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The Lithuanian alphabet and pronunciation, for beginners
Good news first: Lithuanian is written almost exactly as it sounds. Each letter has a dependable sound, with only a few small, predictable shifts. Learn the letters once and you can read any word aloud, even one you've never seen.
The alphabet has 32 letters. Most look familiar, a few wear little marks (a hook, a dot, a line or a tail), and q, w and x are missing entirely. This guide walks through every letter, the letter pairs, the sliding vowels, the softening i and stress, with words you can tap to hear a native speaker.
The table below also gives each letter's name, the way Lithuanians say it when spelling a word out loud.
Start with one you'll use every day: ačiū (thank you).
The 32 letters
| Letter | Name | Sounds like | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| A a | a | short: like u in cut; long: like a in father | mažas small |
| Ą ą | a nosinė | long a, as in father (the tail no longer means a nasal sound) | ąžuolas oak |
| B b | bė | like English b | bulvė potato |
| C c | cė | like ts in cats, even at the start of a word | cukrus sugar |
| Č č | čė | like ch in church | česnakas garlic |
| D d | dė | like English d | duona bread |
| E e | e | open e, between e in bet and a in cat; can be long | ežeras lake |
| Ę ę | e nosinė | long open e, like a drawn-out a in cat | pavargęs tired |
| Ė ė | ė | long closed e, like ai in air but tenser | kėdė chair |
| F f | ef | like English f (found mostly in borrowed words) | futbolas soccer, football |
| G g | gė | always hard, like g in go | gerai well, fine, OK |
| H h | ha | like English h (found mostly in borrowed words) | humoras humor |
| I i | i trumpoji | short i, like i in sit | pilis castle |
| Į į | i nosinė | long ee, as in see (same sound as y) | įdomus interesting |
| Y y | i ilgoji | long ee, as in see | vyras man |
| J j | jot | like y in yes | jūra sea |
| K k | ka | like English k, without a puff of air | kava coffee |
| L l | el | like English l; softer before i and e | labai very |
| M m | em | like English m | mokykla school |
| N n | en | like English n | naujas new |
| O o | o | like o in more, usually long | obuolys apple |
| P p | pė | like English p, without a puff of air | prašau please |
| R r | er | a short tap or roll of the tongue tip | draugas friend (m) |
| S s | es | always like s in sun, never like z | sesuo sister |
| Š š | eš | like sh in shop | šokoladas chocolate |
| T t | tė | like English t, without a puff of air | tėvas father |
| U u | u trumpoji | short u, like oo in book | žuvis fish |
| Ų ų | u nosinė | long oo, as in moon (same sound as ū) | mūsų our |
| Ū ū | u ilgoji | long oo, as in moon | sūnus son |
| V v | vė | like English v | vanduo water |
| Z z | zė | like z in zoo | zuikis hare, bunny |
| Ž ž | žė | like s in pleasure | žmona wife |
The special letters, one group at a time
Nine letters carry marks. They look scarier than they are, and fall into four simple groups.
č, š, ž: the hooked consonants. The little hook turns c, s and z into ch, sh and the s in pleasure. Compare česnakas (garlic), šokoladas (chocolate) and žmona (wife).
ą, ę, į, ų: the tailed vowels. These letters were once nasal, which is where the tail comes from. Today they are simply long vowels: ą is a long a, ę a long open e, į a long ee and ų a long oo. Hear it in ąžuolas (oak) and pavargęs (tired).
ė: the dotted e. This is a long, closed e, a bit like ai in air but with the tongue higher and tenser. You'll meet it constantly: kodėl (why), tėvas (father), žmonės (people).
ū: the long u. The line on top simply makes u long, like oo in moon: sūris (cheese), sūnus (son).
- ačiūthank you (č and ū)
- šešisix (m)
- mažassmall
- lėtaislowly
- ąžuolasoak (ą and ž)
- įdomusinteresting (į = long ee)
Same sound, different spelling: y and į, ū and ų
Two pairs of letters share a sound. y and į both sound like a long ee; ū and ų both sound like a long oo.
Which letter is written depends on grammar and word history, not on pronunciation, so you only need to learn one sound for each pair. The tailed letters often turn up in grammatical endings: mūsų (our) has a ū in the middle and a ų at the end, and both sound the same.
Each pair below puts the two spellings side by side. Listen for the identical long vowel.
- y and į, the same long eelytito rainlįstito crawl in
- y and į, the same long eevyrasmanįdomusinteresting
- ū and ų, the same long oosiūtito sewsiųstito send
- ū and ų, the same long oosūnussonvaikųof children
Letter pairs: ch, dž and dz
Three consonant pairs are pronounced as one sound. ch is the throaty sound in Scottish loch or German Bach. dž is the j in jam, and dz is the ds in kids.
All three are uncommon in everyday beginner words. ch turns up mostly in borrowings, dž in a handful of common words, and dz is rare enough that the best-known example is a place name.
- choraschoir (ch, like ch in Scottish loch)
- chemijachemistry (ch)
- džiaugsmasjoy (dž, like j in jam)
- džinsaijeans (dž)
- DzūkijaDzūkija, a region of southern Lithuania (a proper name; dz, like ds in kids)
Sliding vowels: ie, uo, ai, ei, au, ui
Some vowel pairs glide from one sound into the next within a single syllable. Say them smoothly, as one beat, not two.
ie starts like ye in yes and glides on, as in diena (day) and Lietuva (Lithuania). uo starts like wo in won't, as in duona (bread) and vanduo (water).
The rest are close to English: ai like i in kite (laikas, time), au like ow in cow (draugas, friend), ei like ay in day (eiti, to go on foot), and ui like ooey said quickly (paskui, afterwards).
- šiandientoday (ie)
- mėnuomonth (uo)
- geraiwell, fine, OK (ai)
- šeimafamily (ei)
- paukštisbird (au)
- puikiaigreat, excellent (ui and ai)
The softening i, and why j always softens
The letter i does two different jobs, and telling them apart is the key to counting syllables correctly.
The regular i is a full vowel. It is the short i of sit, and it forms a syllable of its own: kinas (cinema) is ki·nas, and pilis (castle) is pi·lis.
The softening i is not a vowel at all. When i is written between a consonant and another vowel, it usually makes no syllable of its own. It only softens the consonant in front of it, a bit like the faint y in English cute or new (as some say it). ačiū (thank you) is a·čiū, two syllables, never a-chee-oo.
More everyday examples: siūlas (thread) is siū·las and kelias (road) is ke·lias. In both, the i only softens the consonant before it, so neither word gains an extra syllable.
One exception: in ie, the i is part of the sliding vowel, as in pienas (milk), pie·nas. And when i really must be its own syllable before another vowel, Lithuanian usually adds a j: radijas (radio) is ra·di·jas.
Some words show both kinds of i at once. In kiaušinis (egg), kiau·ši·nis, the first i only softens k, while the other two are full vowels.
j always softens. The letter j is the y of yes, and a consonant right in front of it is soft too, just as before a softening i. You'll hear it in pjauti (to cut) and bjaurus (nasty). On its own, j is simply a friendly y: jūra (sea), jaunas (young), kojos (legs).
- ačiūthank you: a·čiū, 2 syllables; the i only softens č
- siūlasthread: siū·las, 2 syllables; the i only softens s
- keliasroad: ke·lias, 2 syllables; the i only softens l
- kinascinema (ki·nas: the i is a full vowel)kiaulėpig (kiau·lė: the i only softens k)
- šiltaswarm (šil·tas: the i is a full vowel)šiaurėnorth (šiau·rė: the i only softens š)
- kiaušinisegg: kiau·ši·nis, 3 syllables; the first i softens k, the others are full vowels
- pjautito cut: pjau·ti; j softens the p in front of it
- jaunasyoung: jau·nas; j is the y in yes
Stress: where the beat falls
Lithuanian stress is free: it can fall on any syllable, and it can move between different forms of the same word. Normal writing does not mark it, so the spelling won't tell you.
Dictionaries and textbooks do mark it, with three accent signs. The acute (´) and the circumflex (˜) sit on a stressed long vowel or vowel pair and show two different pitch movements; the grave (`) marks a stressed short vowel.
Usually a misplaced beat just sounds a little foreign. Now and then, though, stress and tone are all that separate two words. The classic example is aũkštas (floor, storey) and áukštas (tall, high): same letters, different meanings.
Verbs do it too. galì means you can, while gãli means he or she can.
The honest shortcut is to learn each word together with its sound, not just its spelling. Native audio is the best guide, and context sorts out almost every pair like these.
While you're starting out, don't stress about stress. A slightly misplaced beat is usually still understood; clear vowels and consonants matter more.
- aũkštasfloor, storeyáukštastall, high
- kalbàlanguagekal̃ba(he or she) speaks
- galìyou cangãlihe or she can
- kasàbraidkãsa(he or she) digs
Common mistakes for English speakers
A few English habits are worth unlearning early.
- sAlways s, never z. English turns s into z in words like rose; Lithuanian doesn't.
- gAlways hard, as in go, even before e and i: gerai starts like get.
- cSay ts, not k or s: cukrus (sugar) starts like the end of cats.
- jSay y as in yes, never the English j in jam (that sound is written dž).
- rTap or roll it with the tip of the tongue, and don't drop it at the end of a syllable.
- ėKeep it one steady vowel. Don't slide it into ay-ee like English day.
- ūLong vowels really are long: sūnus (son) has a drawn-out first vowel.
- iDon't turn a softening i into an extra syllable: ačiū has two syllables, not three.
- šNever skip the marks. They are separate letters, and dropping them can change or break a word.
Tips
- Read every word aloud, even when studying on your own. Lithuanian rewards it because the spelling is so regular.
- Learn the hooked letters first: č, š and ž show up constantly, in words like ačiū (thank you) and prašau (please).
- Practice with short real phrases: Labas, čia mano žmona. (Hi, this is my wife.) packs č and ž into one breath.
- Practice spelling your name with the letter names from the table. It's a handy skill on the phone or at a hotel desk.
- Add a Lithuanian keyboard to your phone early, so you never get into the habit of dropping marks.
Questions
How many letters are in the Lithuanian alphabet?
32. It uses the Latin alphabet without q, w and x, and adds nine letters with marks: ą, č, ę, ė, į, š, ų, ū and ž. Pairs like ch, dž and dz are written with two letters and are not counted as separate letters.
Is Lithuanian hard to pronounce?
Less than people expect. Spelling is very regular. The real challenges are vowel length, the free stress and a few sounds like ė and the sliding ie and uo, and all of these improve quickly with listening practice.
What do the dots, tails and hooks on Lithuanian letters mean?
The hook (č, š, ž) changes the consonant to ch, sh or the s in pleasure. The tail (ą, ę, į, ų) marks a long vowel; it once meant a nasal sound. The dot on ė makes it a long closed e, and the line on ū makes it a long oo. These are separate letters, not decorations.
Why are there two letters for the same sound?
y and į both spell a long ee, and ū and ų both spell a long oo. The choice depends on grammar and word history, not on pronunciation, so when reading aloud you can treat each pair as one sound.
Does written Lithuanian show where the stress goes?
No. Everyday texts don't mark stress, and it can fall on any syllable. Dictionaries and learning materials add accent marks, but the most reliable way to learn it is to hear each word spoken.
How do I type Lithuanian letters?
On a phone, add a Lithuanian keyboard, or press and hold a letter on your usual keyboard to pick its marked versions. On Windows and macOS, add the Lithuanian keyboard layout in your language settings; the special letters sit on the number row.