Hungarian Alphabet 1
Chapter 2 · Back Vowels: O Ó
🔤 More Back Vowels — o ó
In Chapter 1 you met a and á. Today you add the next pair of back vowels, o and ó. Unlike a / á, these two are the same sound, short and long. You'll also read your first full Hungarian question: Hol a ház? ("Where is the house?").
| Back vowels | Short | Long | Respelled |
|---|
| Chapter 1 | a | á | aw · ah |
| Chapter 2 (today) | o | ó | o · oh |
| Chapter 3 | u | ú | (next chapter) |
✨ Two New Vowels — o ó
o
O · o
short, like the "o" in more but without the "r" and without gliding to "oo" — respelled o
back vowel · short
Mouth tip: round your lips into a neat "O" and keep them still while you say a short, pure vowel. Scottish speakers have an advantage: the vowel of Scots no and go doesn't glide, so it is close.
ó
Ó · ó
the same sound, held about twice as long, like the "o" in boat without the glide — respelled oh
back vowel · long
Mouth tip: same rounded lips and same position as o, but hold it steady. Don't let it slide into "ow" (English go in a southern accent) or "oo".
o and a: Two Rounded Back Vowels
Both a ("aw", as in hot) and o are produced at the back of the mouth with rounded lips. The difference is how open the mouth is: a has the mouth wider open, and o has a smaller, rounder shape. Say "hot" (a) and then "more" without the r (o), and feel your jaw close slightly.
Don't Confuse o with ö
A letter with two dots, ö, is a completely different vowel from o (it's a front vowel, which you'll meet in Chapter 6). The same goes for ó (one acute accent) against ő (the "double acute"). Always check the marks.
📖 Read It — New Words
You can now read all of these. Two flags: j is said "y" (Chapter 14), and s is said "sh" (Chapter 13). Those two letters are in the table, with notes, because the words are so useful.
| # | Hungarian | Say it | English | Note |
|---|
| 1 | ló | LOH | horse | long ó |
| 2 | tó | TOH | lake | long ó |
| 3 | hó | HOH | snow | also means "month" |
| 4 | jó | YOH | good | j is said "y" |
| 5 | óra | OH-raw | hour; clock; lesson | long ó, then short a |
| 6 | hol | HOL | where | short o |
| 7 | bor | BOR | wine | tapped r |
| 8 | kor | KOR | age; era | short o |
| 9 | ott | OTT | there | double t: hold the t |
| 10 | orr | ORR | nose | double r: a longer tap |
| 11 | rokon | RO-kon | relative (family member) | stress on RO |
| 12 | sok | SHOK | many, much | s is said "sh" |
A Short and Long Pair: kor and kór
The only difference between kor (KOR, "age, era") and kór (KOHR, "disease, illness") is the length of the vowel. This is why the accent marks matter: a missing accent can change a word completely. Think of the accent as a "hold it" mark.
💬 Your First Questions and Answers
With hol ("where"), ott ("there") and a / az ("the"), you can ask and answer where things are. Notice that Hungarian doesn't need a word for "is" here: Hol a ház? is literally "Where the house?"
① Where Is the House? — Hol a ház?
A:
Hol a ház?
HOL aw HAHZ?
Where is the house?
B:
Ott a ház.
OTT aw HAHZ.
The house is there.
② Where Is the Apple? — Hol az alma?
A:
Hol az alma?
HOL awz AWL-maw?
Where is the apple?
B:
Ott az alma.
OTT awz AWL-maw.
The apple is there.
③ Where Is the Lake? — Hol a tó?
A:
Hol a tó?
HOL aw TOH?
Where is the lake?
B:
Ott a tó. Jó!
OTT aw TOH. YOH!
The lake is there. Good!
Real Hungarian Tip — Double Letters Are Long
In ott and orr, the doubled consonant means a long consonant: you hold the sound for an extra beat, like the "t" in the English phrase "hot-tub" or the double "r" in a Scottish "burr". Hungarian doubles consonants freely, and they change meaning (hal "fish" and hall "hears" are different words). Chapter 18 returns to this in detail. For now, just hold doubled letters slightly longer.
Review: Chapter 1 Words
Cover the English and read these again: ház (house) · tál (dish) · ma (today) · apa (father) · alma (apple) · nap (sun, day) · hal (fish) · lap (page) · kar (arm) · kár (a pity) · ablak (window) · barát (friend).
✍️ Try It Yourself — Gyakorlatok
Say each answer out loud first, then click to check.
1. Say the four back vowels you know, in order, with their respellings: a · á · o · ó
Show answer
a = aw (short, rounded) · á = ah (long) · o = o (short) · ó = oh (long).
2. How do o and ó differ, compared with a and á?
Show answer
o and ó are the same sound, short and long. a and á differ in both length and sound.
3. Read aloud and translate: ló · tó · hol
Show answer
LOH (horse) · TOH (lake) · HOL (where)
4. What is the difference between kor and kór?
Show answer
Only the length of the vowel: KOR means "age, era"; KOHR means "disease".
5. Say in Hungarian: "Where is the house?" and "Where is the apple?"
Show answer
Hol a ház? and Hol az alma? (a before a consonant, az before a vowel.)
6. What does ott mean, and what does the double t tell you?
Show answer
"There". The double t is a long consonant, so hold the "t" for an extra beat.
Coming Up in Chapter 3
The back vowels finish with u and ú. You'll then read út (road), hús (meat) and nulla (zero), and see the full set of six back vowels together.