Spanish in Spain and Latin America

This course teaches the Spanish of Spain, more precisely the standard of central and northern Spain. About nine out of ten Spanish speakers, though, live in the Americas, from Mexico to Argentina. Spanish is also called castellano, especially in Spain and in much of South America.

The differences are a bit like those between British and American English. Educated speakers from Madrid, Mexico City and Buenos Aires understand each other without problems, and the grammar is essentially the same. What changes is mostly pronunciation, a few pronouns and verb forms, and everyday vocabulary.

“Latin American Spanish” isn't one variety. Mexico, the Caribbean, the Andes, Chile and the River Plate (Argentina and Uruguay) all have their own accents and words, and Spain itself has strong regional differences. The points below are general tendencies, and usage varies by country and region.

The biggest difference is the “th” sound. In most of Spain, z and c before e or i are pronounced like “th” in “think”, and s is a normal “s”. This is called distinción. In Latin America, the Canary Islands and parts of Andalusia, both are pronounced “s”: this is called seseo. So casa (house) and caza (hunting) sound different in Madrid but the same in Mexico City.

Both pronunciations are correct, and learners can choose either. If you learn with this course, you'll hear the Spain pronunciation in the audio.

In Spain there are two ways to say “you” to several people: vosotros (informal) and ustedes (polite). In Latin America vosotros isn't used at all. Ustedes is the only plural “you”, for friends, children and strangers alike, and it takes the same verb forms as ellos.

This also affects the pronoun os, the possessive vuestro and the vosotros commands. Latin Americans understand vosotros, mainly from Spanish films and books, but they don't use it. The Canary Islands and parts of western Andalusia also use ustedes for everyone.

Recent past. In most of Spain, things that happened today or in a period that isn't over are in the present perfect: Hoy he comido paella. In most of Latin America, and also in the Canary Islands and parts of north-west Spain, the preterite is used instead: Hoy comí paella. Both are correct.

Vos. In Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and much of Central America, vos replaces tú, with its own verb forms, mostly stressed on the last syllable. It's also heard in parts of other countries, such as Colombia and Chile. You don't need to use it, but it helps to recognise it (see the table).

Le for “him”. In Madrid and much of central and northern Spain, many people use le instead of lo for a man or boy: Le vi ayer (I saw him yesterday). This is accepted in standard Spain Spanish. Latin America generally uses lo: Lo vi ayer. Lo is correct everywhere.

Most words are the same everywhere, but some everyday ones differ, and a few differ from country to country. Spaniards usually understand the Latin American words, and the other way round.

Take care with coger. In Spain it's the normal verb for taking a bus or picking something up, but in Mexico, Argentina and several other countries it's vulgar. Use tomar (a bus, a taxi) or agarrar (a thing) there.

In Spain tú is used very widely: with friends and family, with colleagues and often with strangers of your own age, and many shop assistants and waiters use it too. In most of Latin America usted is more common, especially with strangers, customers and older people, and in some places, such as Colombia and Costa Rica, even within families. When in doubt, start with usted.

Greetings differ too. In Spain friends and new acquaintances usually give each other two kisses on the cheek (dos besos). In most of Latin America it's one kiss, and in Argentina and Uruguay men often greet each other with a kiss as well. In business, a handshake is normal everywhere.

Small words give people away. A Spaniard says vale (OK) all the time; in Latin America you'll hear está bien or de acuerdo, dale in Argentina and Uruguay, and sale in Mexico. If you don't hear something, say ¿Perdona? or ¿Cómo? in Spain, and in Mexico people say ¿Mande?