The Big Swap

Hungarian Alphabet 1

Chapter 13 · The Big Swap: R, S, SZ, ZS

🔤 The Big Swap — s Says "sh" and sz Says "s"

This is the chapter English speakers remember. In Hungarian, s is said "sh" and sz is said "s", the opposite of what the letters suggest. Add the tapped r and the "zh" sound zs, and you have the four letters that make Hungarian look different from other languages. By the end, you'll be able to read szia ("hi") and köszönöm ("thank you").

✨ The Four Letters

S s

said "sh", as in ship

respelled sh

Remember: a lone s is "sh". sör = SHEUR, piros = PIH-rosh.

Sz sz

said "s", as in sun

respelled s

Remember: sz is the plain English "s". szó = SOH, busz = BUS.

Zs zs

said "zh", as in measure or vision

respelled zh

Remember: zs is the voiced partner of s (sh → zh). zseb = ZHEHB.

R r

a tapped or rolled "r", as in Scottish very

a flick of the tongue tip

Tip: touch the tongue tip just behind the upper teeth, once (a tap) or several times (a roll). Never the English curled "r". Scottish speakers already have this sound.

🧩 The Four Sounds in a Grid

Hungarian has two "hissing" sounds, each with a voiced and a voiceless version. Seeing them in a grid helps:

	Voiceless (no buzz)	Voiced (buzz)
"sh"-type (tongue pulled back)	s = "sh" (ship)	zs = "zh" (measure)
"s"-type (tongue tip forward)	sz = "s" (sun)	z = "z" (zoo)

A Memory Trick Count the letters: one letter, s, is the "sh" sound, and two letters, sz, make the plain "s". It feels backwards, so practise a few pairs aloud until it's automatic: sör (SHEUR) against szív (SEEV, "heart"), sok (SHOK) against szó (SOH). If you read a lone s as "s", a Hungarian listener will hear a different sound, so this is worth getting right early.

📖 Read It — New Words

You can read all of these, and they include the greetings you've been waiting for. Stress is on the first syllable.

#	Hungarian	Say it	English	Note
1	szia	SIH-aw	hi; bye (informal)	sz = s
2	köszönöm	KEU-seu-neum	thank you	sz = s; three ö's
3	kérem	KAY-rehm	please; here you are	tapped r
4	szép	SAYP	beautiful; nice	sz = s
5	szó	SOH	word	sz = s
6	szoba	SO-baw	room	sz = s
7	asztal	AWS-tawl	table	sz = s, then t
8	busz	BUS	bus	sz at the end
9	sárga	SHAHR-gaw	yellow	s = sh
10	sapka	SHAWP-kaw	cap, hat	s = sh
11	zseb	ZHEHB	pocket	zs = zh
12	rózsa	ROH-zhaw	rose	zs = zh

🗣️ Polite Words You Can Use Today

Hungarian	Say it	English	Use
szia	SIH-aw	hi; bye	informal, with friends and family
köszönöm	KEU-seu-neum	thank you	the standard "thank you"
köszi	KEU-sih	thanks	casual, like "cheers"
kérem	KAY-rehm	please	when asking for something
tessék	TEHSH-shayk	here you are; pardon?	double s = a long "sh"
igen · nem	IH-gehn · NEHM	yes · no	Chapters 4–5

Real Hungarian Tip — "Szia" Means Both Hello and Goodbye Szia (SIH-aw) is the everyday informal greeting, and it works for both arriving and leaving. For one person you know well, it's all you need. It's also a little more casual than English "hello", so with a stranger or in a formal setting, you'd use a longer greeting, which you'll meet in the conversation courses.

Real Hungarian Tip — Szabó Szabó (SAW-boh) means "tailor" and is one of the most common Hungarian surnames. It's a handy test of the swap: sz = "s", so it's SAW-boh, not "shaw-boh". Hungarians also put the surname first: Szabó Anna is "Anna Szabó".

💬 Mini-Dialogs

① Hi and Thanks — Szia! Köszönöm!

A: Szia! SIH-aw! Hi!

B: Szia! Tea? SIH-aw! TEH-aw? Hi! Tea?

A: Nem, kávé, kérem. NEHM, KAH-vay, KAY-rehm. No, coffee, please.

B: Tessék! TEHSH-shayk! Here you are!

A: Köszönöm! KEU-seu-neum! Thank you!

② The Room — Hol a szoba?

A: Hol a szoba? HOL aw SO-baw? Where is the room?

B: Ott. OTT. There.

A: És az asztal? AYSH awz AWS-tawl? And the table?

B: A szobában. aw SO-baw-bahn. In the room.

③ A Yellow Bus? — Sárga a busz?

A: Sárga a busz? SHAHR-gaw aw BUS? Is the bus yellow?

B: Nem, kék! NEHM, KAYK! No, blue!

A: Szép! SAYP! Nice!

Review: Chapter 12 Words Cover the English and read these again: fehér (white) · fekete (black) · vonat (train) · vendég (guest) · hold (moon) · tehén (cow) · mozi (cinema) · metró (metro) · ember (person) · levél (letter) · zene (music) · zöld (green).

✍️ Try It Yourself — Gyakorlatok

Say each answer out loud first, then click to check.

1. What sounds do s, sz, zs and z make?

Show answer

s = "sh" · sz = "s" · zs = "zh" (as in measure) · z = "z".

2. Read aloud and translate: szia · szó · szoba

Show answer

SIH-aw (hi; bye) · SOH (word) · SO-baw (room)

3. Read aloud and translate: sárga · sapka · zseb

Show answer

SHAHR-gaw (yellow) · SHAWP-kaw (cap) · ZHEHB (pocket)

4. Say "thank you" and "hi / bye" (informal) in Hungarian.

Show answer

Köszönöm (KEU-seu-neum) · Szia (SIH-aw).

5. Why is asztal said "AWS-tawl" and not "ASH-tawl"?

Show answer

Because sz is the plain "s" sound. (A lone s would be "sh".)

6. Add "in" to szoba and zseb.

Show answer

szobában (back vowels; final a lengthens) · zsebben (front vowel e → -ben, and the b doubles: zseb + ben).

Coming Up in Chapter 14 Three more letters: c (said "ts"), cs (said "ch") and j (said "y"). With them you'll be able to read jó reggelt ("good morning"), kicsi (small) and cipő (shoe).