Although Hungarian is one of the most difficult languages, it is relatively easy to learn to read it. Like many Eastern European and Asian languages, Hungarian is a sound-describing language, which means each letter corresponds to a sound, and reading a word means pronouncing the letters sequentially which make up the word.
In the table the underlined part of the English word shows the sound.
| Hungarian letter | Sounds like (English word) | Hungarian example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| a | far | kabát | coat |
| á | cut | láz | fever |
| b | boat | bíró | judge |
| c | cats | kocka | cube |
| cs | catch | csirke | chicken |
| d | deer | edény | dish |
| dz | birds | madzag | string |
| e | men | egér | mouse |
| é | game | kék | blue |
| f | fit | fedő | lid |
| g | goal | golyó | roller / ball |
| gy | schedule | gyökér | root |
| h | high | híd | bridge |
| i | hit | piros | red |
| í | beer | papír | paper |
| j | yankie | jó | good |
| k | kit | kenyér | bread |
| l | loop | láb | leg |
| ly | yankie | lyuk | hole |
| m | man | magyar | Hungarian |
| n | man | nagy | big |
| ny | manual | nyúl | rabbit |
| o | falcon | bor | wine |
| ó | core | só | salt |
| ö | her | sör | beer |
| ő | kerb | bőr | skin |
| p | point | kapu | gate |
| r | ring | róka | fox |
| s | ship | sárga | yellow |
| sz | seek | szikra | spark |
| t | tip | toll | feather / pen |
| ty | get you | tyúk | hen |
| u | good | utas | passenger |
| ú | loop | út | way |
| ü | manure | üveg | bottle / glass |
| ű | grün(1) | hűtőgép | fridge |
| v | veel | vaj | butter |
| z | bees | központ | centre |
| zs | casual | mazsola | sultana |

