The pronunciation chapter at the start of the course covers the sounds. At B2 the focus moves to rhythm, linking and intonation.
Syllable-timed rhythm
Spanish gives roughly the same length to every syllable. Do not shorten unstressed vowels (an English habit) or swallow final vowels (a French habit): pro-ble-ma, uni-ver-si-dad, Nuak-chot.
Linking (sinalefa)
Words link together when one ends in a vowel and the next starts with a vowel: mi_amigo [mia-mi-go], la_otra [lao-tra], va_a_ir [vaa-ir], ¿Qué_hora_es? [keo-raes]. Consonant + vowel also link: los_amigos [lo-sa-mi-gos], es_un_error [e-su-ne-rror].
Intonation patterns
| Sentence type | Melody | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Statement | falls at the end ↘ | Vivo en Rabat. ↘ |
| Yes/no question | rises at the end ↗ | ¿Vives en Rabat? ↗ |
| Wh- question | starts high, falls ↘ | ¿Dónde vives? ↘ |
| List | rises on each item, falls on the last | Hablo árabe ↗, francés ↗ e inglés ↘. |
| Exclamation | strong high peak | ¡Qué bonito! |
| Surprise / disbelief | rise–fall–rise | ¿Que te vas a casar? |
Sounds to keep working on
| Problem (for Arabic / French speakers) | Exercise |
|---|---|
| r vs rr | pero / perro, caro / carro, cero / cerro, para / parra |
| b / v (both [b]) and soft b between vowels | vaca, la vaca, una botella, abuelo |
| e vs i, o vs u (Arabic has three vowels) | mesa / misa, peso / piso, queso / quiso; oso / uso, poso / puso |
| Nasal vowels (French) | Spanish has none: con, tan, un = vowel + clear [n] |
| Final d | soft or almost silent: Madrid, verdad, usted |
| j / g (+e,i) | Arabic helps: jamás, gente, ojo, hijo |
Shadowing (técnica de la sombra): play a short audio (10–20 seconds) with a transcript; listen once, then speak at the same time as the speaker, imitating rhythm and melody. Ten minutes a day for a month noticeably improves fluency and accent.