Last Six Letters
Hungarian Alphabet 1
Chapter 17 · The Last Six Letters: DZ, DZS, Q, W, X, Y
🔤 The Final Letters — dz dzs q w x y
Six letters remain, and they're all rare. dz and dzs do appear in a few real words (dzsem, "jam"), whereas q, w, x and y are found mostly in family names and foreign words. When you've finished this chapter, you'll have met all 44 letters of the Hungarian alphabet.
All 44 letters. Today's six are outlined; every other letter you have already met.
✨ dz and dzs
✨ q, w, x and y
| Letter | Sound | Where you'll meet it |
|---|---|---|
| q | "kv" | Very rare. Hungarian usually spells the sound kv (kvíz, "quiz"). q survives in a few foreign names and terms. |
| w | "v" | Foreign words and names. The letter's name is dupla vé ("double v"), and WC is said vécé (VAY-tsay); web is said "VEHB". |
| x | "ks" | Loanwords: taxi (TAWK-sih), fax (FAWKS), extra (EHKS-traw). |
| y | "i" | On its own, mostly at the end of old-fashioned family names as a spelling of "i": Esterházy (ESH-tehr-hah-zih). Otherwise it's part of gy, ly, ny, ty. |
📖 Read It — Words With the Rare Letters
| # | Hungarian | Say it | English | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | dzsem | DZHEHM | jam | dzs = "j" |
| 2 | dzsungel | DZHUN-gehl | jungle | dzs = "j" |
| 3 | dzsúdó | DZHOO-doh | judo | dzs; long ú |
| 4 | dzsessz | DZHEHS-s | jazz | ssz = a long "s" |
| 5 | madzag | MAW-dzawg | string | dz |
| 6 | bodza | BO-dzaw | elderflower; elder | dz |
| 7 | taxi | TAWK-sih | taxi | x = ks |
| 8 | fax | FAWKS | fax | x = ks |
| 9 | extra | EHKS-traw | extra | x = ks |
| 10 | xilofon | KSIH-lo-fon | xylophone | x = ks at the start |
| 11 | WC | VAY-tsay | toilet | w = v; said as the letter names |
| 12 | web | VEHB | web; website | w = v |
💬 Mini-Dialogs
① A Taxi — Taxi!
② The Toilet — Hol a WC?
③ Bread and Jam — Kenyér és dzsem
✍️ Try It Yourself — Gyakorlatok
Say each answer out loud first, then click to check.
1. How many letters does the Hungarian alphabet have, and how are they divided?
Show answer
44 letters: 14 vowels (6 back, 4 front unrounded, 4 front rounded) and 30 consonant letters, including the digraphs cs, dz, gy, ly, ny, sz, ty, zs and the trigraph dzs.
2. What do dz and dzs sound like?
Show answer
dz = a voiced "ts" (as in adds); dzs = the English "j" of jam.
3. How does Hungarian write the English "j" sound, and what sound does the Hungarian letter j make?
Show answer
The English "j" is written dzs (dzsem); the Hungarian j is the "y" of yes.
4. Read aloud and translate: dzsem · dzsúdó · dzsungel
Show answer
DZHEHM (jam) · DZHOO-doh (judo) · DZHUN-gehl (jungle)
5. How is the letter w pronounced, and how do Hungarians say "WC"?
Show answer
w = "v". "WC" is said vécé (VAY-tsay).
6. Read aloud and translate: taxi · fax · extra
Show answer
TAWK-sih (taxi) · FAWKS (fax) · EHKS-traw (extra). The letter x is "ks".