01 / 09

Casa o caza

Spain is the only country with a steady th sound for z and soft c.

So casa (house) and caza (hunting) sound different in most of Spain.

02 / 09

Seseo

Latin America, the Canary Islands and western Andalusia say s for both.

There, casa and caza sound exactly the same.

03 / 09

Vamoh pue

In the Caribbean and southern Spain, the final s softens to an h or drops.

Vamos pues, let's go then, can come out as vamoh pue.

04 / 09

Pam

In the Yucatán, a final n often turns into m.

So pan (bread) sounds like pam, and many locals say it with pride.

05 / 09

Puelta

In Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, an r before a consonant often becomes l.

Puerta (door) can sound like puelta.

06 / 09

Se calló, se cayó

Paraguay and Bolivia still keep ll and y apart.

He went quiet and he fell down still sound different there.

07 / 09

¿Cachái?

Chile has its own vos verbs, often used with tú.

¿Cachái? means you get it?

08 / 09

Cashe

In Argentina and Uruguay, ll and y have turned into a sh sound.

Calle (street) sounds like cashe, and people say vos cantás, you sing.

09 / 09

10 zones

Linguist John Lipski sorts Latin American Spanish into 10 zones, and most cross borders.

Country names are a handy shortcut, though accents don't stop at borders.

Tap for every country's sound, with an example for each.