There are differences between vowels with the same sounds. This is something that usually happens for example in the words beer and bird, or the very famous sheet and shit. The trick here is to always pronounce the combination "ee" with the vowel "i" of our language, while words with "i" as the second case of each example, it is better to pronounce them with an "e" of our language, but very soft.
Confusing the / S / with the / Z /
The English have up to four different ways of pronouncing the "s" and only one looks like ours. See, strange ...
However, the intervocalic "s" is pronounced in a way similar to our / z / (sounds like a buzz) but softer and more subtle: as in Busy, easy ...
Especially difficult for Spaniards is the "S" at the beginning of the word since it is hardly pronounced. While the Spanish tend to pronounce "Spain", the English barely mark the "S" and there is no "E" sound in front.
Using the / R /
Another characteristic example: the Spanish / r / is strong and marked, it is a vibrant phoneme, however in English it is hardly pronounced, and when it does it is with a sound very close to our “ere” as in face.
The sound of the / H /
In Spanish, the sound of the letter “h” is mute, however in English, it is pronounced. The English phoneme [h] is softer than the “jota” in “ja-hee-hee-ho-Ju”, and it does not sound with the throat, as we make it sound in Spanish. It is rather equivalent to the sound of exhaling loudly that we make when we are tired, or when we sigh; or when we have run out of breath when quickly climbing a ladder.
If you think about it, Hispanics are reasonably used to that sound, even if it's not a sound that we use in Spanish. It is the sound of "Help!", "Hair", "hardware", "happy", "house", "heavy", etc. In a way we have already accustomed the ear to know that these words are not pronounced with the Spanish “jota”, but in a somewhat softer way.
The letter / C /
The letter 'C' is pronounced as a 'S' c hen's followed by 'E', 'I', 'Y' . Ex: ' Cinema '.
It is read as a 'K' when followed by ' A', 'O', 'U', 'K'. Ex: ' cake' .
Instead, you have to vocalize it as 'CH' when it is followed by an 'H' . Ex: 'church'.
V or F
This is another great difficulty for Spanish speakers since in Spanish, they both sound the same. Although the B is the same as in Spanish, a deaf sound, the V is voiced, and therefore it approaches (without going over) the F and vibrates.
Compare for example the words vet (veterinarian) or bet ( bet)
The morpheme - ed
The simple past and the past participle are easy, they are formed by simply adding “-ed” to the end. However, you have to be careful with that ending, which is not always pronounced the same:
It is pronounced / ɪd / when preceded by “t” or “d”, such as in wanted, expected, needed, or awarded.
When immediately preceded by any voiced vowel or consonant, it is pronounced / -d / , as in the cases of played, bargained, touched, or moved.
Finally, when “-ed” is preceded by a hollow sound, it is pronounced as / t /, for example, liked, tapped, jumped, or packed.
Our advice is that after knowing the main differences, dedicate your effort to train your ear without stress. You will see how progressively English sounds resonate in your head in an increasingly natural way and how your pronunciation improves, without even realizing it.
