Hard English words for Spanish speakers: why they are hard and how to fix them
Spanish and English share thousands of words, but they differ in five predictable ways: Spanish has five vowels, no words start with s + consonant, “h” is silent, “b” and “v” sound alike, and there is no “th”. Almost every “hard word” for a Spanish speaker comes from one of these habits. Here are the groups, the words, and what to do about each.
By The YoFluent teamUpdated 8 min read
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1. Words starting with s + consonant
No Spanish word begins with s + consonant (they begin with es-: escuela, España, estudiante). So Spanish speakers add a vowel at the start of English words. To fix it, hold the “s” as a long hiss and join it to the next sound with no vowel.
| Word | Common mistake | Say it |
|---|---|---|
| school | “eschool” | sss-KOOL |
| Spain | “Espain” | sss-PAYN |
| student | “estudent” | sss-TOO-dunt |
| special | “espetial” | sss-PESH-ul |
| street | “estreet” | sss-TREET |
| study | “estudy” | sss-TUD-ee |
2. Vowel pairs that sound the same in Spanish
Spanish has five vowels, English about 20 (see English vowel sounds). These pairs are the usual traps:
| Pair | Difference | Risk |
|---|---|---|
| ship / sheep | short relaxed /ɪ/ vs long tense /iː/ | Saying “sheep” for “ship” changes the meaning |
| live / leave | /ɪ/ vs /iː/ | “I live here” vs “I leave here” |
| full / fool | /ʊ/ vs /uː/ | Different words, same sound in Spanish |
| cut / cat / cart | /ʌ/ vs /æ/ vs /ɑː/ | Three sounds, one in Spanish: “a” |
| bed / bad | /e/ vs /æ/ | Both heard as “e” or “a” |
| work / walk | /ɜː/ vs /ɔː/ | Different vowels, both “o” in Spanish |
3. The English “h”, and “j”, “y” and “sh”
In Spanish, “h” is silent, and “j” is a harsh /x/. In English, “h” is a light breath: house, hotel, who, behind. Do not drop it (“ouse”) and do not make it harsh (“jouse”). Related traps: yes / Jess (/j/ vs /dʒ/), chair / share (/tʃ/ vs /ʃ/), shoes / choose, and job / yob.
4. B and V
In most Spanish accents, “b” and “v” are the same sound. In English they are different: for v the top teeth touch the bottom lip. Practise: very / berry, vote / boat, vest / best, vowel / bowel, and the ending in have (“I have to go” with a clear final /v/).
5. “th”
Spanish has no /θ/ in Latin American Spanish (it exists in Castilian). Learners say t, d or s instead: “tink” for think, “dis” for this. Put your tongue between your teeth: soft air for think, three, thank, and a voiced buzz for this, mother, brother. Our guide to the “th” sound has drills.
6. -ed endings and final consonants
Spanish words rarely end in consonant clusters, so English endings such as worked (/wɜːkt/), asked (/ɑːskt/), months, world and texts get shortened. The -ed ending has three sounds:
| Ending sound | After | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| /t/ | voiceless sounds (p, k, s, f, ch, sh) | worked, stopped, washed |
| /d/ | voiced sounds and vowels | played, called, opened |
| /ɪd/ | t and d | wanted, needed, decided |
7. False friends (falsos amigos)
These words look like Spanish, but mean something different. They cause mistakes even for advanced learners.
| English word | Looks like | Spanish equivalent of the English word |
|---|---|---|
| embarrassed | embarazada (pregnant) | avergonzado |
| actually | actualmente (currently) | en realidad |
| library | librería (bookshop) | biblioteca |
| sensible | sensible (sensitive) | sensato |
| assist | asistir (to attend) | ayudar |
| eventually | eventualmente (possibly) | finalmente |
| realise / realize | realizar (to carry out) | darse cuenta |
| carpet | carpeta (folder) | alfombra |
| sympathetic | simpático (nice) | comprensivo |
| pretend | pretender (to intend) | fingir |
| exit | éxito (success) | salida |
| lecture | lectura (reading) | conferencia |
| parents | parientes (relatives) | padres |
| constipated | constipado (having a cold) | estreñido |
8. Words that do not sound the way they look
Spanish spelling is nearly phonetic, so English spelling surprises. Learn these as exceptions: comfortable (KUMF-ter-bul), vegetable (VEJ-tuh-bul), Wednesday (WENZ-day), February (FEB-roo-air-ee), clothes (kloathz), knife (nyf), enough (ih-NUF), thought (thawt), through (throo). See silent letters in English and difficult words to pronounce.
How to practise
- Choose one group per week, not all eight.
- Say the pairs in sentences: “I live in a big city. I leave at six.”
- Record yourself and compare with a dictionary audio clip.
- Get word-by-word feedback. Mistakes you cannot hear are the ones you keep making. An AI tutor that scores each word helps: see practising with an AI tutor.
- Lee en español: our Spanish guide Pronunciación en inglés explains the same sounds in Spanish.
Frequently asked questions
What English words are hardest for Spanish speakers?
Words that begin with s + consonant (school, Spain), words with pairs of vowels that merge (ship/sheep), words with “h” and “th”, words ending in clusters (worked, months), and false friends such as embarrassed, actually and library.
Why do Spanish speakers say “eschool” for “school”?
No Spanish word starts with s + consonant; they start with “es-” (escuela, España). Spanish speakers add that “e” automatically. Hold a long “sss” and go straight into the next sound.
What are false friends between English and Spanish?
Words that look similar but mean different things, such as embarrassed (avergonzado) vs embarazada (pregnant), library (biblioteca) vs librería (bookshop), and actually (en realidad) vs actualmente (currently).
Is English hard for Spanish speakers?
Vocabulary is easier because of the many shared words from Latin, but pronunciation and spelling are harder. See our guide: is English hard to learn.
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- English phonology, Wikipedia
- False friend, Wikipedia