güe

Güe is a textual sequence consisting of the letters g, ü, and e. It is not a single letter of the Latin alphabet, but rather a combination used in certain orthographies to mark a specific pronunciation of the u when it follows a g before e or i. The diaeresis on the u signals that the u should be pronounced, producing a consonant-vowel sequence that differs from the simple gue spelling.

In Spanish orthography, the use of the diaeresis on the u after g is employed to indicate that the u is pronounced, yielding a /ɡwe/ sound rather than the /ɡe/ sound that would occur with gue. A well-known example is güey, a slang term for “guy” in Mexican Spanish, which begins with the güe sequence. Another example is güero, meaning a blond or fair-skinned person, which also starts with the güe cluster. These words illustrate how güe functions as a pronunciation guide within the language’s rules for g before e or i.

Outside Spanish, the güe sequence can appear in loanwords, transliterations, or proper names from languages that use diaeresis to indicate pronunciation. In most contexts, güe is represented as g + u with diaeresis followed by e, rather than as a distinct letter. Its primary significance is phonetic, helping readers infer the intended sound in languages that employ diacritics for pronunciation.

See also diaeresis, umlaut, Spanish orthography.