what does the double "L" (as in llamada) make in English

Question

Does the double "L" in Spanish sound like a "J" in English? I am trying to pronounce the Spanish word "llamada".

Thanks for your help!

Answer 1

Here is a trick your going to like.

Place you cursor on the word “llamada”.

”Double-Click” on the word “llamada”.

In the narrow blue window that opens, “single click” on the word “llamada”.

You should now be in the dictionary. Between the words "llamada" and "call" there is a small sound speaker. "Click" on the speaker.

Can you hear how the sound is made for the "ll" which begins the word?

I hope this works for you. It will definitely answer your question.

there was no speaker icon in the blue window over llamada. - Malenor, OCT 29, 2009

It was there for me. Look again. - Goyo, OCT 29, 2009

Not there, Malenor. In the blue window you must still click one more time on llamada. - Moe, OCT 29, 2009

I have a blue square with a blue x inside where the speaker icon should be. - Malenor, OCT 30, 2009

Lo siento, Malenor. You seem to have a browser or computer problem. - Moe, OCT 30, 2009

Answer 2

I've heard singers from spain pronounce "ll" as more of a "j" sound,(the singer bebe for example) but I don't know how common it is.

Here is an example:

Bebe song with ll as J

Listen for the sentence:

volver a respirar la lluvia que caerá

around 1:18 minute

Agreed. I know more people that pronounce the "ll" as a "J" than as a "Y" myself, not to mention all my favorite groups. - jeezzle, OCT 29, 2009

I used to pronounce it as a Y but got into the (bad?) habbit of using more of a J sound after listening to so many songs over and over that say it that way. - cheeseisyummy, OCT 29, 2009

¨LL¨is pronounced like the ´z´in the word azure. - Malenor, OCT 30, 2009

Answer 3

Nope. it sounds like a "y". yaMAda.

Actually, it sounds like either a ya or a ja depending on the region. You still understand that the word is llamada. It's like in Spain where their c's sound like th's. - yvonneibe7, OCT 30, 2009

Answer 4

I havee a funny anecdote on this to tell.

the other day one of my students was reading so he came to "fallen" and pronounced "fayen" ...so I said, how often have I told you the sound "ll" in Spanish does not exist??

And he answered back, oh, yees...

I have faen....

OMG, jejeje, he skipped the ll and that was it.

Well, and back to your question, the ll in English is just pronounced as one l.

the sound "ll" in English does not exist - in Spanish it does, or so I thought :P - Issabela, OCT 30, 2009

Answer 5

This phoneme is actually pronounced two different ways depending on where the speaker is from. Here is a link to a phonetics website that has examples of both pronunciations along with examples using different words: Phonetics

When you get to the website

1). First choose the "Spanish" option by clicking on the flag

2). For Castellano (how it is said in Spain): Choose the tab that says "laterales" then pick the character that looks like an upside down "y"

3). For American (North and South) Spanish: Choose the tab that says "fricatives" and then pick the character that looks like a "j"

4). Press the speaker icons to make the speaker say the words/sounds.

Note: this site also provides step by step instructions on how to produce these sounds yourself (tongue position, aspiration, etc). Also, thanks Samdie for making me aware of this site

Nice, I knew there was audio but didn't realize you could pick the region of pronounciation. - cheeseisyummy, OCT 29, 2009

Answer 6

There are definitely certain accents which use the "ll" as a "j" sound although it is most commonly used as a "y".