The Czech alphabet has 42 letters: the familiar Latin script plus letters with diacritics — the háček (č, š, ž, ř), the čárka marking vowel length (á, é, í), and the kroužek above ů. Czech is read almost exactly as it's written, stress always falls on the first syllable, and only a handful of sounds (ř, ě, ch) really require dedicated practice.
Below is a from-scratch breakdown: the three diacritical marks, a full "letter–sound–example" table, tricky consonants, and common mistakes. Once you've got this down, you'll be able to correctly read any sign, form, or document.
The foundation is the 26 Latin letters, to which 15 letters with diacritics and one digraph (ch) are added — 42 letters in total. A few key features immediately set Czech apart from Russian-speaker intuitions:
All the "magic" of Czech spelling comes down to three small marks above letters. Once you know them, you'll stop confusing vowel length with softness.
This bird-shaped mark sits above consonants and changes the sound: č (ch as in "church"), š (sh), ž (zh, like the "s" in "measure"), ř (a unique sound), plus ď, ť, ň (soft d, t, n). Above a vowel, the háček appears only on the letter ě.
This slanted stroke marks a long vowel: á, é, í, ó, ú, ý. The length needs to be genuinely stretched out — it's not stress, it's duration. In Czech, vowel length can change meaning entirely: být (to be) and byt (apartment) are two completely different words.
This mark appears over only one letter — ů. It sounds exactly like ú (a long "u"); the difference is purely orthographic: ú is written at the start of a word or root (úřad — office/authority), while ů appears in the middle or at the end (dům — house, stůl — table).
Here are the letters that don't read the way a Russian speaker would expect. The sound is approximated using Cyrillic in the original — for exact pronunciation, it's best to listen to audio.
| Letter | Approximate sound | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| c | ts (as in "cats") | cena | price |
| č | ch (as in "church") | čaj | tea |
| š | sh | škola | school |
| ž | zh (softer than Russian ж) | žena | woman |
| ř | a fused rzh/rsh sound | řeka | river |
| ch | kh (as in "loch") | chléb | bread |
| h | voiced guttural "h" (like Ukrainian г) | hora | mountain |
| j | y (as in "yes") | jablko | apple |
| ě | "ye" with softening | děti | children |
| ď, ť, ň | soft d, t, n | ťuknout | to tap |
| á, é, í, ó | long a, e, i, o | máma | mom |
| ú / ů | long u | dům | house |
| y, ý | like "i" (short/long) | syn | son |
This is a unique sound with no Russian equivalent: a simultaneous trilled "r" and a hissing sound, roughly like a fused "rzh". By default it's voiced — at the start of a word and between vowels (řeka — river, moře — sea) — but next to a voiceless consonant or at the end of a word it devoices toward "rsh" (tři — "trshi", keř — "kersh"). Incidentally, in the surname Dvořák, ř sits between vowels and stays voiced. Don't try to substitute it with a plain "r" — it's the most recognizable giveaway of a foreign accent. The easiest way to nail it is to work with a teacher; ask them to walk you through the technique in a lesson.
On its own, ě sounds like "ye," but its main job is to soften the preceding consonant. The rules are short:
These are two different sounds. ch is a voiceless "kh" (chodit — to walk/go). h is a voiced guttural sound, close to the Ukrainian "г" (hodně — a lot), and it is always pronounced — never silent.
Before i, the consonants d, t, n are softened: di, ti, ni sound like soft "dyi, tyi, nyi". Before y, they stay hard: dy, ty, ny sound like plain "dy, ty, ny". The "i"/"y" sound itself is identical in both cases — only the hardness of the consonant changes.
The main rule of Czech phonetics: stress falls on the first syllable of a word. Note that stress and vowel length are two separate things: the word víkend (weekend) has a long "í," but the stress still falls on the first syllable. When a preposition combines with a noun, the stress jumps onto the preposition: na stole is pronounced with stress on "na" — "NA stole". This gives Czech speech its distinctive, even rhythm.
A missing or extra čárka isn't a typo — it turns the word into something else entirely. A few pairs worth training your eye on:
This is why, on forms and official documents, it matters to both read and write diacritics precisely.
In Czech, the consonants r and l can act like vowels and form a syllable on their own. This gives rise to words that look "unpronounceable" to a Russian speaker: vlk (wolf), prst (finger), krk (neck), srdce (heart), čtvrtek (Thursday). The classic tongue-twister with no vowels at all is strč prst skrz krk ("stick your finger through your throat"). The trick is that "r" and "l" are drawn out here like vowel sounds.
Just like in Russian, voiced consonants devoice at the end of a word and before voiceless ones, while voiceless consonants become voiced before voiced ones (regressive assimilation). For example, led (ice) is pronounced "let," and the preposition v is pronounced as "v" before a voiced sound but as "f" before a voiceless one. If you already know Russian phonetics, this rule will feel intuitive; check the finer points with a teacher.
A sensible order: first learn the alphabet and sounds, then basic everyday phrases, and only after that, grammar. It's useful to practice polite expressions and pronunciation right away — start with our collection of essential Czech phrases for daily life. To get a feel for the cultural context, see our guides on Czech traditions and Czech names, and to plan your first steps in the country, check the relocation checklist.
If you need systematic help with specific sounds (especially ř), or you're preparing for the A2-level Czech state exam required for permanent residency, working with a tutor is far more effective — browse tutors and courses. And for the official translation of documents containing diacritics, you'll need translators.
42 letters: 26 Latin letters, 15 with diacritics, and the digraph ch. The ch is treated as a separate letter and comes after h in alphabetical order.
Nothing, when it comes to sound — both are pronounced as a long "u". The difference is positional: ú is written at the start of a word or root (úkol), while ů appears in the middle or at the end of a word (dům, stůl).
It's a fused sound combining a trilled "r" with a hissing quality, roughly like "rzh". It's voiced at the start of a word and between vowels (as in the surname Dvořák) and devoices toward "rsh" next to voiceless consonants or at the end of a word. Substituting it with a plain "r" gives away a foreign accent, so it's best learned with a teacher.
Always the first syllable of the word. Vowel length (čárka) is unrelated to stress — it's a separate characteristic of the sound, which is why a long syllable can still be unstressed (víkend).
No. These letters don't exist in the Czech alphabet, and neither do hard or soft signs. Their functions are covered by diacritics (ě, ď, ť, ň) and letter combinations (for example, "ja" instead of "я").
Yes. The consonants r and l can function as vowels and form syllables, which is why words like vlk (wolf), prst (finger), krk (neck), and krtek (mole) exist. The famous tongue-twister strč prst skrz krk manages entirely without vowel letters.
In terms of sound — none: both are read as "i". The difference lies in spelling and in softness: before i, the consonants d, t, n are softened (di, ti, ni sound like soft "dyi, tyi, nyi"), while before y they stay hard (dy, ty, ny sound like plain "dy, ty, ny").
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