Czech Letters A and Á: Short and Long A, With Audio
Czech has two A letters. A is a short, open “a”, close to the u in “cup” or a quick “ah”: tam (there). Á (with a čárka) is the same sound held about twice as long, like the a in “father”: máma (mum). A is the first letter of the alphabet; Á is the second, and the difference can change a word’s meaning.
A vs Á: length changes meaning
| Short a | Long á |
|---|---|
| pas passport | pás belt, waist |
| rada advice | ráda glad (said by a woman) |
| draha track, course | drahá dear, expensive |
| hrad castle | hrát to play |
The vowel quality stays the same; only the duration changes. Practise by tapping a short beat for a and a long beat for á: ma-ma vs má-ma.
Á is not stressed
English speakers hear a long vowel and put the stress on it. Czech doesn’t: stress stays on the first syllable whatever the length. zahrada (garden) is ZA-hra-da, Dvořák is DVO-řák, not dvo-ŘÁK.
The čárka: the accent that makes vowels long
The small slanted mark on á is called a čárka (“little line”). It does the same job on all Czech vowels: é, í, ó, ú, ý. Ů uses a ring (kroužek) instead. Full details in Czech accents.
Where you’ll see A and Á
- Female surnames: Černý → Černá, Novotný → Novotná. See Czech surnames.
- Adjectives for feminine nouns: dobrá káva good coffee, velká big.
- Everyday words: ano yes, ahoj hi, máma mum, táta dad, voda water.
Typing Á
- Czech keyboard: the 8 key on the number row.
- Mac: hold a and choose á.
- Windows (any layout): Alt + 0225.
- Phone: long-press a.
Frequently asked questions
How do you pronounce the Czech a?
Short and open, between the u in “cup” and the a in “father”. Á is the same sound held longer.
What is the difference between a and á in Czech?
Length. Á is held about twice as long, and it can change the meaning of a word: pas (passport) vs pás (belt).
Is á a separate letter in Czech?
Yes. The Czech alphabet lists A and Á as letters 1 and 2 of 42, though dictionaries sort them together.
Keep going
Sources
- Wikipedia, “Czech phonology” (vowel length): en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, “Czech orthography”: en.wikipedia.org
