Czech (čeština) is a phonetic language; that is, each letter has one sound.
The order of the Czech letters is:
a b c č d e f g h ch i j k l m n ň o p r ř s š t u v y z ž
Vowels
Short Vowels
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|
Czech Letter
|
Czech Word
|
IPA Sound
|
English Sound
|
|
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A a
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tam ("there")
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a in aaaa
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E e
|
den ("day")
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e in get
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I i
|
pivo ("beer")
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e in enough (same as y)
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O o
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oko ("eye")
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o in orange
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U u
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nula ("zero")
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u in put
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Y y
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syn ("son")
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e in enough (same as i)
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Long Vowels
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|
Czech Letter
|
Czech Word
|
IPA Sound
|
English Sound
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Á á
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káva ("coffee")
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a in aaaaaaaa
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É é
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mléko ("milk")
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a in lay
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Í í
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víno ("wine")
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ee in seen (same as ý)
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Ó ó
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dóm ("cathedral")
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o in more
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Ú ú
|
ústa ("mouth")
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oo in stool (same as ů)
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Ů ů
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stůl ("table")
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oo in stool (same as ú)
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Ý ý
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výlet ("trip")
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ee in seen (same as í)
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The Unique Háček Vowel
|
|
Czech Letter
|
Czech Word
|
IPA Sound
|
English Sound
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Ě ě
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pět ("five")
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ye in yes
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Diphthongs
|
|
Czech Letter
|
Czech Word
|
IPA Sound
|
English Sound
|
|
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Au au
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auto ("automobile")
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ou in ouch
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Eu eu
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pneumatika ("tire")
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eu in pneumatic
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Ou ou
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houba ("mushroom")
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ow in know
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Consonants
|
|
Czech Letter
|
Czech Word
|
IPA Sound
|
English Sound
|
|
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B b
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boty ("shoes")
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|
b in boy
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C c
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noc ("night")
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ts in cats
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Č č
|
číslo ("number")
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ch in church
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D d
|
dva ("two")
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d in dog
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Ď ď
|
teď ("now")
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'dyeh' said as one syllable
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F f
|
fazole ("beanss")
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f in film
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G g
|
gauč ("couch")
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g in get
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H h
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hlava ("head")
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h in hair (never dropped)
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Ch ch
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chlapec ("boy")
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ch in loch
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J j
|
jeden ("one")
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y in yes
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K k
|
koza ("goat")
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k in kind
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L l
|
lavice ("desk")
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l in love
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M m
|
matka ("mother")
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m in mother
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N n
|
noc ("night")
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n in night
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Ň ň
|
kůň ("horse")
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ni in onion
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P p
|
pole ("field")
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p in pole
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R r
|
rok ("year")
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r in river, but strongly rolled
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Ř ř
|
řeka ("river")
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"rzh" but with the r rolled
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S s
|
sedm ("seven")
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s in seven
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Š š
|
škola ("school")
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sh in ship
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T t
|
teta ("aunt")
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t in time
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Ť ť
|
trať ("track")
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"ty" in "best yet"
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V v
|
voda ("water")
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v in vodka
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Z z
|
zítra ("tomorrow")
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z in zipper
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Ž ž
|
žena ("woman")
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"zh" in "measure"
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