Mastering the Polish Alphabet
Start with letters pronounced the same as in English. While the Polish alphabet has most of the same letters as the English alphabet, many of them have different sounds. However, there are 14 consonants that sound basically the same in Polish as they do in English: b, d, f, g, h, k, l, m, n, p, r, s, t, and z. The Polish letter g has only a hard g sound, like the g in the English word "good." The Polish letter s is always soft, as in the English word "soft." The Polish letter r is rolled or trilled, as in Spanish or Italian.
Memorize the sounds of letters that are "false friends." When studying a foreign language, "false friends" are words or letters that look exactly as they do in your native language, but are pronounced differently. Polish has 3 letters that are false friends of identical letters in English: c, w, and j. The Polish letter c is pronounced ts, like the ts in the English word "wits." The Polish letter j is pronounced like the y in the English word "yet." The Polish letter w is pronounced like the English letter v.
Move onto consonants with diacritics. To round out the consonants in the Polish alphabet, there are 6 letters that are formed with diacritics – accent marks above, below, or through the main letter. These letters are pronounced differently than the same letter without the diacritic. ć is pronounced like the ch in the English word "choice." ł is pronounced like the w in the English word "water." ń is pronounced like the ny in the English word "canyon." ś is pronounced like the sh in the English word "short." ź is pronounced like the ch in the English word "teach." ż is pronounced like the si in the English word "vision." This mark is a single dot over the middle of the letter, rather than an accent mark as with ź.
Learn the two-letter combinations pronounced with a single sound. There are 7 two-consonant combinations in the Polish language that are pronounced with a single consonant sound. For most of these, the resulting sound is a blend of the 2 letters. ch is pronounced like the h in the English word "ha." sz is pronounced like the sh in the English word "shoe." cz is pronounced like the ch in the English word "check." dz is pronounced like the dz in the English word "adze." dź makes a sound that doesn't exist in English. Simply run the d and ź sounds closely together. dż is pronounced like the g in the English word "gel." rz is pronounced like the "s" in the English word "measure." This two-letter combination is pronounced the same as the letter ż.
Pronounce the 7 basic vowels in the Polish alphabet. Unlike English, there are no long or short vowels. Polish vowels always sound the same, but are said with a shorter duration than the typical English vowel. a is pronounced like the a in the English word "smart." e is pronounced like the e in the English word "bed." i is pronounced like the ee in the English word "eel." o is pronounced like the o in the English word "port." ó is pronounced like the oo in the English word "foot." u is pronounced the same as the Polish vowel ó. y is pronounced like the y in the English word "this."
Distinguish the pronunciation of the 2 nasal vowels. There are 2 nasal vowels in the Polish alphabet, represented by the ogonek diacritic, which looks like a little tail on the bottom of the letter. These nasal vowels are ą and ę. ą is pronounced like the on in the French word "bon." ę is pronounced like the en in the English word "enter."
Add the 4 consonant-vowel combinations. The Polish language has 4 consonant-vowel combinations that are pronounced with a single consonant sound: ci, si, zi, and ni. These combinations are alternative notations for the letters ć, ś, ź, and ń. Whenever you see these combinations, they are pronounced the same as the letter they represent.
Learning Basic Conversational Phrases
Greet people by saying "Dzień dobry!" The phrase dzień dobry (jeyn DOB-ry) can mean either "good morning" or "good afternoon." It is also used as a basic greeting, particularly if you are saying hello to people you don't know, or who are older than you. When greeting friends or people your own age, you can also use cześć (tch-esh-ch), which is a more informal way to say hello.
Follow up by asking "Jak się masz?" Jak się masz (yahk sheng mah-sh) is the Polish phrase that means "how are you?" If someone asks you this question, respond "dziękuję, dobrze," (jenkoo-yeng dob-zhe), which means "fine, thank you." If the other person asks how you are first, you may say "bardzo dobrze, dziękuję. A Ty?" This means "fine, thank you. And you?" This is the informal way to say this. If you're speaking to someone who is older than you, or who is an authority figure, you would say "A Pan" (if speaking to a man) or "A Pani" (if speaking to a woman).
Introduce yourself in Polish with "Nazywam się" (my name is). If you want to have a conversation with someone, you likely want them to know your name. Introduce yourself with your first name, followed by your surname. In informal situations, such as if you're talking to someone your name, you can simply use your first name. When someone tells you their name, you might say "bardzo mi miło," which means "pleased to meet you."
Let the person know that you don't speak much Polish. Especially if you have strong pronunciation, a native speaker may start using words or phrases you don't understand. If you say "Nie mówię dobrze po polsku," you are saying "I don't speak Polish well." You might also find the need to say "nie rozumiem," which means "I don't understand." You can also say "mów wolniej," which means "please speak more slowly." The person you're speaking to may become frustrated and want to speak to you in English or some other language. If you want to continue practicing your Polish, you might say "ze mną można rozmawiać po polsku," which means "speak to me in Polish."
Mind your manners by saying "proszę" and "dziękuję." Prozę (PRO-she) means "please," while dziękuję (jenkoo-yeah) means "thank you." As in any language, being polite to native speakers, especially as you are learning the language, can help ease any misunderstandings. If someone thanks you for something, you can either use "proszę" or say "nie ma za co." The latter phrase is more informal, so should only be used when talking to people your own age or younger. In Polish, the same word, "przepraszam," means both "sorry" or "excuse me."
Immersing Yourself in the Language
Listen to Polish popular music. While you may be familiar with the sounds of traditional Polish folk music, the Polish music scene today is as varied as any other country's. Find Polish bands in a genre you enjoy, and become more familiar with the language through the repetition of the lyrics. If you have access to a streaming music service, use the Polish channel to find Polish artists you might enjoy. There are also Polish music videos available for free on YouTube or Vimeo. The website Culture Trip has a list of 10 Polish pop songs that are good for Polish language learners available at https://theculturetrip.com/europe/poland/articles/top-10-polish-pop-songs-to-help-you-learn-polish/.
Listen to Polish radio online. There are several Polish radio stations you can stream online. With a radio station, you get Polish music as well as news and other information that can give you a snapshot of life in Poland. You might want to try https://www.polskieradio.pl/, which has links to the Polish national radio stations as well as several independent radio stations operating in the country. The BBC no longer operates a Polish language broadcast. However, you can listen to archived shows and interviews at http://www.bbc.co.uk/polish/index.shtml.
Read Polish children's books. Children's books are designed to teach the basics of any language. By reading children's books that are written in Polish, you can pick up basic grammar and conversation. Project Gutenberg has free ebooks in Polish available at http://www.gutenberg.org/browse/languages/pl. Many of these books are meant for adult or fluent readers. You can buy print copies of children's books in Polish from the Polish Art Center at https://www.polartcenter.com/Polish_Children_s_Books_s/42.htm. Many of these books are traditional Polish stories translated into English, so double-check before you buy to make sure you're getting a Polish-language edition.
Chat online in Polish. There are numerous online forums and social media groups where you can chat with native speakers and other language learners. Having conversations can help you become more comfortable speaking in Polish. There are several Polish online language exchanges where you can practice your conversational skills with native speakers, including WeSpeke, Conversation Exchange, and Busuu. There are also several subreddits dedicated to the Polish language and culture. The Poland reddit at https://www.reddit.com/r/poland/ is an English-language forum. You can also use https://www.reddit.com/r/learnpolish/, which provides information and resources for learning the Polish language.
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