Hello, and welcome to The Spanish Cat Home Learning Spanish

Hello, and welcome to The Spanish Cat Home Learning Spanish course.
The most important thing when learning a language is to practice as much as possible, so
that is what we will try to get you to do.
First though, you will need to learn how to pronounce words in Spanish. Luckily,
Spanish is very easy to pronounce, because every letter sounds the same in every word.
This means, once you learn to pronounce each letter, it doesn’t matter what word you
look at, even if you’ve never seen it before, you’ll know exactly how to pronounce it. It
also means that just by hearing a word, you should be able to spell it.
This is unlike English, where letters are pronounced very differently in each word. Just
think of the letter a for example in the following words: at, ate, each, game. It is
pronounced differently in each one.
Now, listen to the letter a in Spanish in each of the following words.
A is called a in Spanish.
Se llama “A” en Español.
Repeat after me.
Repite después de mí: a. a. a.
Now, listen to the following words: hola, manzana, hablar
See how the a is pronounced exactly the same in every word?
Now, you try them.
Remember to say them out loud.
Hola.
Hola.
Manzana. Manzana.
Hablar. Hablar.
What do these words mean?
¿Qué significan estas palabras?
Hola significa Hello
Manzana significa Apple
Hablar significa Speak
Now, say them again after me.
Repite después de mí.
Remember this phrase, because whenever you hear it throughout the course it means it’s
your turn.
Hola. Manzana. Hablar.
Remember what they mean?
Hola
(pause) Hello
Manzana (pause) Apple
Hablar (pause) Speak.
Now, the letter B.
Ahora la letra “B”
Bueno - Good.
Beber - Drink.
Repite después de mí: bueno, beber, bueno, beber.
Remember what they mean?
¿Recuerdas qué significan?
This is another important phrase that we’ll be using throughout the course.
¿Recuerdas qué significan?- Remember what they mean?
Bueno (pause). Good.
Beber (pause). Drink.
Bueno. Beber.
Now, the letter C.
Ahora la letra “C”
This is a bit different, because it has two ways it can be pronounced, depending on the
letter after it.
If followed by an a, o or u, it’s pronounced like a K.
For example.
Por ejemplo:
Casa - House.
Coco - Coconut.
Cuenta - The check or bill.
Repite después de mí: Casa. Coco. Cuenta. Casa. Coco. Cuenta.
Remember what they mean?
¿Recuerdas qué significan?
Casa (pause). House.
Coco (pause). Coconut.
Cuenta (pause). Check.
Casa. Coco. Cuenta.
Coco. Casa. Cuenta.
If, however, it’s followed by an e or an i, it’s pronounced like an S.
For example:
Por ejemplo:
Cerveza - Beer.
Cigarro - Cigarette.
Repite después de mí: cerveza, cigarro, cerveza, cigarro.
¿Recuerdas qué significan?
Cerveza - Beer.
Cigarro - Cigarette.
Cerveza. Cigarro. Cerveza. Cigarro.
OK, we haven’t gone very far, but let’s see if you remember what we’ve learnt so far.
Practice saying the words at the same time as remembering their meaning:
Hola
- Hello.
Cerveza - Beer.
Casa
- House.
Hablar - Speak.
Cigarro - Cigarette.
Manzana - Apple.
Bueno - Good.
Coco
- Coconut.
Cuenta - Check.
OK, don’t worry if you didn’t get all of them. We’ll be practicing again in a few
minutes.
Now, the letter D.
Ahora la letra “D”
Dedo - Finger.
Dónde - Where.
Repite después de mí: Dedo, dónde, dónde, dedo
¿Recuerdas qué significan?
Dedo - Finger.
Dónde - Where.
Repite despues de mí: Dedo. Dónde. Dedo. Dónde.
The letter E.
La letra “E”
Elefante - Elephant.
Entender - Understand.
Repite después de mí: Elefante. Entender. Elefante. Entender.
¿Recuerdas qué significan?
Elefante - Elephant.
Entender - Understand.
Elefante. Entender. Entender. Elefante.
The letter F.
La letra “F”
Fruta - Fruit.
Favor - Favour.
Repite después de mí: Fruta, favor, favor, fruta.
¿Recuerdas qué significan?
Fruta - Fruit.
Favor - Favour.
Repite después de mí: Fruta, favor, favor, fruta.
La letra “G”
G is a bit like c, in that it changes depending on what letter follows it.
If it’s followed by an a, o or u, it’s pronounced like in got
For example
Por ejemplo: ga, go, gu.
Gato - Cat.
Tengo - I have.
Agua - Water.
Repite después de mí: gato, tengo, agua, gato, tengo, agua.
When it’s followed by an I or an E, it’s pronounced like an h in English
Por ejemplo: ge, gi.
Género - Gender.
Girasol - Sunflower.
Repite después de mí: girasol, género, girasol, género.
¿Recuerdas que significan?
Gato - Cat.
Tengo - I have.
Agua - Water.
Genero - Gender.
Girasol - Sunflower.
gato, tengo, agua, género, girasol, tengo, gato, agua, género, girasol.
OK, you’re doing really well. I hope you’ve been practicing by saying these words out
loud, as that’s the only way to get them to stick in your mind.
Ready for another memory quiz?
OK, try to say and remember the meanings of the following words before I say them in
English:
Hola - Hello.
Gato - Cat.
Coco - Coconut.
Casa - House.
Favor - Favour.
Elefante - Elephant.
Dónde - Where.
Cerveza - Beer.
Entender - Enderstand.
Cigarro - Cigarette.
Manzana - Apple.
OK. Excellent. I’m sure you missed quite a few of those, but if you’re saying them out
loud then next time you’ll have a much better chance of remembering them.
The important thing at this stage is to get a feel for the letters and words in your mouth.
Ready to move on?
The next letter is H.
La letra “H”
H in Spanish is silent. The following words begin with an H.
Hola - Remember what this means? Hello.
Hablar - Speak.
Repite después de mí: hola, hablar, hablar, hola
The letter I.
La letra “I”
Idea – idea.
Vivir – live.
Repite después de mí: idea, vivir, idea, vivir
¿Recuerdas qué significan?
Idea – idea.
Vivir – live.
Idea, vivir, idea, vivir.
“J” in Spanish is called jota.
It’s pronounced like the h in English.
Jamón - Ham.
Trabajo - Work.
Jamón, Trabajo.
K in Spanish is called Ka and is pronounced the same as in english
Kilo - Kilo.
Repite después de mí: kilo, kilo, kilo.
I don’t think you’ll forget what that one means.
La letra “L”
Luna - Moon.
Lápiz - Pencil.
Repite después de mí: luna, lápiz, luna, lápiz.
¿Recuerdas qué significan?
Luna - Moon.
Lápiz – Pencil.
Luna, lápiz, luna, lápiz.
The next letter in Spanish is ll, or doble ele, and is pronounced a bit like a “J” in English
but softer:
LL, LL.
Llave - Key.
Llamar - Call.
Repite después de mí: llave, llamar, llave, llamar.
¿Recuerdas qué significan?
Llave - Key.
Llamar - Call.
Llave, llamar, llave, llamar.
OK, time to do another memory quiz. Try to repeat the word in Spanish and remember
what it means before I say it in English:
Luna - Moon.
Lápiz - Pencil.
Llave - Key.
Llamar - Call.
Jamón - Ham.
Trabajo - Work.
Idea
- Idea.
Vivir - Live.
Hablar - Speak.
Hola
- Hello.
Gato
- Cat.
Coco
- Coconut.
Casa
- House.
Favor
- Favour.
Elefante - Elephant.
Dónde
- Where.
Cerveza - Beer.
Entender - Understand.
Cigarro - Cigarette.
Manzana - Apple.
How’d you got that time? Are you getting better?
Learning to recognise a word when you hear it is the first step in learning a new
language. After that, you will soon be able to use the word yourself when you need it.
OK, next we have m, or eme, and n, or ene.
These are pronounced the same as in English.
Por ejemplo:
Más
- More.
Música - Music.
Maestro - Teacher.
Nada - Nothing.
Nueve - Nine.
Repite después de mí: más, música, maestro, nada, nueve.
Remember what they mean?
¿Recuerdas qué significan?
Más
Música
Maestro
Nada
Nueve
- More.
- Música.
- Teacher.
- Nothing.
- Nine.
más, música, maestro, nada, nueve.
The next letter is O.
La siguiente letra es “O”
It’s pronounced like this:
Hola - Hello.
Comer - To eat.
Uno - One.
Repite después de mí: Hola, comer, uno. Hola, comer, uno.
¿Recuerdas qué significan?
Hola - Hello.
Comer - To eat.
Uno - One.
Hola, comer, uno. Hola, comer, uno.
The letter P.
La letra “P”
Papa
- Potato.
Por favor - Please.
Papa. Por favor. Papa. Por favor.
Potato. Please.
Papa. Por favor. Papa. Por favor.
Q is always followed by a u, as in English, and is called q.
It’s pronounced like a k.
Queso - Cheese.
Queso. Queso. Queso.
Cheese.
“R” is difficult for us Westerners. It has to be rolled. Try smiling while you say it.
Erre. Erre. Erre.
Rápido - Fast.
Comprar - Buy.
Rápido, comprar, rápido, comprar.
Fast. Buy.
Rápido, comprar, rápido, comprar.
“S” is called ese, and is the same as in English.
Silla - Seat.
Casa - House.
Silla, casa, silla, casa.
Seat, house.
Silla, casa, silla, casa.
The letter T
La letra “T”
Teléfono - Telephone.
Repite después de mí: teléfono, teléfono, teléfono.
¿Recuerdas qué significa?
Teléfono – Telephone.
Teléfono, teléfono, teléfono.
La letra “U”
Uno - One.
Usted - You (formal).
Repite después de mí: uno, usted, uno, usted.
¿Recuerdas qué significan?
Uno - One.
Usted - You (formal).
Uno, usted, uno, usted.
The letter V
La letra “V”
In Spanish, V is pronounced a bit like B in English.
Por ejemplo:
Vivir - Live.
Ver - See.
Repite después de mí: vivir, ver, vivir, ver.
¿Recuerdas qué significan?
Vivir - Live
Ver - See
Vivir, ver, vivir, ver.
The letter W
La letra “W”
This is the same as in English, and is mainly only used for English words like whisky.
X is also the same as in English.
The letter Y. This is pronounced the same as Ll, somewhere between a y and a j. If it’s
by itself though, it’s pronounced Y, and means and.
Here’s some examples:
Yo - I
Ya - Already
La letra “Z”
Zapato - Shoe
Zapata - Famous Mexican revolutionary, Emiliano Zapata
Repite después de mí: Zapato, zapata, zapato, zapata.
OK, well done.
That almost concludes our first lesson.
Before we finish up though, let’s do another memory quiz to see how much of this lesson
you’ve remembered. This time we’ll be doing some phrases as well as vocabulary.
Repeat the word in Spanish ALOUD and then try to remember what it means.
Zapato - Shoe.
Zapata - Famous Mexican revolutionary, Emiliano Zapata.
Yo - I.
Ya - Already.
Vivir - Live.
Ver - See.
Uno - One.
Usted
- You (formal).
Teléfono - Telephone.
Silla
- Seat.
Casa
- House.
Rápido - Fast.
Comprar - Buy.
¿Recuerdas qué significan? - Remember what they mean?
Repite después de mí
- Repeat after me.
Queso - Cheese.
Papa - Potato.
Por favor - Please.
Hola - Hello.
Comer - To eat.
Uno - One.
Más - More.
Música - Music.
Maestro - Teacher.
Nada - Nothing.
Nueve - Nine.
Luna
- Moon.
Lapiz - Pencil.
Llave - Key.
Llamar - Call.
Jamon - Ham.
Trabaja - Work.
Idea - Idea.
Vivir - Live.
Hablar - Speak.
Gato - Cat.
Coco - Coconut.
Casa - House.
Favor - Favour.
Elefante - Elephant.
Donde - Where.
Cerveza - Beer.
Entender - Understand.
Cigarro - Cigarette.
Manzana - Apple.
OK, I’m sure you still missed a lot of those, but hopefully you managed to get some of
them. Don’t worry, you’re doing well. You have only been learning Spanish for about
15 minutes after all.
If you listen to this list three times a day for the next few days, guaranteed that your
retention rate will increase rapidly each day.
In the next lesson we will learn how to greet someone, how to introduce yourself, and a
number of useful phrases that you will need on your Spanish learning journey.
That’s it for now. See you next week.