Long Vowels

Level 1

A vowel with the mark ´ is said longer: á, é, í, ó, ú, ý. The word can change: pas is a passport, but pás is a belt.

How It Works

Six long vowels. The mark ´ is called dĺžeň (lengthener). It turns a, e, i, o, u, y into á, é, í, ó, ú, ý. A long vowel has the same sound as the short one. It just lasts about twice as long. í and ý sound the same; the difference is only in spelling (see i and y).

Length can change the meaning.

  • pas (passport) and pás (belt, strip)
  • sud (barrel) and súd (court)
  • mala (she had) and malá (small, for a feminine noun)

Length is not stress. Slovak stresses the first syllable of a word, whether it is short or long. In pekná (pretty), pek- is stressed and -ná is long but unstressed. See stress on the first syllable.

Where you meet each one. á, í, ú and ý are very common, including in endings such as pekný, pekná. é appears mostly in adjective endings (pekné) and in borrowed words, and ó almost only in borrowed words (balón, telefón). The dĺžeň can also sit on ĺ and ŕ, which are long syllable-making consonants (see syllabic r and l). It never goes on ä.

Two long syllables in a row are avoided. An ending that is normally long becomes short after a long syllable: pekný but krásny. See the rhythmic law.

Examples (5)

  1. Kde je môj pas?

    Where is my passport?

    Pas with a short a means passport.

  2. Tento pás je príliš dlhý.

    This belt is too long.

    Pás with a long á means belt.

  3. Súd je vedľa pošty.

    The court is next to the post office.

    Súd (court) has a long ú.

  4. V pivnici máme sud vína.

    We have a barrel of wine in the cellar.

    Sud (barrel) has a short u.

  5. Mala som malú mačku.

    I had a small cat.

    Word by Word: Had I small cat.

    Mala (had) is short, while malú (small) has a long ú.

Common Mistakes

  • Dropping a dĺžeň and getting a different word.

    Tá mačka je mala.
    Tá mačka je malá.

    Mala means "she had". To say "small", write and say the long á: malá.

  • Mixing up pas and pás.

    Na letisku ukážete pás.
    Na letisku ukážete pas.

    The intended meaning is passport, which is pas with a short a. Pás is a belt.

  • Stressing the long vowel.

    pekná [pek-NÁ]
    pekná [PEK-ná]

    A long vowel is not stressed just because it is long. Keep the stress on the first syllable and simply hold the á longer.

How It Connects

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

Long VowelsLevel 1

Learn This First

Before Long Vowels, learn The Slovak Alphabet. Long vowels are letters of the alphabet marked with a dĺžeň.