Polish is a Slavic language with Latin script — but letter combinations that drive non-Slavs to despair. The good news: The pronunciation is consistent — once you know the rules, you can pronounce any word. The bad news: The rules include consonant clusters like "szcz", "chrząszcz", and "Grzegorz Brzęczyszczykiewicz" (a famous film joke).
Pronunciation Guide: The Most Important Letters
| Letter | Pronunciation | Example |
|---|
| sz | like German "sch" | Warszawa (Warsaw) |
| cz | like "tsch" in "Matsch" | cześć (Hello) |
| ż / rz | like "j" in French "journal" | żurek, Wrocław (Rz = Ż!) |
| szcz | like "schtsch" (yes, really!) | Szczecin (Schtsche-tsin) |
| ć / ci | soft "tch" (like a soft "tsch") | ćma (Moth) |
| ś / si | soft "sch" (like a soft "sch") | Śląsk (Silesia) |
| ź / zi | soft "sch" (voiced) | źródło (Source) |
| ł | like English "w" | Łódź (Wutsch), Wałęsa (Wa-wen-sa) |
| w | like German "w" | Warszawa |
| ą | nasal "on" | Gdańsk (Gdannjsk) |
| ę | nasal "en" | Częstochowa (Tschen-sto-ho-wa) |
| ó | like "u" | Kraków (Kra-kuf) |
Greetings & Courtesy
| German | Polish | Pronunciation |
|---|
| Hello (informal) | Cześć! | Tsjeschtj |
| Good day (formal) | Dzień dobry | Dschenj dobri |
| Good evening | Dobry wieczór | Dobri wje-tschur |
| Goodbye | Do widzenia | Do wi-dse-nja |
| Bye (informal) | Pa! / Cześć! | Pa! / Tsjeschtj |
| Thank you | Dziękuję | Dschenku-jeh |
| Please / You're welcome | Proszę | Pro-scheh |
| Yes / No | Tak / Nie | Tak / Njeh |
| Excuse me | Przepraszam | Psche-pra-scham |
| Cheers! | Na zdrowie! | Na sdro-wje! |
Useful Phrases
| German | Polish | Pronunciation |
|---|
| Do you speak English? | Czy mówisz po angielsku? | Tschi mu-wisch po an-gjel-sku? |
| How much does this cost? | Ile to kosztuje? | I-leh to kosch-tu-jeh? |
| Where is...? | Gdzie jest...? | Gdsche jest...? |
| I don't understand | Nie rozumiem | Njeh ro-su-mjem |
| Delicious! | Pyszne! | Pisch-neh! |
| The bill, please | Rachunek poproszę | Ra-chu-nek po-pro-scheh |
| Help! | Pomocy! | Po-mo-tsi! |
| A beer, please | Piwo poproszę | Pi-wo po-pro-scheh |
Food & Drink
| German | Polish | Pronunciation |
|---|
| Water | Woda | Wo-da |
| Bread | Chleb | Chleb |
| Coffee | Kawa | Ka-wa |
| Tea | Herbata | Her-ba-ta |
| Beer | Piwo | Pi-wo |
| Wine | Wino | Wi-no |
| Meat | Mięso | Mjen-so |
| Fish | Ryba | Ri-ba |
| Soup | Zupa | Su-pa |
Numbers
| Number | Polish | Number | Polish |
|---|
| 1 | Jeden | 6 | Sześć |
| 2 | Dwa | 7 | Siedem |
| 3 | Trzy | 8 | Osiem |
| 4 | Cztery | 9 | Dziewięć |
| 5 | Pięć | 10 | Dziesięć |
💡 Tipp
The best icebreaker: "Dziękuję!" (Thank you) with a smile — even if the pronunciation is off. Younger Poles (under 35) often speak good English. In restaurants and hotels, you can almost always get by in English. However, a few words of Polish show respect and are warmly received.
