Pronouncing the Spanish T

The Spanish t and the English t are pronounced much alike, but there is a subtle difference. In Spanish, the t is typically pronounced with the tongue touching the top teeth, while in English the tongue typically touches the roof of the mouth. As a result, the Spanish t is softer or less explosive than the t in English usually is. The t in a word such as stop is quite close in sound to the t of Spanish. In our audio lesson on pronouncing the t, you can hear the English word tea followed by the Spanish ti (a personal pronoun meaning you) to note the difference. You can also hear the word seà ±orita, a courtesy title for a young woman.