Spanish word

ll

Pronunciation

IPA/ˈeʝe/

Meaning

  • feminine noundouble l

Example

¿Cómo se pronuncia ll en tu país?

How is the double l pronounced in your country?

Illustration for ll (double l)

More examples

La pronunciación de ll varía según el país.

The pronunciation of ll varies by country.

Core concept

Spelling unit indicating a once-lateral palatal consonant often realized differently across dialects.

Common phrases

  • pronunciación de ll

    pronunciation of ll

  • la grafía ll

    spelling of ll

Similar words

elle: Spoken alphabet name elle, used when saying the letter 'll'.
doble ele: Informal phrase doble ele used in everyday speech to refer to 'll'.
letra: Common word meaning a single written letter of the alphabet.

Definition in Spanish

Grafema 'll' que en la tradición fonética marcó la lateral palatal /ʎ/ pero que en la práctica moderna muestra variación dialectal amplia, manteniéndose como dígrafo ortográfico.

Word origin

Ll originated from medieval palatalization of l that yielded the palatal lateral sound /ʎ/, and the conventional doubled spelling remained even where many dialects merged or shifted the sound.

Usage tips

  • In parts of Argentina and Uruguay ll commonly sounds like English sh or zh rather than a lateral, so expect striking regional pronunciation differences when listening.

Other meanings

  • digraphnoun

Word lists with this word