Pralingo

Spanish · A1 · Communication

Spelling and clarifying

At a hotel reception, on the phone, in a language class: a name is quickly said and easily missed – and not everyone understands your name in Spanish straight away. With a few short questions and the Spanish letter names, you can sort it out in seconds.

Didn't catch it? Ask!

Short and completely normal: ¿Perdón? or ¿Cómo? More polite with "please": ¿Puedes repetir, por favor? – with usted: ¿Puede repetir, por favor? If someone speaks too fast: Más despacio, por favor.

Asking how something is spelled

The question is ¿Cómo se escribe? – or more precisely ¿Cómo se escribe tu nombre? or ¿Cómo se escribe su apellido? The answer is the name letter by letter: Ruiz: erre, u, i, zeta.

The letter names

You know the alphabet from the first lesson. When you spell, you say the names of the letters. Most are easy (be, de, efe, eme …). Pay special attention to these: ge (G, sounds like the "ch" in Scottish "loch"), jota (J), hache (H), ce (C), zeta (Z), cu (Q), uve (V) and ye (Y). And the sound as they are written: e is E, i is I.

Same sound, different spelling

B and V sound the same in Spanish. That's why people often ask: ¿Con be o con uve? – Con uve. The H is silent: ¿Con hache o sin hache? And in Spain, C (before e and i) and Z sound the same: ¿Con ce o con zeta?

Examples

  • — ¿Su apellido, por favor? — Vega. — Perdón, ¿cómo se escribe? — Uve, e, ge, a.
  • ¿Puedes repetir, por favor?
  • Más despacio, por favor.
  • — ¿Con be o con uve? — Con uve.

Exercises

A1CommunicationSpelling and clarifying

Exercise 1 of 8

What do you want to know?

Sort each question: do you want to hear something again, find out the spelling or check a letter?

Notice the difference between ¿Cómo? and ¿Cómo se escribe?

¿Perdón?
¿Puede repetir, por favor?
¿Cómo?
Más despacio, por favor.
¿Cómo se escribe?
¿Cómo se escribe tu nombre?
¿Cómo se escribe su apellido?
¿Con be o con uve?
¿Con hache o sin hache?
¿Con ce o con zeta?

Hear it again / more slowly

Ask how it is spelled

Check a letter

A1CommunicationSpelling and clarifying

Exercise 2 of 8

Which letter is it?

Beginners easily mix up these letter names.

Click 🔊 and choose the letter you hear.

0 / 8

A1CommunicationSpelling and clarifying

Exercise 3 of 8

Names spelled out

Someone says a name and spells it. How is it written?

Click 🔊. The name alone isn't enough – only the letters show the spelling.

0 / 5

A1CommunicationSpelling and clarifying

Exercise 4 of 8

At reception and on the phone

Read the two conversations and choose what fits.

At the hotel reception. The receptionist is talking to a new guest.
— Buenas tardes. ¿Su apellido, por favor?
— Haro.
— , ¿puede repetir?
— Haro.
— ¿?
— , a, erre, o.
— Muy bien, señor Haro. Su habitación es la doce.
On the phone. Lucía tells her friend Pablo about her language class.
— Mi nueva compañera de clase se llama Silvia.
— ¿Cómo? ¿, por favor?
— Silvia. Ese, i, ele, uve, i, a.
— ¿Con be o con uve?
— Con .
A1CommunicationSpelling and clarifying

Exercise 5 of 8

A reservation on the phone

Put the phone call in the right order.

Mr Vidal calls the restaurant Sol. The restaurant answers first.

A1CommunicationSpelling and clarifying

Exercise 6 of 8

Now you spell

Fill in the missing letters. Write the Spanish name of each letter, for example eme for M.

On the phone you spell these names:
Jorge: , o, erre, , e.
Hugo: , u, ge, o.
Silvia: ese, i, ele, , i, a.
Zamora: , a, eme, o, erre, a.
Quiroga: , u, i, erre, o, ge, a.
A1CommunicationSpelling and clarifying

Exercise 7 of 8

What do you ask?

Write your question for each situation. The punctuation is already there.

The receptionist (usted) tells you the room price, but far too fast.
— , por favor.
A new colleague (tú) says his name. You didn't catch it.
— Perdón, ¿, por favor?
A customer (usted) gives her surname. You don't know how it's spelled.
— ¿?
You hear "Silvia" and you aren't sure: B or V?
— ¿?
You hear "Elena" and you don't know whether there is an H at the beginning.
— ¿?
A1CommunicationSpelling and clarifying

Exercise 8 of 8

Registration at the language school

You work at the registration desk. People spell their surnames – write the names down.

— Mi apellido se escribe: uve, a, erre, ge, a, ese. →
— Hache, e, erre, erre, e, erre, a. →
— O, erre, te, e, ge, a. →
— Ce, a, ese, te, erre, o. →