Soft Consonants and the Caron

Level 1

The small mark ˇ is called mäkčeň. It makes eight consonants: č, š, ž, dž and the soft ď, ť, ň, ľ.

How It Works

Four hushing sounds. č sounds like the ch in church (čaj, tea), š like the sh in shoe (šesť, six), ž like the s in measure (žena, woman) and dž like the j in jam (džem, jam).

Four soft sounds. For ď, ť, ň and ľ, press the middle of your tongue flat against the roof of your mouth. ň is like the ñ in Spanish mañana, and ľ is close to the lli in million. Examples: ďakujem (thank you), ťava (camel), kôň (horse), ľad (ice).

Two shapes, one mark. In print, small ď, ť and ľ (and capital Ľ) show the mark as a little stroke that looks like an apostrophe. The other letters show a small v: č, š, ž, ň, Ď, Ť. It is the same mark either way.

The mark can change the word.

  • byt (flat) and byť (to be)
  • koza (goat) and koža (skin)
  • sál (hall) and šál (scarf)

No mark before e and i. Before e, i, í, ia, ie and iu, Slovak writes plain d, t, n, l, but they are still said soft: deti (children) sounds like ďeťi. You write the mark only before other letters or at the end of a word: ďakujem, dieťa. See soft d, t, n and l.

Examples (5)

  1. Dáš si čaj?

    Would you like some tea?

    Č sounds like the ch in church, and š like sh.

  2. Ďakujem, už nechcem.

    Thank you, I don't want any more.

    Ď is a soft d, written with the mark before a.

  3. Na jazere je ľad.

    There is ice on the lake.

    Ľ is a soft l. In print it looks like l with an apostrophe.

  4. Chcem byť doma.

    I want to be at home.

    Byť (to be) ends in a soft ť. Without the mark, byt means a flat.

  5. Mám šesť rokov.

    I am six years old.

    Word by Word: I-have six years.

    Šesť has both a š and a soft ť.

Common Mistakes

  • Leaving the mark off.

    Dakujem!
    Ďakujem!

    Without the mark the d is hard. Ďakujem starts with a soft ď before a, so the mark must be written.

  • Writing the mark before e or i.

    Ďeti sú doma.
    Deti sú doma.

    Before e and i the d is soft on its own, so Slovak writes a plain d.

  • Confusing s and š.

    Mám nový sál.
    Mám nový šál.

    The intended meaning is "I have a new scarf", which is šál. Sál is a hall.

How It Connects

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

Soft Consonants and the CaronLevel 1

Learn This First

Before Soft Consonants and the Caron, learn The Slovak Alphabet. The caron marks letters that belong to the Slovak alphabet: č, š, ž, ď, ť, ň, ľ, dž.