The 10 Most Difficult Words to Pronounce in Spanish
When you start learning a language, pronouncing any word can be a challenge. Yet, even as you study and improve your skills, there are always going to be some words that are extra challenging.
While there are many difficult words to pronounce that don’t get a lot use in casual conversations, we decided to create a list of some of the ones that you’ll hear fairly often. Here are ten words that are some of the hardest to pronounce in Spanish.
1. Impermeabilizante (waterproofing)
Impermeabilizante Spanish Pronunciation
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- This word is challenging because there are a lot of vowels as well as a “diptongo”. A diphthong is a sound formed by the combination of two vowels in a single syllable, in which the sound begins as one vowel and moves toward another. 8 vowels, 9 consonants, and a diphthong make this a long and challenging word to pronounce for most native English speakers.

2. Ferrocarril (train)
Ferrocarril Spanish Pronunciation
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Many people say the translation of ferrocarril is railroad, but actually, it’s the train itself. This word can be tricky to pronounce for native English speakers because of the strong sound the letter “R” in Spanish sometimes has. If you are having a hard time pronouncing the word “ferrocarril” in Spanish, check out our video and article with our best tips to help you finally learn how to roll you R’s in Spanish.
3. Desarrolladores (developers)
Dessarrolladores Spanish Pronunciation
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The double L in this word differs in pronunciation in some Spanish dialects or accents; it depends on the country or region you are in. Some people will give the double L a “y” sound /desarroyadores/, while others may pronounce it as “i” /desarroiadores/, and other may even pronounce it as “sh” /desarroshadores/. This could be the reason why this word is challenging for English-speakers to pronounce — there’s no standard guide to show you which is correct.
4. “Difícil” (difficult) and “Fácil” (easy).
Difícil Spanish Pronunciation
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Fácil Spanish Pronunciation
Spanish and Go
What trips people up with these two words is the stress on the words. In English, the word “difficult” has the stress on the first syllable. Since the word “difícil” is so similar to the English translation, many people want to also stress the first syllable of the word in Spanish, but this is incorrect.
Most English-speakers tend to also change the stress on the word “Fácil” and instead, pronounce the word with the emphasis on the last syllable.
When struggling with these words, simply remember that whenever you have an accent mark in Spanish, that’s the syllable you need to stress most in a word. This will make your pronunciation better.

5. Probablemente (probably)
Probablemente Spanish Pronunciation
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This is another word that is similar to its translation in English, which tends to confuse English speakers. It also doesn’t help that this word is quite long.
Whenever you’re speaking Spanish remember that vowels in Spanish are a lot more enunciated than vowels in English. Give each letter its sound — but remember to not to give them the sound they have in English.
6. Desafortunadamente (unfortunately)
Desafortunadamente Spanish Pronunciation
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Another long word. Again, take it easy, break down the word into syllables and try to give each letter its Spanish sound, not its English sound. If you want to learn more about how to correctly pronounce letters in Spanish check out this article where you can hear all the letters in the Spanish alphabet.
7. Estadísticas (statistics)
Estadísticas Spanish Pronunciation
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In this word what tends to confuse English speakers is again the similarity between the words and also the accent. Stress the “díst” part of the word more than the beginning or the end. This is an example of an esdrujula word, where the accent falls on the third to last vowel.

8. Huevos revueltos (scrambled eggs)
Huevos Revueltos Spanish Pronunciation
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This word can be tricky because of the “hue” in huevos and the “R” in revueltos.
Remember that the letter “H” in Spanish is silent. Many English speakers tend to give the “H” in Spanish the /j/ sound it has in english, so they would say /juevos/, instead of /uevos/.
9. Idea (idea)
Idea Spanish Pronunciation
Spanish and Go
Again, when the spelling of the word in Spanish is the same (or similar) to the word in English, it leads to confusion. Simply remember your vowels in Spanish, where “i” is actually pronounced as “ee”.

10. Aeropuerto (airport)
Aeropuerto Spanish Pronunciation
Spanish and Go
And this last word is tricky because of the vowels and the soft “R”. Remember that vowels in Spanish have their own unique sounds. Don’t try to pronounce them as you would in English. Spanish is a different language! Spending some time practicing your pronunciation of vowels in Spanish would do wonders for your Spanish-speaking skills.
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Learning a new language is an uphill battle. It takes regular practice to master new sounds and get your mouth and tongue familiar with foreign pronunciations. Don’t get discouraged when you struggle with new words — especially difficult words like the ones on this list. Even experienced Spanish students have trouble with them!
But, if you stick with it and practice aloud regularly you’ll be able to master even the hardest Spanish words!
For additional tips, check out our article on Spanish vowels.
Let us know in the comment what word in Spanish you are having a hard time pronouncing, and don’t forget to listen carefully to real Spanish conversations to improve your listening comprehension and pronunciation.
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