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Spanish Phonology and Pronunciation Flashcards

7 cards from real BTLPT practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.

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  1. The Spanish phoneme /s/ is realized as [z] (voiced) before which type of consonant?

    Answer: Before a voiced consonant due to assimilation

    In Spanish, /s/ assimilates to a following voiced consonant, becoming voiced [z] through a process of regressive voicing assimilation.

  2. In many Latin American Spanish dialects, the distinction between /s/, /ʃ/, and /θ/ (ceceo/seseo) results in:

    Answer: All three merged into /s/ (seseo)

    Seseo, the merging of /s/, /z/, and /θ/ into a single /s/ phoneme, is the predominant pattern across Latin America and some parts of Spain.

  3. Which of the following is an example of yeísmo in Spanish?

    Answer: Pronouncing 'll' and 'y' as the same sound

    Yeísmo is the merger of the lateral palatal /ʎ/ (traditionally spelled 'll') with the palatal approximant /j/ (spelled 'y'), widespread in most Spanish dialects today.

  4. The Spanish orthographic accent (tilde) is required on a word like 'música' because:

    Answer: It ends in a vowel and is stressed on the antepenultimate syllable

    'Música' is a proparoxytone (esdrújula) stressed on the antepenultimate syllable; all esdrújulas require a written accent regardless of ending.

  5. Which pair of words demonstrates a minimal pair based on the vowel phonemes /e/ and /i/ in Spanish?

    Answer: peso / piso

    'Peso' /peso/ (weight) and 'piso' /piso/ (floor) differ only in the vowel phonemes /e/ vs. /i/, making them a minimal pair that proves these are distinct phonemes.

  6. In Spanish, the fricative consonant /f/ is always:

    Answer: Voiceless in all environments

    The Spanish /f/ is a voiceless labiodental fricative and remains voiceless in all phonological environments, unlike some other consonants that show voicing alternations.

  7. A bilingual teacher notices a student pronounces Spanish 'pero' with an English-style rhotic /r/. This is an example of:

    Answer: Phonological transfer (negative transfer) from L1 English

    Using an English retroflex or approximant /r/ in Spanish instead of the Spanish tap [ɾ] is phonological negative transfer, where L1 English features intrude into L2 Spanish production.