k similar to English words, and some are even spelled exactly the same. However these words, called cognates, are usually easier to spell in Spanish than they are in English once you learn the rules.
In Spanish, the letter p is always pronounced like the p in prince, and the Spanish never use the letter combination ph to produce the f sound. If the English word has a ph, the Spanish cognate will always use one f. For example, look at the Spanish words teléfono (telephone), elefante (elephant), and filosofía (philosophy). The letter f is the only way to produce the f sound in Spanish.
The letter c
In Spanish, there are three ways to produce the sound of the English letter k. The letter k is used for words that are originally from other languages, and it is pronounced as it is in English. The letter c is pronounced like a kwhen it is followed by an o, a, or u. However, the letter c is pronounced like an s when it is followed by an e or i. The qu combination must be used to produce the k sound in front of an e or i. A word that the English borrowed from the Spanish, mosquito, has already prepared you to pronounce qu in Spanish without any w sound. Not like quill, but rather like tequila.
The following words have a sound like k. Notice the qu = k in front of e or i, and c = k in front of o, a, or u.
The letter c is pronounced like s when it is in front of e or i, as in the following words:
To pronounce words with a double c, such as diccionario and accidente, the first c is hard because it's followed by a consonant, and the second c is soft because it's followed by an i or e.
The letter g
The letter g in Spanish has issues very much like the letter c: The pronunciation of the letter g is influenced by the letter that follows it. Whether or not you realize it, you have been following a similar rule in English. The reason the g in “goat” is pronounced differently than the g in “gem” is because in both Spanish and English, there is a hard g sound and a soft g sound. Generally, in English, a g that is followed by e or i is a soft g, and a gthat is followed by o, a, or u is a hard g. This rule is the same in Spanish and is even more consistent.
The pronunciation of the hard g is the same in both languages. The g in goma (eraser), ganar (to win, earn), or guante (glove) is exactly like “good,” “gallant,” or “gum.” Like in English, a Spanish g is soft if it is followed by an e or i. However, the soft g in Spanish sounds like the English letter h. The g in gente (people) or gitana (gypsy) sounds like the English h in “hat” or “heat.”
To keep their language's pronunciation rules consistent, the Spanish had to face the dilemma of spelling a word with a hard g sound in front of an e or i. To resolve this dilemma, the letter u is placed between the g and e or between the g and i. Since the intent of the u is to produce the hard g sound, the u itself is not pronounced. This is a rare exception to the rule that all vowels are always pronounced. You may be already familiar with the words guerrilla and guitarra. These words can serve as examples to help you avoid the urge to say the gway or gwee sound when you see g and u together.
On extremely rare occasions when the gway or gwee sound is desired, the German symbol called an umlaut (??), translated as diéresis or crema in Spanish, is used to indicate that the u should be pronounced like a wwhen it is in between a g‐i or g‐e. And, the umlaut is used only on the vowel u. Pronounce the word “bilingual,” and then say bilingüe with the same gw sound, and you'll see how the umlaut works.
The letter j
The letter j is always pronounced like the h in “hello” or “happy.” When you need to spell a word with the sound of the English h, followed by an e or i, it is difficult to predict whether to use a j or g. For example, jira andjefe are spelled with a j, and gimnasio and gema are spelled with a g. Your awareness of this difficulty should cause you to focus on whether to use a j or a g when you first learn to spell the word. It is at least certain that words with the h sound in front of o, a, or u (jo