Spanish Sounds and Spelling: Learn to Pronounce Words · Lesson 1 · 3 minutes
Open Your Mouth
Shape the mouth wide for 'a'
Play this lesson in your browser. No account needed.
Open Wide
Elena learns the Spanish a. Open your mouth wide. It sounds like the 'a' in 'father'.
Which English word has the same sound as the Spanish 'a'?
- father
- cat
- day
Answer: father
Spanish 'a' is an open sound like 'ah' in father.
Saying Casa
Elena practices the word casa. Both vowels make the wide 'ah' sound. Say: 'cah-sah'.
Elena wants to say 'casa'. What mistake must she avoid?
- Using the flat sound from 'cat'
- Opening her mouth wide
- Pronouncing both vowels the same
Answer: Using the flat sound from 'cat'
Never use the flat sound from 'cat' in Spanish.
Complete the rule for Elena:
To pronounce Spanish 'a', open your mouth ___ to say ___.
Answer: To pronounce Spanish 'a', open your mouth wide to say ah.
The mouth opens wide to make the 'ah' sound.
Build the two spoken parts of 'casa':
Answer: cah sah
Each syllable in 'casa' uses the open 'ah' sound.
Elena sees the Spanish word 'mapa'. How do the two vowels sound?
- Both sound like 'ah'
- The first sounds like 'map'
- The second sounds like 'ay'
Answer: Both sound like 'ah'
Spanish 'a' always opens wide like 'ah'.
What to remember
- Open your mouth wide for the Spanish 'a'.
- It sounds like the 'a' in 'father', not 'cat'.
- In words like 'casa', make the 'ah' sound every time.
Next in this course: Keep It Steady. It carries on in the Breni app.
The full Spanish Sounds and Spelling: Learn to Pronounce Words path