How to pronounce “jalapeño” in Spanish

How to pronounce "jalapeño" in 3 Spanish accents

Slashes show the phonetic spelling (IPA) — how it sounds, not how it’s written. . separates syllables; ˈ marks the stressed one.

Voices are generated separately from the transcription and may not reflect it exactly. Real speakers vary.

About "jalapeño"

Jalapeño refers to a moderately spicy chili pepper central to Mexican cooking, and you'll encounter it constantly in recipes, restaurant menus, and everyday conversation throughout the Spanish-speaking world. Pronunciation is reassuringly consistent whether you're speaking Mexican, Castilian, or Rioplatense Spanish, so once you've got it down, you're set everywhere. The key is that double-l in Spanish has been largely replaced by a simple y sound in modern pronunciation, giving you ha-la-PEH-nyo — stress firmly on the second-to-last syllable. The biggest mistake English speakers make is pronouncing the ll as an English l, saying ha-la-PEE-no and dropping the ñ entirely, which is understandable since that's how the word has been borrowed into English. In Spanish, that ñ is doing real work — it's a distinct letter producing the ny sound in canyon. Etymologically, the name comes from Jalapa, the capital city of Veracruz, Mexico, where the pepper was historically cultivated and traded, making it one of those satisfying cases where a food is literally named after its hometown.