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Section 1 - Alphabet and Pronunciation

Aa [IPA: a] - Like the A in father.

Bb [IPA: b] - Like English B.

Cc, (2)/(3) [IPA: k, θ (Cast.)/k, s (Mex.)] - Like English K before A, O and U. Like TH as in thick before E and I (in Castillian Spanish), or like an S (in Mexican Spanish).

Dd [IPA: d] - Like English D.

Ee, (2) [IPA: ɛ, e] - Like the E in mess. Can sound slightly like A as in Dane at the end of a word.

Ff [IPA: f] - Like English F.

Gg, (2) [IPA: ɡ, h] - Like English G (as in good) before A, O and U. Like English H before E and I.

Hh - Always silent.

Ii [IPA: i] - Like the I in machine.

Jj [IPA: h] - Like English H.

Kk [IPA: k] - Like English K (rarely used - c and qu more common).

Ll, (2) [IPA: l, ʎ] - Like English L (but tongue touches roof of mouth) when single. When doubled, like English Y.

Mm [IPA: m] - Like English M.

Nn [IPA: n] - Like English N.

Ññ [IPA: ɲ] - Like NI in onion and NY in canyon.

Oo [IPA: o] - Like the O in bone, but shorter (not drawn out).

Pp [IPA: p] - Like English P.

Qq [IPA (of qu): k] - When paired with U, like English K.

Rr, (2) [IPA: ɾ, r] - A sound in between R and D where the tongue is rolled once. When doubled, it is rolled twice or more.

Ss [IPA: s] - Like English S as in sail.

Tt - [IPA: t] Like English T.

Uu, (2) [IPA: u, w] - Like the OO in ooze, but like English W before another vowel.

Vv [IPA: ѵ] - Like English V, but with an explosive sort of 'flap' that makes it sound almost like a B.

Ww [IPA: w] - Like English W (rarely used - u is more common).

Xx [IPA: ks, h] - Like English X in most words, but in certain words (like México) is like H.

Yy [IPA: j] - Like the Y in yes.

Zz, (2) [IPA: θ (Cast.)/s (Mex.)] - Like TH as in thick (in Castillian Spanish), or like an S (in Mexican Spanish).

Note:There is a U with diaeresis (Ü) that is used in Spanish for a special purpose. Because the combination GE makes the sound [hɛ], the combination GUE is used to make the sound [gɛ]. If you wanted to make the sound [gwɛ], you would use the Ü to make GÜE.

Subsection I - Diphthong Vowels

As most of you would know, a diphthong vowel is a combination of two vowels that make a one-syllable sound. Here they are (some of the ones listed may not be used commonly in Spanish):

ae - Like in Meyer.
ai - Like in ice.
ao/au - Like in cow.

ea - Like in Princess Leia.
ee - Like in layer.
ei - Like in basic.
eo - Like in mayo (colloq. for mayonaise)
eu - E sound + U sound; kind of sounds like O... kind of.

ya/ia - Like in yacht.
ye/ie - Like in yes.
yo/io - Like in yodel.
yu/iu - Like in you.

oa - Like in water.
oe - Like in west.
oi - Like in oil.
ou - Like in smoke (long like English O, not short like Spanish O).

ua - Like in water.
ue - Like in west.
ui - Like in wiener.
uo - Like in whoa.

More to come later in the day...

You have Wikipedia to thank for these loverly sound files.

Subsection II - Syllable stress

Spanish is usually pretty regular about its syllable stress - it's not completely unpredictable like Russian's. There are three main rules to follow.

When a word ends in a vowel, N or S, stress falls on the second-to-last syllable:

la entrada (the entrance)
ellos tienen (they have)
libre (free)
desafortunadamente (unfortunately)
el cepillo de los dientes (the toothbrush)
el mentiroso (the liar)
la mesera (the waitress)

Words that end in other consonants stress the last syllable:

yo estoy (I am) {the Y is technically a consonant here}
el trabajador (the worker)
el hotel (hotel)
hablar (to speak)
la libertad (the freedom)
usted (you)
la nariz (the nose)
el bistec (the steak)

Accent marks in words are always stressed:

el césped (the grass)
el jamón (the ham)
la habitación (the bedroom)
la taquería (the taco shop)
yo caminé (I walked)
el champú (the champoo)
chévere (cool, awesome)

And remember, if a word's stress doesn't follow any of these rules, it's most likely a foreign word.

Thank you. xd I knew there was at least one, and it's been nagging at me for a while... I don't believe it makes its own special sound, though. I'm pretty sure it was pronounced 'yu'ropa, right?

I'd sure welcome your help with explaining terms like 'lo que' and all those advanced things later on, since I don't fully understand them myself. xp

Section 2 - Nouns, gender, pluralization and articles

In Spanish, there are two genders - masculine and feminine. There are a few ways to identify which gender a noun takes:

- Nouns ending in O are masculine
- Nouns ending in A are feminine
- Nouns ending in OR are masculine
- Nouns ending in AD and CIÓN and are feminine
(there might be more, but I can't think of any more at the moment)

And remember, there's always gonna be an exception or two, such as programa, which is masculine, and mano, which is feminine. Irregularities like this are mostly uncommon, and thus are fairly easy to remember when you come across them.

Articles

Since nouns have gender, the articles to follow will differ from each other as to make distinguishments between the two.

Definite articles

el - the (singular, masculine)
la - the (singular, feminine)
los - the (plural, masculine)
las - the (plural, feminine)

Indefinite articles

un - a/an (singular, masculine)
una - a/an (singular, feminine)
unos - some (plural, masculine)
unas - some (plural, feminine)

(the words algún, alguna, algunos and algunas are used in a more definite context, but the ones listed above are commonplace in normal conversation)

Demonstrative articles

este - this (singular, masculine)
esta - this (singular, feminine)
estos - these (plural, masculine)
estas - these (plural, feminine)

ese - that (singular, masculine)
esa - that (singular, feminine)
esos - those (plural, masculine)
esas - those (plural, feminine)

aquél - that (singular, masculine)
aquella - that (singular, feminine)
aquellos - those (plural, masculine)
aquellas - those (plural, feminine)

Note: Ese is used when you are referencing something nearby, and aquél is used in reference to something far away. For example, you'd refer to a group of men in the same general area as you as "esos hombres," while you would refer to the mountain range you can see in the distance as "aquellas montañas."

Pluralization

To pluralize a word, simply add an -s if the word ends in a vowel. If it ends in a consonant, add -es.

EX:

el hombre (the man) - los hombres (the men)
la chica (the girl) - las chicas (the girls)

la mujer (the woman) - las mujeres (the women)
el trabajador (the worker) - los trabajadores (the workers)

Words ending in a Z also add -es, but the Z changes to a C:

el lápiz (the pencil) - los lápices (the pencils)
la luz (the light) - las luces (the lights)

Words that have an accent mark over the last syllable drop the mark:

la televisión (the television) - las televisiones (the televisions)
el buzón (the mailbox) - los buzones (the mailboxes)

Words that have an accent anywhere before the last syllable get to keep the mark:

el ángel (the angel) - los ángeles (the angels)
el águila (the eagle) - los águilas (the eagles)

Words ending in ía also keep the accent:

la joyería (the jewelry shop) - las joyerías (the jewelry shops)
la librería (the bookstore) - las librerías (the bookstores)

Section 4 - Irregular verbs, yo-go/zco verbs and stem-changing verbs

Irregular verbs

The two verbs meaning 'to be', ser and estar, are both simply irregular (ser moreso than estar):

ser - to be

yo soy - I am______________________nosotros somos - we are
tú eres - you are___________________vosotros sois - you(pl.) are
él/ella/usted es - he/she/you are(is)____ellos/ellas/ustedes son - they/you(pl.) are

estar - to be

yo estoy - I am______________________nosotros estamos - we are
tú estás - you are____________________vosotros estáis - you(pl.) are
él/ella/usted está - he/she/you are(is)____ellos/ellas/ustedes están - they/you(pl.) are

Note: Estar is used to describe a current state of being (esp. emotions) that could change soon (such as estar triste - to be sad), the present participle (estoy comiendo - I am eating) and for location (él está en baño - he's in the bathroom). Ser is used to state what something is (¡es una trampa! - it's a trap!), describe physical or personality traits about someone (él es delgado - he is thin, ella es amable - she is friendly/kind) and to tell the time (es la una - it's 1:00, son las cinco - it's 5:00).

ir - to go

yo voy - I go______________________nosotros vamos - we go
tú vas - you go____________________vosotros vais - you(pl.) go
él/ella/usted va - he/she/you go(es)____ellos/ellas/ustedes van - they/you(pl.) go

dar - to give

yo doy - I give______________________nosotros damos - we give
tú das - you give____________________vosotros dais - you(pl.) give
él/ella/usted da - he/she/you give(s)____ellos/ellas/ustedes dan - they/you(pl.) give

haber - to have (auxiliary; for 'to have' as in 'have in one's possession', see tener)

yo he - I have________________________nosotros hemos - we have
tú has - you have_____________________vosotros habéis - you(pl.) have
él/ella/usted ha - he/she/you have(has)____ellos/ellas/ustedes han - they/you(pl.) have

Yo-go and yo-zco verbs

What I call a yo-go verb is a verb that tacks a -go onto the stem of a verb in the yo form.

EX:

salir {go} - to leave

yo salgo - I leave_______________________nosotros salimos - we leave
tú sales - you leave_____________________vosotros salís - you(pl.) leave
él/ella/usted sale - he/she/you leave(s)_____ellos/ellas/ustedes salen - they/you(pl.) leave

hacer {go} - to make/do

yo hago - I make________________________nosotros hacemos - we make
tú haces - you make_____________________vosotros hacéis - you(pl.) make
él/ella/usted hace - he/she/you make(s)_____ellos/ellas/ustedes hacen - they/you(pl.) make

Other yo-go verbs: poner (to put, place) - pongo

Yo-zco verbs do the same type of thing, only tacking on -zco.

conocer {zco} - know/be familiar with (a noun)

yo conozco - I know______________________nosotros conocemos - we know
tú conoces - you know____________________vosotros conocéis - you(pl.) know
él/ella/usted conoce - he/she/you know(s)____ellos/ellas/ustedes conocen - they/you(pl.) know

ofrecer {zco} - to offer

yo ofrezco - I offer______________________nosotros ofrecemos - we offer
tú ofreces - you offer____________________vosotros ofrecéis - you(pl.) offer
él/ella/usted ofrece - he/she/you offer(s)____ellos/ellas/ustedes ofrecen - they/you(pl.) offer

Other yo-zco verbs: crecer (to grow) - crezco, acrecer (to increase) - acrezco, adolecer (to suffer) - adolezco, abastecer (to supply) - abastezco, aborrecer (to abhor) - aborrezco, agradecer (to thank) - agradezco

Stem-changing verbs

These verbs change a vowel or two in their stems during present-tense conjugation in all forms BUT the nosotros/vosotros forms. There are a few types of changes: e-ie, e-i, u-ue and o-ue.

pensar {ie} - to think

yo pienso - I think_______________________nosotros pensamos - we think
tú piensas - you think____________________vosotros pensáis - you(pl.) think
él/ella/usted piensa - he/she/you think(s)____ellos/ellas/ustedes piensan - they/you(pl.) think

pedir {i} - to order/ask for

yo pido - I order_______________________nosotros pedimos - we order
tú pides - you order____________________vosotros pedís - you(pl.) order
él/ella/usted pide - he/she/you order(s)____ellos/ellas/ustedes piden - they/you(pl.) order

jugar {ue} - to play [games and sports]

yo juego - I play_______________________nosotros jugamos - we play
tú juegas - you play____________________vosotros jugáis - you(pl.) play
él/ella/usted juega - he/she/you play(s)____ellos/ellas/ustedes juegan - they/you(pl.) play

dormir {ue} - to sleep

yo duermo - I sleep_______________________nosotros dormimos - we sleep
tú duermes - you sleep____________________vosotros dormís - you(pl.) sleep
él/ella/usted duerme - he/she/you sleep(s)____ellos/ellas/ustedes duermen - they/you(pl.) sleep

The verbs tener (to have) and venir (to come) are actually double-whammies; they're both stem-changing verbs and yo-go verbs. When you have a verb like this, the yo form puts on the -go, but its stem doesn't change with the rest of them.

tener {ie, go} - to have (in one's possession - for auxiliary 'to have', see haber)

yo tengo - I have_________________________nosotros tenemos - we have
tú tienes - you have______________________vosotros tenéis - you(pl.) have
él/ella/usted tiene - he/she/you have(has)____ellos/ellas/ustedes tienen - they/you(pl.) have

venir {ie, go} - to come

yo vengo - I come_______________________nosotros venimos - we come
tú vienes - you come____________________vosotros venís - you(pl.) come
él/ella/usted viene - he/she/you come(s)____ellos/ellas/ustedes vienen - they/you(pl.) come

First section has been edited with another subsection for syllable stress.

Section 5 - Reflexive verbs and pronouns

A reflexive verb is an action which is done to oneself (to shave oneself, to bathe oneself). Here are the reflexive pronouns:

(infinitive)se - (___) oneself

me - myself__________________nos - ourselves
te - yourself_________________os - yourselves
se - himself/herself/yourself_____se - themselves/yourselves

EX:

bañarse - to bathe oneself

(yo) me baño - I bathe myself____________________(nosotros) nos bañamos - we bathe ourselves
(tú) te bañas - you bathe yourself________________(vosotros) os bañáis - you(pl.) bathe yourselves
(él/ella/usted) se baña - he/she/you bathe(s) etc.____(ellos/ellas/ustedes) se bañan - they/you(pl.) bathe etc.

I'm gonna stop writing él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes now and just stick with él and ellos, because it's rather tedious.

acostarse {ue} - to go to bed

(yo) me acuesto - I go to bed______________(nosotros) nos acostamos - we go to bed
(tú) te acuestas - you go to bed____________(vosotros) os acostáis - you(pl.) go to bed
(él) se acuesta - he/she/you go(es) to bed____(ellos) se acuestan - they/you(pl.) go to bed

Nah, I wouldn't know where to start w<


Hawk, your Ex1 for "cuál(es)" doesn't sound quite natural. :s I'd say "¿Qué tarjeta de béisbol tienes?" "¿a quién se la prestaste?" but, that may be a Castilian dialect thing, because the fairies tell me that it probably is correct in Latin American dialects, but I'm saying just in case~ I wouldn't know how to explain what that "se" goes there though, it just sounds better to me so yeah, probably a dialect issue. n__n; Ah, and your use of "lo que" is correct, btw. :B

Section 7 - Object pronouns, indirect project pronouns and dative verbs/pronouns

When you're talking about a certain thing in one sentence, you don't want to necessarily have to state its name in the next sentence - so you use a pronoun. In English, rather than say "This is a book. I like the book.", you'd say "This is a book. I like it." It's very much the same in Spanish, except the word order is subject - object - verb, as opposed to English subject - verb - object word order.

The pronouns agree in gender and number of the object(s) referred to.

lo - it (masculine, singular)
la - it (feminine, singular)
los - them (masculine, plural)
las - them (feminine, plural)

EX:

Hay una araña encima de la mesa. (Yo) la mataré. (There's a spider on the table. I'll kill it [the spider, not the table].)

Tienes tus lápices? / Sí, (yo) los tengo. (Do you have your pencils? / Yes, I have them.)

Stating what one does to another is also quite easy in Spanish. You use pronouns like 'him' and 'me' like you do in English.

Here are the direct object pronouns for people:

me - me________________nos - us
te - you________________os - you
lo/la - him/her___________los/las - them

EX:

(Yo) te veo. (I see you.)
(Nosotros) la visitamos. (We visited her.)
(Él) os encontrará luego. (He will meet you later.)
(Tú) nos has traicionado! (You've betrayed us!)

Note: When yo DO use nouns instead of pronouns, the word order is subject - verb - object, like in English.

EX:

Mataste la cucaracha en la cocina? (Did you kill the cockroach in the kitchen?)
(Ellos) comen la pizza. (They eat the pizza.)

Also, you use a when using nouns (including names) that describe people:

(Nosotros) encontraremos al policía. (We will meet the police officer.)
[Al is a contraction of a and el.]
(Tú) visitarás a Lidia. (You will visit Lidia.)

Indirect and direct object pronouns

When you use two object pronouns in the same sentence, one of them will be direct and the other will be indirect (English: I give it to her - 'it' is the indirect object and 'her' is the direct object).

Sukha, if you will, please take over this subject. xp None of what I'm saying here is coming out in a way that makes any sense. You could probably explain it in a way that's easier on the eyes.