V & B

Hi, although I keep reading that v and b are supposed to sound exactly the same I did not experience that in Peru. I just came back from a 2 week trip and there was a definite difference in the sound of these 2 letters. Is this common in other countries as well? Thanks

Mauricio and I actually disagreed about this! In Ecuador I found that the sounds were exactly alike. I spelled "grabadora" (tape recorder) as "gravadora" for ages. I had no clue whether a lazy person was "bago" or "vago." This is one problem when you're learning new vocabulary orally. You can micmic the sounds, but you can only guess at how to spell the words ... especially if they're slang words not in the dictionary. In Chile, however, Mauricio says that the sounds are distinct. Is the difference between "b grande" and "v pequeño" a cultural thing, like the pronunciation of "ll"? It would seem so.

I think like most languages, there are always different ways things are pronounced dependent upon the regional dialect. Most of the latinos that I associate with are Puerto Rican, and they pronounce the "ll" as a English "j" sound. So, even though in Rocket Spanish audio, it is pronounced like an English "y" I still say it the way I most commonly hear it. Another thing I do, is not pronounce the "s" when it is in the middle or end of the word, as do los boricuas. So if I meet you I say "como esta" but what I'm really saying is "como estas", or "la ihla" for "la isla."

BZ, I'm so glad you raised this issue! I understand that ll varies according to where someone is from, but I didn't know that that was true of b and v as well. I've been wondering about b and v for months. I'd always been told (and I've read) that b and v are pronounced the same, period. But when I listen to people talk or even to tapes such as Learning Spanish Like Crazy (and perhaps Rocket Spanish as well, I don't recall), sometimes the v sounds like a v, not a b. So I'm very interested to see that Amy and Mauricio have different experiences with this. And I'm also very interested in what you say, taalibeen, about dropping s's. I hear that a lot--not so much on tapes but definitely on the _Destinos_ series, as well as on Spanish TV. ¡Muchas gracias!

Hello guys, Yes, like Amy said, the way I was taught in Chile was that the V has a very soft sound, when pronouncing it you sort of place your bottom lip together with your top teeth and form a soft ve sound, but for the B is a much stronger sound where you place both your lips together and pronounce a strong Be sound. Good spotting. Mauricio. :P

[quo]*Quote from * taalibeen Another thing I do, is not pronounce the "s" when it is in the middle or end of the word, as do los boricuas. So if I meet you I say "como esta" but what I'm really saying is "como estas", or "la ihla" for "la isla."[/quo] Gracias, taalibeen. :wink: :D I'm glad you mentioned that, because once before, I noticed while listening to someone speak on a Spanish show, they pronounced a word that contains an 's' without the 's'. So, I began to think that I was just hearing wrong. Then I was confused if I really understood the meaning of the entire sentence it was used in. Now, I know for sure that some people simply do not pronounce the 's' in a certain word. Tambien gracias a usted, Mauricio, for your input on how to go about pronouncing the v and b.

Ok I still don't get it. When do you pronounce a "v" like a "b". For example when I hear por favor the v sounds like a v not a b. It is not pronounce por fabor is it? Is it 'v'osotros or is it 'b'osostros? Although when I hear Havana pronounced the v has a 'b' sound. Totally confused.

I believe it's a regional thing... just like here in the US there's "you guys" vs. "youse guys" and "you all" vs. "y'all", etc...

I agree with Loriann. Just to add one or two other examples from English, "either" can be pronounced EE-ther or EYE-ther. Or think about the difference between the way most Americans say "can't" and the way it's said by most people in Britain (i.e., can't vs cAHn't). The Spanish v/b issue is quite similar. Don't sweat it.

The V and B sound really confuse me. For example, the English word, "speak," when pronounced in spanish, should it sound like "Hablo" or "Havlo". In the "Conversation Course" pdf, sometimes, I hear "Hablo" but other times i hear "Havlo". Can you please clarify? Please go to pg 10 for reference. Chris

[quo]*Quote from * chunkitchris The V and B sound really confuse me. For example, the English word, "speak," when pronounced in spanish, should it sound like "Hablo" or "Havlo". In the "Conversation Course" pdf, sometimes, I hear "Hablo" but other times i hear "Havlo". Can you please clarify? Please go to pg 10 for reference. [/quo] Hi, Chris. I went to the Conversation Course pdf and clicked on some of the "hablar" words, but I hear the "b" as a "b", not as a "v". In normal Spanish conversation as well, I never hear a "b" pronounced as if it were a "v". However, I often hear "v" pronounced as if it were a "b". I notice it especially in common words such as "vivir" (to live), which some Spanish speakers pronounce as "bibir". But this is not true of ALL Spanish speakers, as the messages from Amy and Mauricio earlier in this thread indicate.

[quo]*Quote from * nohablo Hi, Chris. I went to the Conversation Course pdf and clicked on some of the "hablar" words, but I hear the "b" as a "b", not as a "v". In normal Spanish conversation as well, I never hear a "b" pronounced as if it were a "v". However, I often hear "v" pronounced as if it were a "b". I notice it especially in common words such as "vivir" (to live), which some Spanish speakers pronounce as "bibir". But this is not true of ALL Spanish speakers, as the messages from Amy and Mauricio earlier in this thread indicate.[/quo] Hi nohablo, Thanks for your answer. But I really hear the speaker pronounces "havlas" instead of "hablas". When the speak pronounces "Hablas muy bien," he definitely pronounces "b" sound, but not the rest. Chris