If you want to say the word for “20” in Spanish, you would say, “veinticinco.” It’s part of a sequence you may already know: veinticinco (25), cincuenta (50), setenta y cinco (75), cien (100).
Learning Spanish numbers may come more naturally than you think, especially if you already speak a language like Italian or French. Italian and French are historically related to Spanish in the same “romance language”/Latin family, while English uses many French and Italian/Latin words that we call cognates (lingual cousins of one another). That’s why you’ll often notice that there are many English words and phrases like the word “possibility” that sound close in French (possibilité), Italian (possibilità), and Spanish (posibilidad).
Many new learners also find that Spanish has a straight-forward pronunciation system, as well as very few irregularities in word pronunciation. Plus, the basic alphabet is an almost perfect match to the English one and those of other western European languages. There are only three additional letters you’ll want to learn: ch (chay), ñ (eñe), and ll (elle).
Rosetta Stone’s lessons incorporate Spanish vocabulary with real-world situations that help you move towards speaking the language from day one. Learning to confidently speak a language takes time and effort, but you can do it by combining individual practice in our award-winning mobile app and one-on-one practice in Live Tutoring. These tools allow you to control your learning speed and, ultimately, your long-term progress.
Learn Spanish Words and Phrases
People choose to learn Spanish for a myriad of different reasons. After all, Spanish is frequently heard in the U.S. in popular music, TV shows, and movies. Other people make the personal decision to learn Spanish due to plans to vacation, work, or volunteer in one of the 20 countries around the globe where Spanish is the official language.
No matter why you choose to learn, you can get off to a strong start by focusing first on what matters most. This is the pronunciation of basic words and phrases. Focusing on this foundational step will help you communicate with any of the estimated 437 million people around the globe who speak Spanish.
Often times, new learners get bogged down trying to memorize lengthy lists of Spanish vocabulary words and phrases. This time-consuming approach can lead to the unfortunate outcome of having little ability to understand or be understood in everyday Spanish conversation. That’s why it’s so important that new Spanish language learners develop the skill to pronounce basic words and phrases. This practical approach to learning the language will help you to become confident and comfortable conversing with other Spanish speakers.
Spanish does have some pronunciation distinctions that can make it a bit of a challenge for new learners. As one example, the letter r is pronounced differently and takes some practice for most new learners. This distinct sound is formed by tapping the tip of the tongue on the roof of the mouth, about a third of the way back in the mouth. Some Spanish language experts counsel new learners to practice making the “tt” sound, as it sounds in the English word butter.
Our TruAccent™ speech-recognition engine is among the most powerful tools for helping you learn and speak the Spanish language. Fine-tuning your pronunciation requires that you receive immediate feedback. This feedback allows you to make needed corrections. Then you can practice until your mouth is able to readily shape the sounds that make up the language. TruAccent is embedded into every lesson and instantly compares your voice to native and non-native speakers to provide real-time feedback. It’s also adjustable, which allows you to fine-tune your accent.
After you have learned to pronounce some common words and short phrases, it’s a natural transition to learn the longer phrases that make up so much of everyday conversation. Rosetta Stone’s brief, 10-minute lessons are built in just this way, guiding you along your journey and building on what you’ve learned in the previous lessons. This approach helps you acquire the skills to understand and be understood in Spanish with confidence.
Try Our Award-Winning App
Surround yourself with Spanish whenever, wherever with the Rosetta Stone app .
Download a unit and knock it out on the train or a flight. Select a 5-10 minute lesson and sneak it in while you wait in line or for your ride to show up. And explore dynamic features, like Seek and Speak, where you can point at an object in the real world and get a translation .
The best part? You don’t have to choose between app or desktop. Both come with your subscription and sync, so you can switch between devices seamlessly.
