Skip to content
Common pronunciation mistakes to avoid as a beginner visualisation

Common pronunciation mistakes to avoid as a beginner

Spanish Pronunciation Made Easy: A Beginner's Guide: Common pronunciation mistakes to avoid as a beginner
Learn with Comprenders App About Comprenders

Common pronunciation mistakes to avoid as a beginner include:

  1. Confusing the “th” sounds (/θ/ and /ð/) by replacing them with sounds like /s/, /t/, or /d/. For example, saying “sink” instead of “think” or “dis” instead of “this” is common. Correct pronunciation requires placing the tongue between the teeth and pushing air out for /θ/, and vibrating vocal cords for /ð/. 1, 6, 9

  2. Mixing up the “r” and “l” sounds, especially for speakers of languages like Japanese or Korean. For /r/, curl the tip of the tongue slightly without touching the roof of the mouth; for /l/, place the tongue tip against the ridge behind upper front teeth. 6

  3. Confusing “v” and “w” sounds, such as saying “wine” instead of “vine”. To fix this, press the top teeth against the bottom lip to produce /v/, and round lips tightly to produce /w/. 1, 6

  4. Adding or dropping sounds unnaturally, such as adding vowels where they don’t belong (“eschool” for “school”) or dropping sounds entirely (“hunry” for “hungry”). 6

  5. Misplacing word stress affects understanding, e.g., stressing “PHOtograph” instead of “phoTOgraph.” Nouns often stress the first syllable; verbs often stress the second. 8, 6

  6. Pronouncing silent letters like the “b” in “comb” or the “k” in “knife,” which learners tend to overemphasize unnecessarily. 6

  7. Mispronouncing vowel length, such as confusing short “i” in “sit” with long “ee” in “seat,” affecting clarity. 8

Putting these pronunciation aspects into practice by listening, repeating, and recording enables better clarity and confidence in speaking. 1, 8, 6

References

Open the App About Comprenders