How to pronounce “vacío”
Hear how “vacío (empty)” sounds in Spanish, then read the breakdown below.
vacíobah-SEE-oh (Latin America) · bah-THEE-oh (Spain)
Accent
Breakdown
| Meaning | empty |
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| Syllables | va · cí · o (3) |
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| Stress | The written accent marks the stress: CÍ. |
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| IPA (Latin America) | /ba.ˈsi.o/ |
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| IPA (Spain) | /ba.ˈθi.o/ |
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Tips for English speakers
Common mistake: The v sounds like a soft b and the stress is on the í: bah-SEE-oh.
- v sounds the same as b. Spanish has no English-style v sound.
- c before e or i sounds like s in Latin America and like the "th" in "think" in most of Spain.
- The accent on í keeps it in its own syllable, so vacío has 3 syllables.
- Keep every vowel short and pure: a = "ah", e = "eh", i = "ee", o = "oh", u = "oo". No gliding.
Learn more: Spain vs. Latin America · Stress and accent marks · Spanish vowels
Example sentences
La casa está vacía.The house is empty.
El restaurante está vacío.The restaurant is empty.
More words
Pronounce any other Spanish word →