Español puertorriqueño
Spanish (Puerto Rican)
Romance
Puerto Rican Spanish is a Caribbean variety spoken in Puerto Rico and in large diaspora communities, especially in the mainland United States. Its pronunciation commonly includes aspiration or loss of syllable-final /s/, velar [ŋ] for word-final /n/, weakening of intervocalic /d/, and a soft [h]-like /x/; syllable-final /r/ may be lateralized to [l], though these features vary by region, style, and speaker. A distinctive rapid rhythm and phrase-final intonation are also widely recognized. Its vocabulary preserves Taíno words, reflects African cultural history, and includes numerous English loans adapted to Spanish as a result of sustained bilingual contact. Spanish and English are both official languages of the Puerto Rican government, but Spanish predominates in everyday life and most local media.
Where it is spoken
31 core words in Spanish (Puerto Rican)
Water
agua
/aɣwa/
Fire
fuego
/fweɣo/
Sun
sol
/sol/
Moon
luna
/luna/
Star
estrella
/ehˈtɾeʝa/
Mother
madre
/ˈmaðɾe/
Father
padre
/ˈpaðɾe/
I
yo
/ʝo/
You
tú
/tu/
Name
nombre
/ˈnombɾe/
Eye
ojo
/oho/
Hand
mano
/mano/
Heart
corazón
/koɾason/
Love
amor
/amol/
Tree
árbol
/aɾβol/
House
casa
/kasa/
Dog
perro
/peʀo/
Cat
gato
/ɡato/
Eat
comer
/komel/
Drink
beber
/beβel/
One
uno
/uno/
Two
dos
/doh/
Hello
hola
/ola/
Thank you
gracias
/ɡɾasjaʰ/
Good
bueno
/bweno/
Cuckoo
pájaro bobo
/ˈpahaɾo ˈβoβo/
Computer
computadora
/komputaˈðoɾa/
Sushi
sushi
/ˈsusi/
At sign (@)
arroba
/aˈroβa/
Words compared
Compared with related Romance languages
| Meaning | Spanish (Puerto Rican) | Spanish (Dominican Republic) | Spanish (Cuban) | Spanish (Chile) | Spanish (Venezuelan) | Panamanian Spanish | Spanish (Peruvian) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | agua /aɣwa/ | agua /aɣwa/ | agua /aɣwa/ | agua /aɣwa/ | agua /aɣwa/ | agua /aɣwa/ | agua /aɣwa/ |
| Fire | fuego /fweɣo/ | fuego /fweɣo/ | fuego /fweɣo/ | fuego /fweɣo/ | fuego /fweɣo/ | fuego /fweɣo/ | fuego /fweɣo/ |
| Sun | sol /sol/ | sol /sol/ | sol /sol/ | sol /sol/ | sol /sol/ | sol /sol/ | sol /sol/ |
| Moon | luna /luna/ | luna /luna/ | luna /luna/ | luna /luna/ | luna /luna/ | luna /luna/ | luna /luna/ |
| Star | estrella /ehˈtɾeʝa/ | estrella /ehˈtɾeʝa/ | estrella /ehˈtɾeʝa/ | estrella /ehˈtɾeʝa/ | estrella /ehˈtɾeʝa/ | estrella /ehˈtɾeʝa/ | estrella /esˈtɾeʝa/ |
| Mother | madre /ˈmaðɾe/ | madre /maðɾe/ | madre /maðɾe/ | madre /maðɾe/ | madre /maðɾe/ | madre /maðɾe/ | madre /maðɾe/ |
| Father | padre /ˈpaðɾe/ | padre /paðɾe/ | padre /paðɾe/ | padre /paðɾe/ | padre /paðɾe/ | padre /paðɾe/ | padre /paðɾe/ |
| I | yo /ʝo/ | yo /ʝo/ | yo /ʝo/ | yo /ʝo/ | yo /ʝo/ | yo /ʝo/ | yo /ʝo/ |
| You | tú /tu/ | tú /tu/ | tú /tu/ | tú /tu/ | tú /tu/ | tú /tu/ | tú /tu/ |
| Name | nombre /ˈnombɾe/ | nombre /ˈnombɾe/ | nombre /ˈnombɾe/ | nombre /ˈnombɾe/ | nombre /ˈnombɾe/ | nombre /ˈnombɾe/ | nombre /ˈnombɾe/ |
| Eye | ojo /oho/ | ojo /oxo/ | ojo /oho/ | ojo /oho/ | ojo /oho/ | ojo /oho/ | ojo /oxo/ |
| Hand | mano /mano/ | mano /mano/ | mano /mano/ | mano /mano/ | mano /mano/ | mano /mano/ | mano /mano/ |
| Heart | corazón /koɾason/ | corazón /koɾaˈsõ/ | corazón /koɾason/ | corazón /koɾason/ | corazón /koɾaˈsoŋ/ | corazón /koɾaˈsoŋ/ | corazón /koɾason/ |
| Love | amor /amol/ | amor /amo/ | amor /amoɾ/ | amor /amoɾ/ | amor /amoɾ/ | amor /amoɾ/ | amor /amoɾ/ |
| Tree | árbol /aɾβol/ | árbol /aɾβol/ | árbol /aɾβol/ | árbol /aɾβol/ | árbol /aɾβol/ | árbol /aɾβol/ | árbol /aɾβol/ |
| House | casa /kasa/ | casa /kasa/ | casa /kasa/ | casa /kasa/ | casa /kasa/ | casa /kasa/ | casa /kasa/ |
| Dog | perro /peʀo/ | perro /pero/ | perro /pero/ | perro /pero/ | perro /pero/ | perro /pero/ | perro /pero/ |
| Cat | gato /ɡato/ | gato /ɡato/ | gato /ɡato/ | gato /ɡato/ | gato /ɡato/ | gato /ɡato/ | gato /ɡato/ |
| Eat | comer /komel/ | comer /kome/ | comer /komeɾ/ | comer /komeɾ/ | comer /komeɾ/ | comer /komeɾ/ | comer /komeɾ/ |
| Drink | beber /beβel/ | beber /beβe/ | beber /beβeɾ/ | beber /beβeɾ/ | beber /beβeɾ/ | beber /beβeɾ/ | beber /beβeɾ/ |
| One | uno /uno/ | uno /uno/ | uno /uno/ | uno /uno/ | uno /uno/ | uno /uno/ | uno /uno/ |
| Two | dos /doh/ | dos /do/ | dos /doh/ | dos /doh/ | dos /doh/ | dos /doh/ | dos /dos/ |
| Hello | hola /ola/ | hola /ola/ | hola /ola/ | hola /ola/ | hola /ola/ | hola /ola/ | hola /ola/ |
| Thank you | gracias /ɡɾasjaʰ/ | gracias /ɡɾasja/ | gracias /ɡɾasjah/ | gracias /ɡɾasjah/ | gracias /ɡɾasjah/ | gracias /ɡɾasjas/ | gracias /ɡɾasjas/ |
| Good | bueno /bweno/ | bueno /bweno/ | bueno /bweno/ | bueno /bweno/ | bueno /bweno/ | bueno /bweno/ | bueno /bweno/ |
| Cuckoo | pájaro bobo /ˈpahaɾo ˈβoβo/ | pájaro bobo /ˈpaxaɾo ˈβoβo/ | arriero /aˈrjeɾo/ | cuco /ˈkuko/ | garrapatero /ɡarapaˈteɾo/ | garrapatero /ɡarapaˈteɾo/ | garrapatero /ɡarapaˈteɾo/ |
| Computer | computadora /komputaˈðoɾa/ | computadora /komputaˈðoɾa/ | computadora /komputaˈðoɾa/ | computador /komputaˈðoɾ/ | computadora /komputaˈðoɾa/ | — | computadora /komputaˈðoɾa/ |
| Sushi | sushi /ˈsusi/ | sushi /ˈsusi/ | sushi /ˈsusi/ | sushi /ˈsusi/ | sushi /ˈsusi/ | — | sushi /ˈsusi/ |
| At sign (@) | arroba /aˈroβa/ | arroba /aˈroβa/ | arroba /aˈroβa/ | arroba /aˈroβa/ | arroba /aˈroβa/ | — | arroba /aˈroβa/ |
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