Spanish · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "nervioso" in Spanish?

Q: How do you pronounce nervioso in Spanish?

nervioso is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written /neɾˈβjo.so/. It means “nervous.” ner-BYOH-soh, three beats — the v is a soft b and the io glides into one sound.

ner-BYOH-soh, three beats — the v is a soft b and the io glides into one sound.

nervioso /neɾˈβjo.so/

ner-VIO-so: three syllables, and the second-to-last carries the beat because the io counts as one diphthong and the word ends in a vowel. All four forms keep the placement. The noun "nervio" is two syllables stressed on NER — same stem, one syllable shorter, beat one place earlier.

Listen: nervioso

Free browser voice. Hear it read by a real native speaker inside the LingoDrop app.

Sound it out

ner A clean n, a short "eh", and a single tap of the r. The vowel must stay clean rather than being coloured by the r.

vio The v is a soft b between vowels, then the i glides into the o as a y. One beat, "byoh", carrying the stress.

so A voiceless hiss and a final pure "oh", identical to the stressed vowel.

Hear it in a sentence

Me pongo nervioso antes de hablar en público.

I get nervous before speaking in public.

Listen: Me pongo nervioso antes de hablar en público.

Free browser voice. Hear it read by a real native speaker inside the LingoDrop app.

"Me pongo nervioso antes de hablar en público" uses "ponerse" for becoming a certain way, which is the standard construction for temporary emotional changes. "Público" carries an accent pulling the beat three syllables from the end, and "hablar" has a silent h.

Where English speakers slip

An extra syllable and a foreign consonant arrive together: the io splits and the v gets buzzed, giving "ner-vee-OH-so". Both need fixing: one glide, and a soft b. The English "nervous" also front-stresses the word and reduces the ending. And the construction matters — "me pongo nervioso" is I get nervous, while "estoy nervioso" is I am nervous right now.