Learn Spanish Lesson 3

Lesson 3: Pronunciation, Alphabet, Subject Pronouns, and Ser vs Estar

Welcome to Lesson 3!

Now that you’ve learned greetings, introductions, numbers, and dates, it’s time to build a strong foundation for speaking Spanish correctly.

In this lesson, you’ll learn:

• The Spanish alphabet
• Spanish pronunciation rules
• Subject pronouns
• The difference between ser and estar
• How to describe yourself and others

By the end of this lesson, you’ll be able to read Spanish more confidently and form simple sentences.

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Learning objectives

After completing this lesson, you will be able to:

• Recognize the Spanish alphabet.
• Pronounce Spanish vowels correctly.
• Use Spanish subject pronouns.
• Understand when to use ser and estar.
• Create simple descriptive sentences.

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The Spanish alphabet

Spanish uses the same alphabet as English with one additional letter.

Letter	Name
A	a
B	be
C	ce
D	de
E	e
F	efe
G	ge
H	hache
I	i
J	jota
K	ka
L	ele
M	eme
N	ene
Ñ	eñe
O	o
P	pe
Q	cu
R	erre
S	ese
T	te
U	u
V	uve
W	uve doble
X	equis
Y	ye
Z	zeta

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Spanish vowels

Spanish vowels almost always have the same sound.

Letter	Sound	Similar English sound
A	ah	father
E	eh	bed
I	ee	machine
O	oh	note (shorter)
U	oo	food

Examples:

Spanish	Pronunciation
Casa	KAH-sah
Mesa	MEH-sah
Libro	LEE-broh
Lobo	LOH-boh
Uno	OO-no

Unlike English, Spanish vowels are very consistent.

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Pronunciation tips

H is silent

Examples:

• Hola
• Hombre
• Hotel

The H is not pronounced.

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J sounds like an English H

Examples:

• José
• Jueves
• Jugo

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Ñ sounds like “ny”

Examples:

• Niño
• España
• Mañana

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LL often sounds like “y”

Examples:

• Llamo
• Calle
• Lluvia

Depending on the country, pronunciation may vary.

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R and RR

Spanish has two R sounds.

Single R

• Pero (but)

Rolled RR

• Perro (dog)

Rolling the R takes practice and is completely normal to learn gradually.

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Subject pronouns

Subject pronouns tell us who is performing the action.

English	Spanish
I	Yo
You (informal)	Tú
He	Él
She	Ella
You (formal)	Usted
We	Nosotros / Nosotras
You all	Vosotros / Vosotras*
They	Ellos / Ellas
You all (formal)	Ustedes

Note: In most of Latin America, Ustedes is used instead of Vosotros.

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The verb ser

Ser is used for permanent characteristics.

Think of things that usually don’t change.

Examples include:

• Name
• Nationality
• Profession
• Personality
• Physical description
• Time
• Date

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Conjugation of ser

Subject	Ser
Yo	Soy
Tú	Eres
Él / Ella / Usted	Es
Nosotros	Somos
Vosotros	Sois
Ellos / Ustedes	Son

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Examples

Soy estudiante.

I am a student.

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Ella es profesora.

She is a teacher.

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Somos amigos.

We are friends.

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Él es español.

He is Spanish.

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The verb estar

Estar is used for temporary conditions or locations.

Use it for:

• Feelings
• Emotions
• Health
• Location
• Temporary situations

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Conjugation of estar

Subject	Estar
Yo	Estoy
Tú	Estás
Él / Ella / Usted	Está
Nosotros	Estamos
Vosotros	Estáis
Ellos / Ustedes	Están

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Examples

Estoy cansado.

I am tired.

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Ella está feliz.

She is happy.

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Estamos en casa.

We are at home.

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El libro está sobre la mesa.

The book is on the table.

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Ser vs Estar

A simple way to remember:

Use Ser for…	Use Estar for…
Identity	Feelings
Name	Location
Nationality	Health
Profession	Temporary conditions
Personality	Current emotions
Time	Temporary states
Date

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Examples

Soy Mohamed.

I am Mohamed.

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Soy ingeniero.

I am an engineer.

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Estoy en la oficina.

I am at the office.

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Estoy feliz.

I am happy.

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Common adjectives

English	Spanish
Happy	Feliz
Sad	Triste
Tired	Cansado / Cansada
Busy	Ocupado / Ocupada
Sick	Enfermo / Enferma
Hungry	Hambriento / Hambrienta
Thirsty	Sediento / Sedienta
Tall	Alto / Alta
Short	Bajo / Baja
Friendly	Amable

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Gender agreement

Many adjectives change depending on whether they describe a male or a female.

Examples:

Male

• Cansado
• Alto
• Ocupado

Female

• Cansada
• Alta
• Ocupada

Examples:

Soy alto.

I am tall. (male)

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Soy alta.

I am tall. (female)

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Estoy cansado.

I am tired. (male)

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Estoy cansada.

I am tired. (female)

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Mini dialogue

English

A: Hello! How are you?

B: I am very well.

A: Are you a student?

B: Yes, I am.

A: Where are you?

B: I am at home.

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Spanish

A: ¡Hola! ¿Cómo estás?

B: Estoy muy bien.

A: ¿Eres estudiante?

B: Sí, lo soy.

A: ¿Dónde estás?

B: Estoy en casa.

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Practice exercise

Translate the following into Spanish.

1. I am a teacher.
2. I am happy.
3. She is tired.
4. We are friends.
5. They are at the restaurant.
6. He is from Spain.
7. I am at the airport.

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Answers

1. Soy profesor. (or Soy profesora.)
2. Estoy feliz.
3. Ella está cansada.
4. Somos amigos.
5. Ellos están en el restaurante.
6. Él es de España.
7. Estoy en el aeropuerto.

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Pronunciation practice

Read these aloud slowly.

• Hola.
• Me llamo Ana.
• Soy estudiante.
• Estoy feliz.
• El hotel está cerca.
• El niño juega.
• José trabaja los jueves.

Try to pronounce every vowel clearly and consistently.

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Key takeaways

In this lesson, you learned:

• The complete Spanish alphabet.
• How Spanish vowels are pronounced.
• Important pronunciation rules.
• Spanish subject pronouns.
• The difference between ser and estar.
• How adjectives agree with gender.
• How to describe yourself and others.

Continue to Lesson 4, where you’ll learn regular verbs, present tense conjugation, common daily actions, and how to build complete sentences in Spanish.