Language/Slovak/Pronunciation/Alphabet-and-Pronunciation
Hi Polyglots! 😃
In today's lesson, you will learn how to write the different letters of the Slovak alphabet, how to pronounce these letters whether it is through the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), or through a video with the pronunciation of the letters by a native speaker.
You will also find at the end of this lesson a virtual keyboard to be able to type each special character of this language.
Welcome to our lesson on Slovak Pronunciation, where we will explore the Slovak Alphabet and Pronunciation. As a Slovak language teacher with 20 years of experience, I am excited to guide you through the intricacies of the Slovak language. After mastering the alphabet and pronunciation, you might also be interested in expanding your knowledge with other related topics, such as Slovak Vocabulary: Daily Activities and Routine, The days of the week in Slovak - Writing & Pronunciation, and even diving into the rich cultural heritage with Slovak Folk Tales and Legends. So, let's embark on this linguistic journey together and discover the beauty of the Slovak language! 📚🇸🇰
Slovak Alphabet and IPA Pronunciation[edit | edit source]
Monophthongs[edit | edit source]
| Letter | Sound | Example in Slovak word | Example | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A a | /ʌ/ | abeceda (alphabet) | sun | |
| Á á | /ɑː/ | áno (yes) | far | |
| Ä ä | /ε/, /æ/ | päť (five) | cat | |
| B b | /b/ | brat (brother) | break | |
| C c | /ts/ | cibuľa (onion) | tsunami | |
| Č č | /tʃ/ | čučoriedka (blueberry) | match | |
| D d | /d/ | dom (house) | do | |
| Ď ď | /ɟ/ | ďakujem (thank you) | - | |
| Dz dz | /dz/ | medzi (between) | - | |
| Dž dž | /dʒ/ | džem (jam) | jam | |
| E e | /ε/ | egreš (gooseberry) | dress | |
| É é | /εː/ | anténa (antenna) | - | |
| F f | /f/ | farba (colour) | face | |
| G g | /g/ | gaštan (chestnut) | grow | |
| H h | /h/ | hokej (hockey) | high | |
| Ch ch | /x/ | chorý (ill) | - | |
| I i | /ɪ/ | ihla (needle, pin) | city | |
| Í í | /iː/ | zívnuť (yawn) | tree | |
| J j | /j/ | jablko (apple) | yes | |
| K k | /k/ | krava (cow) | call | |
| L l | /l/ | láska (love) | let | |
| Ľ ľ | /ʎ/ | ľalia (lilly) | similar to Spanish ll | |
| Ĺ ĺ | /lː/ | stĺp (column) | - | |
| M m | /m/ | muž (man) | man | |
| N n | /n/ | noha (leg) | name | |
| Ň ň | /ɲ/ | dlaň (palm) | similar to Spanish ñ | |
| O o | /ɒ/ | opica (monkey) | body | |
| Ó ó | /ɔː/ | telefón (telephone) | door | |
| P p | /p/ | pes (dog) | put | |
| Q q | /kv/ | aqua | sequence | |
| R r | /r/ | ružová (pink) | read | |
| Ŕ ŕ | /rː/ | vŕba (willow) | - | |
| S s | /s/ | sliepka (hen) | sad | |
| Š š | /ʃ/ | šunka (ham) | shoe | |
| T t | /t/ | tuniak (tuna) | take | |
| Ť ť | /c/ | ťava (camel) | - | |
| U u | /ʊ/ | ujo (uncle) | foot | |
| Ú ú | /uː/ | ústa (mouth) | choose | |
| V v | /v/ | vlajka (flag) | voice | |
| W w | /v/ | kiwi | voice | |
| X x | /ks/ | taxi | taxi | |
| Y y | /ɪ/ | syr (cheese) | city | |
| Ý ý | /iː/ | skrývať (hide) | tree | |
| Z z | /z/ | zebra | zero | |
| Ž ž | /ʒ/ | žaluď (acorn) | vision |
Diphthongs[edit | edit source]
| Letter | Sound | Example in Slovak word | Example | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IA ia | /ia/ | piatok (friday) | ||
| IE ie | /iε/ | nie (no) | ||
| IU iu | /iu/ | menšiu | ||
| Ô ô | /uo/ | kôň (horse) |
Diacritics[edit | edit source]
- acute - á, é, í, ĺ, ó, ŕ, ú, ý
- caron - č, ď, ľ, ň, š, ť, ž
- umlaut - ä
- circumflex - ô
Accent[edit | edit source]
Slovak words have accent mostly on the first syllable of the word (slovenský jazyk). Acute does not indicate accent. Acutes indicate long sound (twice as long as the short sound).
Soft pronunciation of de, te, ne, le, di, ti, ni, li[edit | edit source]
Consonants d, t, n, l in combination with vowels e, i should have a soft pronunciation (like ďe, ťe, ňe, ľe, ďi, ťi, ňi, ľi). Although most people often break the rule and do not pronounce le, li softly.
The rule of soft pronunciation does not apply to the words of foreign origin.
Video - Slovak Alphabet Pronunciation by a Native Speaker[edit | edit source]
Slovak Online Virtual Keyboard[edit | edit source]