Sounds, spelling and written accents

What it is

Spanish is spelled almost exactly as it sounds: once you know the letters, you can read any word aloud and write most words you hear. Three things need care when you type: the written accent (tilde: á, é, í, ó, ú), the letter ñ, and the marks ¿ and ¡ that open questions and exclamations.

How to form it

Vowels. There are five, always clear and short: a, e, i, o, u. They never fade, not even at the end of a word: noche ends in a clear [e].

Where the stress falls. Every word has one stressed syllable, and three rules tell you when to write an accent on it:

1. Words ending in a vowel, -n or -s are stressed on the second-to-last syllable: ca-sa, ha-blan, lu-nes. If the stress falls elsewhere, write the accent: ca-fé, Pe-rú, in-glés, Ja-pón.
2. Words ending in any other consonant are stressed on the last syllable: pro-fe-sor, es-pa-ñol, ciu-dad. If not, write the accent: lá-piz, ár-bol, Pé-rez.
3. Words stressed earlier always carry one: mú-si-ca, pá-gi-na, Mé-xi-co, te-lé-fo-no.

An accent also splits a stressed i or u from the vowel next to it: dí-a, Ma-rí-a, Lu-cí-a, pa-ís. Words of one syllable normally take none: tres, bien, mes, fue.

When to use it

Accents that change the word. Some short words come in pairs, and only the accent tells them apart:

Question words always carry an accent: ¿qué?, ¿cómo?, ¿dónde?, ¿cuál?, ¿quién? The same words in exclamations too: ¡Qué bien!

¿ and ¡ open every question and exclamation, so you hear the tone from the first word: ¿Cómo te llamas? ¡Hola, Marta!

• ¿Cómo se escribe tu apellido?How do you spell your surname?cómo + accent, tu = your
• Sí, él es mi papá.Yes, he is my dad.three accents, three meanings
• Más despacio, por favor.Slower, please.más = more
• Abran el libro en la página diez.Open your books at page ten.pá-gi-na
• ¡Feliz año nuevo, señora Núñez!Happy New Year, Mrs Núñez!ñ
• Soy de Perú y hablo español.I am from Peru and I speak Spanish.Pe-rú · es-pa-ñol

Contrasts and traps

• n is not ñ: año (year) and ano are very different words. Always type the ñ.
• A missing accent is a spelling mistake, and sometimes it changes the meaning: Mi papa es de Cuba says your potato is Cuban.
• Capitals keep their accents: Él, Álvaro, Ángela.
• Few double letters: only cc, ll, rr (and a rare nn): profesor, clase, comunicación.
• One accent mark only: the acute (´). Spanish has no à, â or ã.

No Spanish keyboard? The accent bar on the exercise screen gives you á é í ó ú ñ ü ¿ ¡.

If you also speak Portuguese

Most spellings map neatly: nh → ñ (Espanha → España), lh → j or ll (filho → hijo), ç → z or c (praça → plaza), -ção → -ción, -ão → -ón (Japão → Japón), final -m → -n (bem → bien), ss → s (professor → profesor). There is no circumflex: inglês → inglés, três → tres.