The Spanish Alphabet (El abecedario)
The Spanish alphabet, el abecedario, has 27 letters: the 26 you know from English plus ñ (eñe), which comes right after n. Ch and ll are pairs of letters, not separate letters. Spanish is spelled almost exactly the way it sounds, so once your child knows the sounds, they can start sounding words out.
Below you’ll find all 27 letters with their names, sounds and an example word, the letter pairs ch, ll and rr, two letter games for the kitchen table, and a free printable alphabet poster.
The 27 letters of the Spanish alphabet
| Letter | Name | Say it | Sound | Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aa | a | ah | ah, as in father | abuela (grandma) |
| Bb | be | beh | b, same as v | boca (mouth) |
| Cc | ce | seh | k; s before e and i | casa (house) |
| Dd | de | deh | a soft d | dedo (finger) |
| Ee | e | eh | eh, as in pet | elefante (elephant) |
| Ff | efe | EH-feh | f | fresa (strawberry) |
| Gg | ge | heh | g as in go; breathy h before e and i | gato (cat) |
| Hh | hache | AH-cheh | silent | hola (hello) |
| Ii | i | ee | ee, as in see | isla (island) |
| Jj | jota | HO-ta | a breathy h | jugo (juice) |
| Kk | ka | kah | k (borrowed words) | kiwi (kiwi) |
| L l | ele | EH-leh | l | luna (moon) |
| Mm | eme | EH-meh | m | mamá (mom) |
| Nn | ene | EH-neh | n | nariz (nose) |
| Ññ | eñe | EH-nyeh | ny, as in canyon | ñandú (rhea (a big bird)) |
| Oo | o | oh | oh | oveja (sheep) |
| Pp | pe | peh | p | pato (duck) |
| cu | koo | k (always written qu) | queso (cheese) | |
| Rr | erre | EH-rreh | tapped r; rolled at the start of a word | rojo (red) |
| Ss | ese | EH-seh | s | sol (sun) |
| Tt | te | teh | t | tortuga (turtle) |
| Uu | u | oo | oo, as in moon | uva (grape) |
| Vv | uve | OO-beh | b, same as b | vaca (cow) |
| Ww | doble uve | DOH-bleh OO-beh | w (borrowed words) | wafle (waffle) |
| Xx | equis | EH-kees | ks | taxi (taxi) |
| Yy | ye (i griega) | yeh | y as in yes; ee on its own | yogur (yogurt) |
| Zz | zeta | SEH-ta | s | zapatos (shoes) |
The example words are ones a child can picture: fresa for strawberry, pato for duck, rojo for red, zapatos for shoes. K and w turn up mostly in words Spanish borrowed from other languages.
Spanish alphabet pronunciation: the sounds that matter
For a young child, the sound of a letter matters more than its name. The name is for spelling (¿Cómo se escribe?); the sound is for reading. Five vowels do most of the work, and they never change: a (ah), e (eh), i (ee), o (oh), u (oo). Then three letter pairs make one sound each:
ch
chocolate (chocolate)
like English ch
ll
lluvia (rain)
like the y in yes: YOO-bya
rr
perro (dog)
a long rolled r
Ch and ll are pairs
Older charts often list ch and ll as extra letters. Since the RAE’s 2010 spelling rules, ch and llare digraphs: two letters making one sound. They’re still in chocolate and lluvia; they just don’t get their own tile.
Be and uve
B and v sound the same in Spanish, so the names tell them apart: be for b and uve for v (many speakers also say ve). When your child asks how to spell vaca, the answer is “con uve”.
Sounds before names: when to teach the alphabet
On our Spanish Basics plan the alphabet comes late, on purpose. A child who has heard mamá, gato and perro for weeks has something to attach the letters to. Letters without words are just shapes.
Ages 4 to 5
Play with sounds only. “Gatostarts with g.” Letter names can wait.
Ages 6 to 7
Add the names while your child is learning to read in English. Point out ñ, the letter English doesn’t have.
Ages 8 and up
Spell names and short words aloud in Spanish: ¿Cómo se escribe tu nombre? Then read a short story together.
How to use this with your child: the letter hunt
You don’t need to speak Spanish for this. Pick one letter a day from the chart. At breakfast, hunt for it on the cereal box, the milk carton, the jam jar: ¡Busca la eme! (find the m!). In the car, play first-letter I Spy: Veo, veo algo que empieza con la be.
—¿Con qué letra empieza gato?
—¡Con la ge!
(“What letter does gato start with? With g!”) Use words your child already knows from the other charts: gato, mamá, boca, vaca. The letter only means something once the word does.
- 1
Say the vowels together first. A, e, i, o, u, short and clean, every day for a week.
- 2
One letter a day, hunted in real print. Cereal boxes, signs, book covers.
- 3
Find the ñ early. It’s the letter your child will be proudest to know.
- 4
Spell your child’s name in Spanish. ¿Cómo se escribe tu nombre? Their own name is the best word there is.
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| ¿Con qué letra empieza gato? ¡Con la ge! | What letter does gato start with? With g! |
| Veo, veo algo que empieza con la eme. | I spy something that starts with m. |
| Busca la eñe. | Find the ñ. |
| ¿Cómo se escribe tu nombre? | How do you spell your name? |
Spanish alphabet poster (free printable chart)
One page: 27 letter tiles with capital and lowercase, the letter’s name and an example word, plus a strip with ch, ll and rr. Put it at your child’s eye level.
Download the Chart (Free PDF)Everything for this unit
Everything for alphabet in one place
Spanish alphabet flashcards and worksheets
We don’t have a separate alphabet flashcard deck or letter worksheets yet. For now, print the poster twice and cut the second copy into 27 tiles: that’s a flashcard set for the letter hunt. Our printable Spanish flashcards cover colors, numbers and family words, and the beginner Spanish worksheets practice those units with tracing and matching.
Questions parents ask
How many letters are in the Spanish alphabet?
The Spanish alphabet has 27 letters: the same 26 as English plus ñ (eñe), which comes right after n. The Real Academia Española confirmed this count in its 2010 spelling rules. Ch and ll, which older charts list as letters, are now counted as pairs of letters, so a modern Spanish alphabet chart shows 27 tiles.
Are ch and ll still letters?
No. Since the RAE's 2010 Ortografía, ch and ll are digraphs: two letters that together make one sound, like sh in English. They are still used in every word that has them (chocolate, lluvia); they just aren't counted as separate letters of the alphabet. If your old dictionary lists them separately, that's why.
How do you pronounce the Spanish alphabet?
Say the vowels short and clean: a (ah), e (eh), i (ee), o (oh), u (oo). Most consonant names add an e: be, ce, de, efe, ele, eme, ene. A few are special: hache (h), jota (j), eñe (ñ), cu (q), erre (r), equis (x) and zeta (z). Ye is said yeh, like the y in yes.
What is the extra letter in the Spanish alphabet?
The extra letter is ñ, called eñe (EH-nyeh). It sounds like the ny in canyon and it is a letter of its own, not an n with decoration, with its own place in the dictionary right after n. Children love finding it. In our chart it stands for ñandú, the big running bird of the South American grasslands.
What are b and v called?
B and v sound exactly the same in Spanish, so the letter names tell them apart: be for b and uve for v. These are the names the RAE recommends, and the ones on our chart. Many speakers also say ve for v, and the RAE notes that other established names are not wrong. When your child asks how to spell vaca, the answer is con uve.
Where the letters show up next
After the letters comes reading whole words. When the letter sounds are familiar, try our Spanish reading practice stories: short sentences your child can sound out with you.
Chart Nº 7: Animals
From the ñandú to the mariquita, with animal sounds.
Chart Nº 6: Family Members
Mamá, papá, abuela, and the ¿Quién es? photo game.
Chart Nº 8: Body Parts
Cabeza to pies, with a labeled diagram and the Tócate la nariz game.
Chart Nº 10: Emotions
Feliz, triste, enojado, and how to ask ¿Cómo te sientes? at bedtime.
All free printables
Every chart, plus story readers you can print at home.
Get the Free Starter Story Pack
A short printable Manuel y Lola story with a parent guide in English.
Letter spotting also works on a Spanish word search: every word is a row of letters to sound out. A longer Foundations Pack is being written and isn’t for sale yet.
Sources
- Real Academia Española: “Exclusión de ch y ll del abecedario”, Español al día, on the 27-letter alphabet and ch and ll as digraphs under the Ortografía de la lengua española (2010)
- Real Academia Española: “Un solo nombre para cada letra”, Español al día, on the recommended letter names (be, uve, ye) and why other established names are not wrong