Spelling Words in Spanish with the Letter H

There is one letter in Spanish that trips up both native speakers and new learners: H. Because it is the only silent letter in Spanish, it can be quite confusing to remember which words are spelled with an H. Don’t worry! That’s why we have put together several lists for you to master spelling words in Spanish with this letter.

The Silent Helper

Before we look at some spelling words in Spanish, we need to learn more about the Spanish H. You may be wondering why a letter exists if it doesn’t make a sound. That’s a great point, but the H is a silent helper for the other letters.

• When the H follows a C, together they make a “ch” sound. (Learn more about CH spelling words in Spanish in our blog post.)
• The H at the beginning of a word can differentiate two words that sound the same. 
  • Hola and ola are pronounced the same, but the H helps us know when we are talking about a wave or saying hello.
• An H in the middle of a word often separates two vowels so that they each have a voice. When two vowels are next to each other, they often form one sound. (You can learn about this in our diphthong blog post.)
  • Vehículo – here the H separates the e from the i. If it wasn’t spelled with the H, it would be pronounced bai-coo-loh instead of bay-ee-coo-loh. 
• An H in the middle of a word also separates double vowels or two strong vowel sounds. This aids in pronunciation when reading and helps us to separate sounds and syllables correctly.
  • Albahaca and almohada are both examples of the silent H separating two strong vowel sounds. Instead of the vowels merging together (or in the case of albahaca only pronouncing 3 As instead of 4), the H reminds us to pronounce each vowel individually.
• You can also find an H in the middle of a word if a prefix comes before a base word that originally starts with H. 
  • Malhumor and deshonrar both have prefixes: mal- and des- respectively. The base words keep the H despite the additional letters.

As you can see, the Spanish H is not a useless, silent letter. It is essential for correct understanding and pronunciation. It is a silent helper.

Spelling Words in Spanish: H-

You’re now ready to start spelling words in Spanish with the silent H! Always remember to practice spelling these words out loud. This will help you memorize the Spanish letter names and commit the spelling to memory much quicker. Start with the small words and work your way up to the longer words. To get you started, here are the letter names for the most common letters in the spelling words below.

H – achay

A – ah

E – ay

I – ee

O – oh

U – oo

Also, there are several words in the spelling lists that have an accent over a vowel. To say that a letter has an accent, you can use one of the following phrases:

…con una tilde en la [letra]  …with an accent mark on the [letter]

… [letra] con tilde      …[letter] with an accent mark

HA- Words

HE- Words

HI- Words

HO- Words

HU- Words

Spelling Words in Spanish with H in the Middle

Just Keep Spelling!

These spelling words in Spanish are a great place to start mastering letters, pronunciation, and written Spanish.  However, to take it a step further and really master Spanish spelling, try a free trial class with our expert Spanish teachers. In the live classes, you can ask them questions about the letters, pronunciation, or spelling. They will give you more exercises to practice with and make sure you completely understand each topic. Try a class today, and take the next step in becoming a Spanish master! ¡Conviértete en un maestro de ortografía en español!

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Ashley Reid

Freelance Writer at Homeschool Spanish Academy

I have lived in Latin America for 6 years now, and I have worked as an ESL teacher, translator, and missionary during that time. I absolutely love languages and am always learning a new one. However, Spanish is my preferred language! I am a happy wife and mom to an adorable baby boy. In my free time, I love drawing and painting portraits and reading fantasy novels.

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