Pronunciación: the sound system
Spanish spelling is almost perfectly consistent. Learn nine rules and you can read aloud any word you have never seen.
Part of your national curriculum
- Grammar and vocabulary: Use and understand the sound system of the language, applying phonic knowledge to new words
Lesson overview
What you'll learn in this lesson
Use and understand the sound system of the language, applying phonic knowledge to new words
Key learning points
- • Vowels
- • Consonants to watch
- • Stress and accents
This lesson at a glance
- 18 minutes
- 19 parts to scroll through
- 4 quick checks
- Marked quiz at the end
- Gentle pace: short sittings with pauses
Words to know
Scroll down — the lesson carries on below
Watch & discover
Part 1 of 19
Visual introductionPicture this
Pronunciación: the sound system
Spanish spelling is almost perfectly consistent. Learn nine rules and you can read aloud any word you have never seen.
In a nutshell
Use and understand the sound system of the language, applying phonic knowledge to new words
Learning cycle
Part 2 of 19
Learning cycle 1 of 2
Part 1 · Vowels
A short piece of teaching, then a check to make sure it has landed.
Explore the idea
Part 3 of 19
Learn
Vowels
Five pure vowels, always the same: a as in 'father', e as in 'bet', i as in 'machine', o as in 'lot', u as in 'boot'. They do not glide the way English vowels do, and holding them steady is the single biggest improvement most learners can make.
Reset break
Part 4 of 19
Pause
That's sitting 1 of 5 done
Stretch, get a drink, look out of the window. There is no timer and nothing is counting down — your place is saved, so you can come back in five minutes or tomorrow.
Explore the idea
Part 5 of 19
Learn
Consonants to watch
h is silent (hola). j is a throaty sound (jamón). ll sounds like 'y' (llamo). ñ is 'ny' (España). z, and c before e or i, are 'th' in most of Spain and 's' in Latin America. r at the start of a word or rr in the middle is rolled (perro).
Quick check
Part 6 of 19
Quick check
Part 7 of 19
Reset break
Part 8 of 19
Pause
That's sitting 2 of 5 done
Stretch, get a drink, look out of the window. There is no timer and nothing is counting down — your place is saved, so you can come back in five minutes or tomorrow.
Learning cycle
Part 9 of 19
Learning cycle 2 of 2
Part 2 · Stress and accents
A short piece of teaching, then a check to make sure it has landed.
Explore the idea
Part 10 of 19
Learn
Stress and accents
Words ending in a vowel, n or s stress the second-to-last syllable (ventana). Words ending in other consonants stress the last (hablar). A written accent marks any exception (jamón, música) and sometimes separates meanings: si (if) and sí (yes).
Quick check
Part 11 of 19
Reset break
Part 12 of 19
Pause
That's sitting 3 of 5 done
Stretch, get a drink, look out of the window. There is no timer and nothing is counting down — your place is saved, so you can come back in five minutes or tomorrow.
Quick check
Part 13 of 19
Explore the idea
Part 14 of 19
Worked example
Worked example: reading a new word aloud
'Guitarrista'. Break it: gui-ta-rri-sta. The u after g is silent before i, so 'gui' is 'gee'. Double rr is rolled. It ends in a vowel, so stress falls on the second-to-last syllable: gui-ta-RRIS-ta. You have never seen the word before and you can still say it correctly.
Challenge round
Part 15 of 19
Game · Sort it
Which of these are true?
Drag each card into the right column. Tap a card first if dragging is fiddly.
True
Not true
Reset break
Part 16 of 19
Pause
That's sitting 4 of 5 done
Stretch, get a drink, look out of the window. There is no timer and nothing is counting down — your place is saved, so you can come back in five minutes or tomorrow.
Challenge round
Part 17 of 19
Game · Recall cards
The circumflex in 'forêt' often marks...
Card 1 of 4
Mastery quiz
Part 18 of 19
Marked quiz
End of lesson quiz: Pronunciación: the sound system
4 questions, marked with the reasoning shown. No timer.
1. The circumflex in 'forêt' often marks...
2. Which final consonants are usually pronounced in French?
3. How does 'ch' usually sound in French?
4. What sound does 'gn' make, as in 'montagne'?
Lesson round-up
Part 19 of 19
Lesson round-up
Ready when you are
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Use and understand the sound system of the language, applying phonic knowledge to new words