This should be y or e?

[michaelbr]

I found in a learning site the following sentence:
"Padre e hijo usan el telescopio para mirar el planeta." Is it right to have e or it should be y between Padre and hijo? It seems to me that it should be y.

Thanks

[Rusty]

It should be 'e'. The 'h' is silent, so the initial sound of the word 'hijo' matches the sound of the 'y'. When a word that follows 'y' begins with an 'i' sound, the 'y' is changed to 'e'.

The word 'o' also changes when the word that follows it begins with a 'o' sound. It changes to 'u'.
Voy a hacer una cosa u otra.

[michaelbr]

Originally Posted by Rusty

It should be 'e'. The 'h' is silent, so the initial sound of the word 'hijo' matches the sound of the 'y'. When a word that follows 'y' begins with an 'i' sound, the 'y' is changed to 'e'.

The word 'o' also changes when the word that follows it begins with a 'o' sound. It changes to 'u'.
Voy a hacer una cosa u otra.

Thanks so much for your reply, I thought it was a typo, you learn something every day.

Thanks again for your help,

[Rusty]

Obrigado.