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SPANISH TO SAY · CATALAN TO READ

Before you start

How to read Catalan if you have some Spanish, how to say Spanish with a Filipino mouth, and the five sounds that are not free.

Search the phrases, translations and pronunciation notes on this page.

Before you start phrases

WORDS YOU READ

You read Catalan. You speak Spanish.

In Barcelona you read Catalan and you speak Spanish. Street signs, council letters, health-centre letters, school notices and most official forms arrive in Catalan.

3 sources

WORDS YOU SAY

The sounds that are not free

Spanish has five vowels — a, e, i, o, u — and each one is a single, pure sound that never changes. When you read a Spanish word, sound the vowels the way you would sound them in a Filipino word, and you will be right nearly every time.

  1. the five vowels

    Exactly as in Tagalog. Never glide them the way English does.

    Examplemurciélago

    Say it like: murciélago = mur-THYE-la-go

  2. ll

    y, as in yelo

    Examplecalle

    Say it like: calle = KA-yeh, pollo = PO-yo

  3. ñ

    ny, the sound you already have in Niño

    Examplemañana

    Say it like: mañana = ma-NYA-na

  4. j, and g before e or i

    Scraped in the throat, harder than Tagalog h

    Examplejamón

    Say it like: kh — jamón = kha-MON, lejos = LE-khos

  5. z, and c before e or i

    Tongue between the teeth, like English think

    Examplecinco

    Say it like: th — gracias = GRA-thyas, cinco = THIN-ko

  6. v

    There is no v sound in Spanish. It is a b

    Examplevale

    Say it like: vale = BA-le, vivir = bi-BIR

  7. h

    Completely silent

    Examplehola

    Say it like: hola = O-la, hora = O-ra

  8. rr, and r at the start of a word

    A rolled r, longer than the Tagalog tap

    Exampleperro

    Say it like: recibo = rre-THI-bo, perro = PE-rro

WORDS YOU READ

Five rules for reading Catalan if you have some Spanish

These five cover most of an official letter.

  1. -ció → -ción · -tat → -dad · -ment → -miento

    Endings swap.

    notificació → notificación · ciutat → ciudad · ajuntament → ayuntamiento

  2. ny → ñ · l·l → a single l · x/ix → j or sh

    Three letters to re-read.

    any → año · sol·licitud → solicitud · caixa → caja, baixa → baja

  3. Spanish ends in a vowel, Catalan ends on the consonant

    Catalan drops the last vowel.

    document → documento · telèfon → teléfono · banc → banco

  4. -at/-ada or -it/-ut

    Decisions end in -at/-ada or -it/-ut.

    denegat → denegado · aprovat → aprobado · rebut → recibido · admès → admitido

  5. el/la/els/les → el/la/los/las

    An apostrophe is just a glued-on little word.

    l'Ajuntament = el Ajuntament · d'entrada = de entrada · s'ha = se ha · del, dels, al, als, pel

2 sources · checked September 2026

WORDS YOU SAY

Saying a Catalan street name

You’ll mostly be reading Catalan, but you have to say street names to a taxi driver.

  1. x at the start

    sh

    Xavier = sha-vee-EH, xocolata = shu-ku-LA-ta

    ExampleXavier

    Say it like: sh

  2. ig at the end

    tch

    Puig = PUTCH, maig = MATCH

    ExamplePuig

    Say it like: tch

  3. tj, tg

    j as in judge

    platja = PLA-ja, Sitges = SEE-jes

    Exampleplatja

    Say it like: j as in judge

  4. ny

    ny, like ñ

    Catalunya = ka-ta-LOO-nya

    ExampleCatalunya

    Say it like: ny, like ñ

  5. ç

    s

    plaça = PLA-sa, Barça = BAR-sa

    Exampleplaça

    Say it like: s

  6. l·l

    Just one l

    sol·licitud = su-li-si-TUT

    Examplesol·licitud

    Say it like: Just one l

  7. -r at the end

    Usually silent

    carrer = ka-REH, Aribau stays as written

    Examplecarrer

    Say it like: Usually silent

  8. unstressed a and e

    A soft uh

    Barcelona = bar-suh-LO-nuh

    ExampleBarcelona

    Say it like: A soft uh

  9. unstressed o

    An u

    Girona = zhi-RO-nuh

    ExampleGirona

    Say it like: An u

WORDS YOU SAY

Words that describe you change their ending

Filipino languages do not mark the speaker’s gender. Spanish does.

  1. Encantado. / Encantada.

    Pleased to meet you.

    A man says Encantado. A woman says Encantada.

  2. Soy su vecino. / Soy su vecina.

    I’m your neighbour.

    A man says Soy su vecino. A woman says Soy su vecina.

  3. Soy nuevo aquí. / Soy nueva aquí.

    I’m new here.

    A man says Soy nuevo aquí. A woman says Soy nueva aquí.

WORDS YOU SAY

usted or tú

Spain uses tú far more than Latin America does. Use usted with officials, at a counter, with a doctor, and with anyone clearly older than you.

  1. puedes tutearme

    You can use tú with me.

    A sign you may switch from usted to tú.

  2. háblame de tú

    Speak to me with tú.

    Another sign you may switch from usted to tú.

  3. ¿Tenéis pan?

    Do you have bread?

    Vosotros — how friends and equals ask a group of people, in the plural.

  4. ¿Tienen…?

    Do you have…?

    The safe, correct plural to use with two people behind a counter.

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