X in Spanish: 4 Ways to Pronounce La Equis with Examples (2024)

When Xóchitl and Xavier came to Mexico, they went to Taxco and Xcaret. They ate “mixiotes” with “xoconostle sauce”.

This is how you pronounce the X in Spanish.

Confused yet?

In this lesson, Spring Spanish teacher Paulisima, will teach you what makes the X so challenging to pronounce and useful tricks to make sure that you always get it right!

1. X in Spanish as J sound

Remember that J sounds like a H in Spanish. Ja, je, ji, jo, ju. Quite often, words with X will sound like they were written with a J.

The most famous example is the word Mexico. Remember that it’s not MeXico but México.

So, the original name of my beautiful and beloved nation was Meshico. The word is of Nahuatl, Aztec, origin.

When the Spaniards invaded Mexico, they heard the name Meshico and they applied this rule made by King Alfonso the tenth, whereby the sound sh should be represented by the letter X. However, as languages evolve the Sh sound starts disappearing from the Spanish language, to the point where in the XVII century people didn’t pronounce it Meshico anymore but Mexico.

Then the Spanish Royal Academy said it should be written “Mejico”…but we said: No, gracias. Y continuamos escribiendo Mexico con X. (No thanks. And we kept writing Mexico with X.)

Some other words where X sounds like the Spanish J:

• Xavier.
• Oaxaca. (A Mexican State)
• Texas.
• Xalapa. (A Mexican city)

2. Letter X as KS

• Sexy (sexy)
• Axila (Armpit)

We get the English X sound in: Las palabras que empiezan por la sílaba ex seguida del grupo pr (Words that start with the syllable ex followed by the pr):

• exprimir (express)
• expresamente (expressly)

Almost all words that begin with the syllable ex followed by the group pl:

• explicar (explain)
• explanada (esplanade)

Casi (almost), because we have exceptions like:

• espliego (lavender)
• esplendor y todos sus derivados (splendor and all its derivatives)

Words beginning with the prefix Ex. such as:

• excarcelar (release)
• extremo (extreme)

Las palabras que empiezan por el prefijo extra (The words that start with the prefix extra):

• extraordinario (extraordinary)
• extraterrestre (extraterrestral)

3. Letter X in Spanish as S

• Xochitl
• Xochimilco
• Taxco

These are all places in Mexico. Except for Xochitl which is a first name and the name of a soup!

Xochitl. Xochimilco. Taxco. Atlixco. Xochicalco. Xochitepec.

These are all words from an indigenous Mexican language, so in this case the sound of X is completely different from the English sound.

In words that start with xeno:

• xenofobia (xenophobia)
• xenón (xenon)

4. X pronounced as SH

• Xcaret.
• Xel-Ha.

Xcaret and Xel Ha, que son dos parques acuaticos naturales en la Riviera Maya, ampliamente recomendados (Xcaret and Xel Ha, which are two aquatic parks in the Riviera Maya, highly recommended)

• Xoloitzcuintle.

Have you seen the Disney movie Coco?) Well, the dog in it, a hairless Mexican dog breed is a xoloescuincle. He’s also called xoloescuicle, I believe!

5. ¿Cómo se pronuncia? Pronunciation of X in Spanish language

You may learn many words and phrases, but you might still get it wrong sometimes. I’m Mexican, a native Spanish speaker, and I don’t know the right pronunciation of some words with X.

When this happens it is most likely that the word comes from an indigenous language and as you have seen before sometimes that means it will be an SH sound or and S one.

To make sure you are doing it right. First you have to remember that the X doesn’t always sound like an X. This is the most common mistakes Spanish students make. They just try to force the KS sound into every word.

And then, you have to learn how to ask:

I’m sorry, how do you pronounce this word?

6. Equis as an adjective

I’m sure that even if you don’t know all the ways the letter x is pronounced in Spanish, maybe you’re familiar with the beer “dos equis”! Did you know that… when it was launched in 1897, the original name of the beer was “siglo 20” (20th century)?)

And you know that 20 is written with 2 X in Roman numbers, so people started calling it “la cervezas a de las dos equis” (beer with two exes) so they changed the name!

Another thing you need to know is that the word “equis” means something else in Mexican Spanish.

Let’s see:

Here X means that something is irrelevant, of little importance.

Here equis means that something is not special at all, nothing that stands out or is particularly nice. It’s plain, simple in a good way = equis.

And all of this in action – as in real-life conversation:

X isn’t the only tough letter and sound in Spanish. There are a few more, so let’s now have a look at the other tough sounds in Spanish. I asked Spring Spanish teacher Juan to help me out here.