The U.S. Foreign Service Institute (FSI) puts Slovak in the third of its four groups, which it calls “hard languages”, together with Czech, Polish and Russian.
| Part | Easier for English Speakers | Takes Practice |
|---|---|---|
| Letters | Slovak uses the Latin alphabet, so you can sound out signs and menus in your first week. | There are 46 letters, counting marked ones like ä and ô and pairs like dz and dž. |
| Spelling | Most letters keep one sound wherever they appear, like the č in čaj (tea). | The accent mark over a vowel, as in dobrý (good), makes it long, and a long vowel can change what a word means. |
| Sounds | Put the weight on the first syllable, as in Bratislava, and you'll be right almost every time. | Some syllables have no vowel, because r and l can carry them, as in krk (neck) and vlna (wave). |
| Grammar | Slovak has no words for “a” or “the”, so there's nothing to choose before a noun. | Nouns change their endings for six cases, so Bratislava becomes v Bratislave (in Bratislava). |
| Words | A few words come from English, such as džús (juice) and tím (team). | Many verbs come as a pair, like robiť and urobiť (to do): the first for an action going on, the second for one that's finished. |
To see how many hours all of this adds up to, read how long it takes to learn Slovak.
Here is the level where each hard part of Slovak first shows up.
- Level 1
I'm just starting out or know only a few words.
New sounds come first. Say words like krk and vlna out loud, and copy the long vowels from a recording.
- Level 2
I can read simple sentences.
Endings start to change. Notice how a city's name ends after v (in), as in v Košiciach (in Košice).
- Level 3
I can read short stories and messages.
Stories use both verbs of a pair, so read each one with the whole sentence around it.
- Level 4
I can read longer texts about everyday life.
Long sentences stack several endings, so read to the end of a sentence before you decide what it means.
- Level 5
I can follow complex topics, but miss some details.
The news adds formal words. Save the ones you meet twice, and let the rest go.
- Level 6
I can read almost anything.
Sayings and fast talk between friends are what's left, and you hear them most in shows.
Dobrý deň, Tomáš!
Tomáš and Mrs. Kováčová are in Bratislava.
Hello, Tomáš! How are you?
Hello, Mrs. Kováčová! I am very well, thank you.
Do you work in a cafe?
Yes, I work and I am also a student.
This lesson comes from Bubblegum, where Poppy, your AI tutor, writes Slovak lessons for each level.
For easy Slovak to start with, read the easiest way to learn Slovak.
Bubblegum
For serious learners, Bubblegum is the best app to learn Slovak. You learn from Slovak you can mostly understand, which is called comprehensible input.
- Lessons fit your level, interests, and goals.
- Read and listen to news and stories in Slovak about things you care about.
- Ask Poppy about a sentence while you read.
- Regenerative Review™ brings saved words back in new lessons, and you can export them to Anki as flashcards.
- Clear, expressive AI voices read every lesson aloud, with a different voice for each speaker.
- Slovak books you bring can't become lessons. Take a photo of a page, and Poppy tells you what it says.
- A new custom lesson costs us real money to make, so your first one is free, and Bubblegum Pro gives you unlimited custom lessons. The lesson library is free for everyone, because we believe everyone should be able to learn.
- Regenerative Review™
Mobile
Is Slovak Easier if I Know Czech?
Yes. Slovak and Czech are so close that people who speak one usually understand the other. Slovak is related to Polish as well, though less closely.
Does Slovak Have Genders?
Yes, three: masculine, feminine and neuter. An adjective changes its ending to match the noun, so you say dobrý deň (good day) and dobrá kniha (a good book).
Is Bubblegum Free?
Yes. The lesson library is free for everyone, because we believe everyone should be able to learn. It holds lessons that other learners asked Poppy for. A new custom lesson costs us real money to make, so your first one is free, and Bubblegum Pro gives you unlimited custom lessons.
Sources
- U.S. Department of State, Foreign Language Training (Category III, “hard languages”, includes Slovak, Czech, Polish and Russian)
- Wikipedia: Slovak orthography (46 letters with four diacritics; the primary principle of Slovak spelling is the phonemic principle)
- Wikipedia: Slovak language (six cases; three genders; no articles; vowel length is phonemic; very high mutual intelligibility with Czech)
- slovake.eu: Accent (stress is almost always on the first syllable; the dĺžeň mark on á, é, í, ó, ú, ý, ĺ and ŕ makes a syllable long)
