Pronunciation of N and Ñ

Start first lesson

1. Lesson 1

9 questions

2. Lesson 2

17 questions

3. Lesson 3

11 questions

Explanation

Quick Answer

The letter nin Spanish is pronounced like the English letter n in words such as night or moon. Compare the sound of the English n in night and moon with the sound of n in their Spanish translations: nocheand luna.

The letter ñin Spanish represents a sound that is not used in English.

It is very similar to the sound of the letter group gn in words of Italian origin, such as lasagna, or nh in words of Portuguese origin, such as caipirinha. Compare the sound of gn and nh in those two words with the ñ in their Spanish translations: lasañaand caipiriña.

The Sound of the Letter N

N Is a Consonant

The letter n represents the Spanish consonant sound, or phoneme, /n/. When a consonant sound is uttered, the flow of air out of the mouth is partially or completely blocked at some point.

The name of this letter is pronounced ene.

How to Pronounce N in Spanish

The Spanish n is alveolar, which means it is pronounced by placing the tip of the tongue on the gums of the front teeth, just as you would if you were to utter an l. However, the tongue also presses against the roof of the mouth, causing the air to come out of the nose instead of the mouth.

Additionally, the vocal cords vibrate when uttering n, so linguists classify it as voiced, or sonorain Spanish. Check out how the n is pronounced in these words: nada(nothing), niño(child), enamorarse(fall in love), enviar(send), enlace(link), and camión(truck).

The pronunciation of the letter n turns from an alveolar sound into a velar sound when n is followed by other velar sounds, such as /g/ inglés, English), /k/ banco, bank), or /x/ granja, farm). Remember that velar sounds are produced by pressing the back of the tongue against the soft palate.

Is the Spanish N Similar to the English N?

Yes, it’s like the English n in words such as nose, sing, or can.

Examples

Let’s look at some examples of words containing the letter n in different word positions and letter combinations.

Spanish	English	Position-Combination
naturaleza	nature	beginning of word + vowel
negocio	business	beginning of word + vowel
nido	nest	beginning of word + vowel
noche	night	beginning of word + vowel
nube	cloud	beginning of word + vowel
cantina	bar	inside word + between vowels
pino	pine tree	inside word + between vowels
sano	healthy	inside word + between vowels
cisne	swan	inside word + beginning of syllable
desnudo	naked	inside word + beginning of syllable
técnico	technical	inside word + beginning of syllable
fantasía	fantasy	inside word + end of syllable
pregunta	question	inside word + end of syllable
transeúnte	passerby	inside word + end of syllable
algodón	cotton	end of word
refrán	saying	end of word
también	too	end of word

One Letter, One Sound

The pronunciation of the letter n varies little throughout the Spanish-speaking world, so there shouldn’t be much difference between the way nana(lullaby) sounds in San Francisco, Guayaquil, or Malabo.

The Sound of the Letter Ñ

Ñ Is a Consonant

The letter ñ represents the Spanish consonant sound, or phoneme, /ɲ/. When a consonant sound is uttered, the flow of air out of the mouth is partially or completely blocked at some point.

The name of this letter is pronounced eñe.

How to Pronounce Ñ in Spanish

The Spanish ñ is palatal, which means it is pronounced by placing the tongue flat against the roof of the mouth. This causes the air to come out of the nose instead of the mouth.

Additionally, the vocal cords vibrate when uttering ñ, so linguists classify it as voiced, or sonorain Spanish. Check out how the ñ is pronounced in these words: ñato(snub-nosed), niño(child), año(year), mañana(tomorrow), and dueño(owner).

Is the Spanish Ñ Similar to the English Letter Group NY?

It’s close, but not the same! The English letter group ny, as in canyon, is often uttered in two separate syllables. In this case, the n is the end of one syllable and the y is the start of the next syllable, whereas the Spanish ñ is a single nasal sound. Compare canyon with its Spanish translation, cañón.

Ñ Is Not the End!

You will never find the letter ñ at the end of a word or syllable. It’s placed at the beginning of a word or, more commonly, at the beginning of a syllable and between vowels.

Examples

Let’s look at some examples of words containing the letter ñ in different word positions and letter combinations.

Spanish	English	Position-Combination
ñame	yam	beginning of word + vowel
ñandú	rhea	beginning of word + vowel
ñeque	strength	beginning of word + vowel
ñoqui	gnocchi	beginning of word + vowel
ñu	wildebeest	beginning of word + vowel
cumpleaños	birthday	inside word + between vowels
leña	firewood	inside word + between vowels
viñedo	vineyard	inside word + between vowels
cañería	pipe	inside word + beginning of syllable
español	Spanish	inside word + beginning of syllable
paño	cloth	inside word + beginning of syllable

One Letter, One Sound

The pronunciation of the letter ñ doesn’t vary much throughout the Spanish-speaking world, so there shouldn’t be much difference between the way ñoño(dull) sounds in Tijuana, Valparaiso, or Barranquilla.

Now let's take a look at some sentences that contain n and ñ in Spanish!

Spanish	English
Nicolás come ñame y piña.	Nicolas eats yams and pineapple.
A Nerea le encantan las castañas y las nueces.	Nerea loves chestnuts and walnuts.
El nombre del niño es Iñaki.	The boy's name is Iñaki.
¿Alguna vez has visto un ñandú o un ñu?	Have you ever seen a rhea or a wildebeest?
Mi cuñada se hizo un pendiente en la nariz.	My sister-in-law got a nose ring.
Nadia miró las bonitas nubes desde el cañón.	Nadia looked at the beautiful clouds from the canyon.
Vi una araña en el baño en la noche.	I saw a spider in the bathroom at night.
Néstor miró por la ventana para ver el jardín.	Nestor looked out the window to see the garden.
Canté una canción mientras miraba la pantalla.	I sang a song while looking at the screen.
El mono se escondió en el camión del zoo.	The monkey hid in the zoo truck.
A Natalia le encanta jugar al balón en el parque.	Natalia loves to play ball in the park.