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    Pronunciation · For spanish speakers

    English pronunciation for spanish speakers

    In short

    Spanish has 5 pure vowels where English has around 20, so the highest-impact work for Spanish speakers is vowel contrasts (ship/sheep, cat/cut) plus the b/v merger and the extra 'e' that sneaks in before s-clusters (eSpain).

    Your priority sounds, in order

    1. 1

      /ɪ/: i as in sit

      /ɪ/ merges with /iː/: 'ship' and 'sheep', 'live' and 'leave' sound identical

      Fix: Relax your lips and jaw, no smile. Practise: ship vs sheep

    2. 2

      /æ/: a as in cat

      /æ/, /ʌ/ and /ɑː/ collapse into one Spanish 'a': cat/cut/cart blur together

      Fix: Open your mouth wide, wider than feels natural at first. Practise: bed vs bad, cat vs cut

    3. 3

      /v/: v as in very

      b and v merge into one soft sound: 'berry' and 'very' are indistinguishable

      Fix: Touch your top teeth to your bottom lip, same position as /f/. Practise: vest vs west, berry vs very

    4. 4

      /z/: z as in zoo

      no /z/ in Spanish: 'eyes' devoices to 'ice', plural endings disappear

      Fix: Same position as /s/, tongue near the ridge. Practise: price vs prize

    5. 5

      /dʒ/: j as in job

      /dʒ/ and /j/ swap: 'jet' becomes 'yet' and vice versa

      Fix: Start as if saying /d/, tongue on the ridge. Practise: jet vs yet

    6. 6

      /ʃ/: sh as in she

      Latin American speakers often merge /ʃ/ into /tʃ/: 'ship' becomes 'chip'

      Fix: Pull your tongue slightly further back than for /s/. Practise: see vs she, chair vs share

    7. 7

      /ə/: a as in about (schwa)

      Spanish has no reduced vowels: every syllable gets a full vowel, making rhythm staccato

      Fix: Relax everything: lips, jaw, tongue in the neutral middle position.

    Beyond sounds: stress and rhythm

    Suprasegmentals (stress, rhythm, intonation) transfer from Spanish in predictable ways, and research shows fixing them improves real-world comprehensibility more than sound polish does.

    • Spanish is syllable-timed; English squeezes unstressed syllables. Practise weak forms (of → /ə/, can → /kən/) to unlock natural rhythm.
    • Avoid the extra 'e' before s-clusters: school, Spain, street start straight on the /s/.
    • Spanish pitch range is narrower; exaggerate stressed-word pitch jumps until they feel theatrical; they will sound normal.

    Words spanish speakers most often get wrong

    Each has a full breakdown, audio in both accents and a free recording drill. Fixing a word you use daily is worth more than fixing a sound in the abstract.

    comfortableKUMF-tuh-bulvegetableVEJ-tuh-bulinterestingIN-truh-stingcameraKAM-ruhdifferentDIF-runtWednesdayWENZ-daypsychologysy-KOL-uh-jeeyachtYOT

    Browse the whole word bank · Take the 60-second check

    Quick wins to start this week

    • ✓Master /ɪ/ vs /iː/ first; it fixes hundreds of everyday words.
    • ✓Hold a long 'vvvv' with teeth on lip daily until b/v separate.
    • ✓Read plurals aloud, buzzing every final s into a /z/: dogs, plans, ideas.

    Keep exploring

    Frequently asked questions

    What are the hardest English sounds for spanish speakers?
    The highest-impact challenges are /ɪ/ (/ɪ/ merges with /iː/); /æ/ (/æ/, /ʌ/ and /ɑː/ collapse into one spanish 'a'); /v/ (b and v merge into one soft sound). These are ordered by how much they affect intelligibility, not by how noticeable they are.
    Do spanish speakers need to lose their accent for IELTS?
    No. IELTS explicitly accepts every standard accent; the descriptors only mention L1 accent at Band 8, and only through its effect on intelligibility. The goal is clarity, not sounding native.
    Where should I start?
    Master /ɪ/ vs /iː/ first; it fixes hundreds of everyday words.

    Next step

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