 50 · Lesson 8 · Grammar primer
Spelling traps: b and v, the silent h
The letters you cannot hear the difference between: b and v are one sound ( vs ), h is silent ( vs , ha vs a), and for most speakers ll and y sound alike ( vs ).
The short version
B and v are one sound in Spanish
,
Why?Hide
Spanish has no English v sound: b and v are pronounced the same, so (tube) and (had) are perfect twins. Learn each word with its letter. Three rules help: b before a consonant (), b in the -aba imperfect (), and mb but nv (, ).
Spanish is easy to read aloud: each letter has its sound. Spelling is the hard direction, because a few letters share one sound and your ear cannot choose between them:
.- The water comes out of the pipe..- Yesterday he/she had an exam. (same sound as)
Spanish spelling traps at a glance
Five traps are spelling only. The last one, r and rr, is a sound you can hear:
| Letters | Same sound? | Example | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| b, v | always | | tube, had |
| h | never said | | hello, wave |
| ll, y | for most speakers | | went quiet, fell |
| g, j | before e and i | | people, boss |
| c, s, z | in Latin America, Canaries | | house, hunt |
| r, rr | no: you can hear it | | but, dog |
B and V: one sound, two letters
Spanish b and v are the same sound. There is no English v anywhere in the language, so these pairs sound identical:
| Pair | English |
|---|---|
| tube, he/she had |
baca, | roof rack, cow |
vello | beautiful, body hair |
botar, | to bounce, to vote |
cow
tube, pipe
Most words you simply learn. Three rules cover a good share of the rest:
| Rule | Examples | English |
|---|---|---|
| b before a consonant | | to speak, white |
| -aba (imperfect) | | I/he/she was singing |
| mb and nv | | change, winter |
.- In winter I used to talk to my neighbour.
Silent h, and ll or y
In standard Spanish the h is never said in native words. sounds exactly like :
¡! .- Hello! Look at that wave.
That makes small words with the same sound:
| Spelling | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| to | . I'm going home. |
| has () | . He/she has arrived. |
| oh | ¡, ! Oh, it's you! |
(the verb behind ha and ) also sounds like (let's see):
.- There are going to be problems., ¿ ?- Let's see, what's going on?
The h inside ch belongs to a different sound (, boy), and a few loanwords such as hámster keep a breathy h.
For most speakers ll and y have merged into one sound too (yeísmo), so these two past tenses sound alike:
.- He/she fell off the bike. ().- He/she suddenly went quiet. ()
Going further: G and J before e and i and the rest of the guide, when you want them. This lesson does not need them.
Practice
Practise this lesson
10-question session
One question at a time, mixed across the exercises in this lesson. Miss one and it comes back round before the end.
Spanish · Free printables
Worksheets for this lesson
Worksheets with answer keys built in. Open any one to view, print or save.
Free for members
The printable worksheets, infographics and PDFs are free with an account. Start a free week and download as many as you like.
Start your free weekLesson 8 of 26 in this chapter