Polish Pronunciation
From UniLang Wiki
Contents |
How to read Polish?
The spelling of Polish words very often reflects the exact pronunciation. However, some sounds are written and pronounced in different ways. How a letter is pronounced depends on the neighbouring letters (consonants) and the position in the word as well as on some traditional conventions.
Single letters
Vowels
| A a | ɑ | Ę ę | ɛ͂ | Ó ó | u |
| Ą ą | ɔ͂ | I i | i | U u | |
| E e | ɛ | O o | ɔ | Y y | ɨ |
Semivowels
| J j | j / i̯ 1 | Ł ł | w / u̯ 1 | ||
1 see Polish Phonology
Consonants
| B b | b | L l | l | T t | t |
| C c | ʦ | M m | m | W w | v |
| Ć ć | ʨ | N n | n | Z z | z |
| D d | d | Ń ń | ɲ / nʲ | Ź ź | ʑ |
| F f | f | P p | p | Ż ż | ʒ |
| G g | g | R r | r | ||
| H h | x | S s | s | ||
| K k | k | Ś ś | ɕ |
Digraphs
| Ch ch | x | Dź dź | ʥ | Rz rz | ʒ 1 |
| Cz cz | ʧ | Dż dż | ʤ | Sz sz | ʃ |
| Dz dz | ʣ | ||||
1 There are a number of words with such a letter combination exceptionally pronounced as rz, eg marznąć [mɑrznɔɲʨ] ('to freeze').
Words
If you want to read a letter (or a digraph), you need to take into account the neighbouring letters. It is also relevant whether the letter is at the end of the word.
It is very important to remember that consonant clusters are always pronounced either voicedly or voicelessly.
Voicing
Devoicing
Final position
Every letter at the end of a word is pronounced voicelessly, and thus:
bóg [buk] 'god'.
Sometimes, though, while speaking faster the last consonant becomes voiced if the following word begins with a vowel or a voiced consonant, for example:
- pociąg osobowy [ˌpɔʨɔng‿ɔsɔbɔvɨ] 'slow train',
but:
- pociąg towarowy [ˌpɔʨɔnk‿tɔvɑrɔvɨ] 'goods train'.
Nasal vowels
Apart from the letters 'ą' [ɔ͂] and 'ę' [ɛ͂] which are normally pronounced nasally, practically any other vowel followed by a nasal consonant (represented as 'm', 'n' or 'ń') is pronounced nasally as well, unless the consonant is followed by a plosive consonant or an affricate containing such a consonant - see the next paragraph for more information and examples.
Examples:
- a + m/n as [ɑ͂]:
- tramwaj [trɑ͂wɑi̯] 'tramway',
- kwadrans [kfɑdrɑ͂s] 'quarter';
- e + n as [ɛ͂] (there is no Polish word with the letter combination 'em' + a consonant):
- sens [sɛ͂s] 'sense';
- i + m/n as [i͂]:
- limfa [li͂fɑ] 'lymph',
- instynkt [i͂stɨnkt] 'instinct';
- o + m/n as [ɔ͂]:
- komfort [kɔ͂mfɔrt] 'comfort',
- konflikt [kɔ͂nflʲikt] 'conflict';
- u + m/n as [u͂] (there is no Polish word with the letter combination 'óm'):
- triumwirat [trʲu͂wʲirɑt] 'triumwirat',
- kunszt [ku͂ʃt] 'artistry';
- y + m/n as [ɨ͂]:
- symfonia [sɨ͂mfɔɲɑ] 'symphony',
- czynsz [ʧɨ͂nʃ] 'rent'.
Unnasal pronunciation of ą and ę
Before the plosive (or the affricates containing them) these letters are read as a combination of a corresponding vowel sound, [ɔ] or [ɛ], and [m], [n], [ɲ] or [ŋ]. And in this way...
- before [p] or [b] it is read as [ɔ] or [ɛ] and [m]:
- kąpać [kɔmpɑʨ] (wood) 'to chop',
- bąbel [bɔmbɛl] 'bubble',
- kępa [kɛmpɑ] (of grass) 'cluster',
- gęba [gɛmbɑ] (inf: face) 'mug';
- before [t] or [d] - as [ɔ] or [ɛ] and [n]:
- kąt [kɔnt] 'angle',
- prądnica [prɔndɲiʦɑ] 'dynamo',
- pędy [pɛndɨ] (on branch) 'shoots',
- skręt [skrɛnt] (of road) 'turn';
- before [c], [ɟ], [ʨ] or [ʥ] - as [ɔ] or [ɛ] and [ɲ]:
- pąki [pɔɲci] 'buds',
- pociągi [pɔʨɔɲɟi] 'trains',
- kącik [kɔɲʨik] (a little) 'corner',
- trądzik [trɔɲʥik] 'acne',
- okręgi [ɔkrɛɲɟi] 'circles',
- pęki [pɛɲci] (of flowers) 'bunch';
- święcić [ɕfʲɛɲʨiʨ] 'to consecrate',
- pędzić [pɛɲʥiʨ] 'to speed along';
- before [k] or [g - as [ɔ] or [ɛ] and [ŋ]:
- bąk [bɔŋk] 'gadfly',
- okrągły [ɔkrɔŋgwɨ] 'circular',
- piękny [pʲɛŋknɨ] 'beautiful',
- węglowy [vɛŋglɔvɨ] 'carbonous'.
languages >> Slavic languages >> Polish >> Pronunciation
