The Sounds dž and đ

Level 1

Dž is hard, đ is soft.

How It Works

These two letters are the voiced partners of č and ć. Dž goes with č, and đ goes with ć.

  • dž sounds like j in jam: džezva (coffee pot), džem (jam), džep (pocket).
  • đ is softer: đak (pupil), Đurđevdan (St. George's Day, a spring holiday).

Write đ as one letter. Do not turn it into dj, which is how some people spell it when texting. The letters d and j side by side do appear in some words, such as djevojka and djeca, where they come from two sounds.

Dž is also a single letter, so a dictionary does not file it under d.

Examples (4)

  1. Džezva je na šporetu.

    The coffee pot is on the stove.

    Dž begins džezva.

  2. Treba mi džem i hljeb.

    I need jam and bread.

    Džem has dž in it.

  3. Đak ide u školu.

    The pupil goes to school.

    Đ begins đak.

  4. Džemper je u ormaru.

    The sweater is in the wardrobe.

    Dž shows up again in džemper.

Common Mistakes

  • Writing dj for đ.

    djak
    đak

    Đ is one letter, so write it as one.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

The Sounds dž and đLevel 1

Learn This First

These letters are part of the alphabet.