Pronouncing Spanish - start at the beginning

To V or not to V, that is the question. There is a problem here, let's face it. A very large proportion of the enormous Spanish-speaking population has trouble spelling words containing this letter or a B. That's because they are pronounced very similarly. In the (g)olden days of education, when Prospero was at infants' school, he was taught that there is a clear distinction between the two. However, the guardians of the language at the Real Academia have been debating the subject for decades and we wouldn't want to get in their way, so just listen and learn and get over it. (We admit to being tempted to write about the V-sign and what it means in both languages but - oh, what the heck, see below)>

 

What does this sign mean in Spanish? Maybe dos cervezas, por favor, two beers, please. It's the gesture for dos, two, so please do not be offended if you have it aimed at you. It is not, repeat not, offensive (unless the geezer looks like the idiot here, in which case be a man and run).

 

 

 

 

 

 

Churchill's V for Victory sign is not easily found in Spain, though.

This sign does not mean uno, one. You are not requesting one beer, please. You are requesting exactly what you'd be requesting in the UK... and you'd get what you'd asked for. We're all for a universal language here, but maybe not this one.