Answers
May 02, 2011 - 09:13 AM
It varies depending on the speaker and region. Similar to how the double L may be pronounced like a Y or kind of like a J. Even the same speaker may pronounce it more like a V in one sentence, and then more like a B in another. There may be certain countries where one is more common than the other, but I'm not sure about that. It will also depend on the word itself. For example, "veinte" more commonly has a "b" sound, while "voy" will always have a clear "v" sound.
If it's any consolation to you, even native Spanish speakers themselves find it confusing. For that reason, when spelling a word that has one of those letters, they'll commonly say "B grande" or "V pequeño". Since both letters sound so similar, the "grande" makes it clear that you mean the letter "B", and "pequeño" makes it clear that you mean the letter "V."
If it's any consolation to you, even native Spanish speakers themselves find it confusing. For that reason, when spelling a word that has one of those letters, they'll commonly say "B grande" or "V pequeño". Since both letters sound so similar, the "grande" makes it clear that you mean the letter "B", and "pequeño" makes it clear that you mean the letter "V."