Spanish Silent h
H is always silent in Spanish — hola, hablar, hacer, hoy, huevo
Practice Words
Accent-Specific Pronunciation Guide
How you approach this sound depends on your English accent. Find yours below for personalised coaching.
American English
You know silent h in 'hour' and 'honest'. In Spanish, h is ALWAYS silent — every word, no exceptions. 'Hola' = 'ola', 'hacer' = 'acer', 'hospital' = 'ospital'. This is actually easy once you build the habit, because you already ignore h in some English words. The challenge is consistency — your brain sees the letter and wants to pronounce it. The letter h in Spanish is purely historical (from Latin words that once had an /f/).
Bridge from: hour, honest (h → ∅)
Common mistakes:
- •Pronouncing h in familiar words like 'hospital' or 'hotel'
- •Adding aspiration to words starting with h
- •Inconsistency — dropping h sometimes but not always
- •Confusing silent h with the /x/ sound (jota) which IS pronounced
Drill sequence:
- hour → hola (both silent)
- honest → hacer (both silent)
- hospital: English has h, Spanish drops it
- Practice: haber, huevo, hablar — all start with vowel sounds
- Full sentence: Hoy hace mucho calor — no h sound at all
British English
RP carefully preserves h in words like 'house', 'happy', 'help', which creates a strong habit to break. In Spanish, h is ALWAYS silent — every single word. 'Hola' = 'ola', 'hacer' = 'acer', 'hospital' = 'ospital'. You know this rule already from 'hour' and 'honest'; you just need to extend it to every Spanish word with h.
Bridge from: hour, honest (h → ∅)
Common mistakes:
- •Pronouncing h in familiar words
- •Adding aspiration
- •Inconsistency across words
Drill sequence:
- hour → hola (both silent)
- honest → hacer (both silent)
- hospital → ospital (drop the h)
- Full sentence: Hoy hace mucho calor
Australian / NZ English
Spanish h is always silent — 'Hola' = 'ola', 'hacer' = 'acer', 'hospital' = 'ospital'. Drop it completely in every word. Australian English sometimes weakens h in connected speech, which may actually help. Just be 100% consistent: no h sound, ever.
Bridge from: hour (h → ∅)
Common mistakes:
- •Pronouncing h in familiar words
- •Adding aspiration
- •Inconsistency across words
Drill sequence:
- hour → hola (both silent)
- honest → hacer (both silent)
- hospital → ospital (drop the h)
- Full sentence: Hoy hace mucho calor
Irish English
Some Irish dialects drop h naturally in speech, which gives you a head start. In Spanish, h is always silent — extend this to every single word. 'Hola' = 'ola', 'haber' = 'aber'. Be completely consistent.
Bridge from: hour (h → ∅)
Common mistakes:
- •Pronouncing h in familiar words
- •Adding aspiration
- •Inconsistency across words
Drill sequence:
- hour → hola (both silent)
- honest → hacer (both silent)
- hospital → ospital (drop the h)
- Full sentence: Hoy hace mucho calor
Scottish English
Spanish h is always silent — 'Hola' = 'ola', 'hacer' = 'acer'. Drop h in every word with no exceptions. Think of it as invisible: the letter is there historically but produces no sound.
Bridge from: hour (h → ∅)
Common mistakes:
- •Pronouncing h in familiar words
- •Adding aspiration
- •Inconsistency across words
Drill sequence:
- hour → hola (both silent)
- honest → hacer (both silent)
- hospital → ospital (drop the h)
- Full sentence: Hoy hace mucho calor
Indian English
Hindi has a strong h sound (ह), and many Indian languages have aspirated consonants (kh, gh, ph), creating a very strong habit to break. In Spanish, h is ALWAYS silent — never pronounced. Suppress the aspiration instinct completely. 'Hola' = 'ola', 'hospital' = 'ospital'.
Bridge from: hour (h → ∅)
Common mistakes:
- •Pronouncing h in familiar words
- •Adding aspiration
- •Inconsistency across words
Drill sequence:
- hour → hola (both silent)
- honest → hacer (both silent)
- hospital → ospital (drop the h)
- Full sentence: Hoy hace mucho calor
South African English
Spanish h is always silent — drop it completely in every word. 'Hola' = 'ola', 'hacer' = 'acer', 'huevo' = 'uevo'. No exceptions. Think of h as a ghost letter with no sound.
Bridge from: hour (h → ∅)
Common mistakes:
- •Pronouncing h in familiar words
- •Adding aspiration
- •Inconsistency across words
Drill sequence:
- hour → hola (both silent)
- honest → hacer (both silent)
- hospital → ospital (drop the h)
- Full sentence: Hoy hace mucho calor
Nigerian / W. African English
Spanish h is always silent. Yoruba, Igbo, and Hausa all have h sounds, so you need to consciously suppress them for Spanish. 'Hola' = 'ola', 'hacer' = 'acer'. The letter h exists in spelling only — it produces absolutely no sound.
Bridge from: hour (h → ∅)
Common mistakes:
- •Pronouncing h in familiar words
- •Adding aspiration
- •Inconsistency across words
Drill sequence:
- hour → hola (both silent)
- honest → hacer (both silent)
- hospital → ospital (drop the h)
- Full sentence: Hoy hace mucho calor
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you pronounce the Spanish Silent h?▾
Is the Spanish Silent h hard for English speakers?▾
What words use the Spanish Silent h sound?▾
More Spanish Sounds
Alveolar trill — perro, carro, rojo, correr, tierra
Alveolar tap — pero, para, caro, cero, cara
Voiceless velar fricative — joven, gente, rojo, mejor, trabajar
Palatal nasal — niño, año, España, mañana, señor
Spanish has only 5 vowels — all pure, no diphthong glides
b and v are THE SAME SOUND — stop [b] after pause/nasal, fricative [β] elsewhere
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