Pronunciation and orthography

An aspect of Slovak that differs from other Slavic languages is the rhythmic rule: two long syllables cannot occur consecutively.

Long syllables are syllables containing a long vowel (á, é, í, ó, ú), a long syllable-forming consonant (ŕ, ĺ), or a diphthong (ia, ie, iu, ô). This rule is often applied to adjectives.

• pekná ruža (pretty rose)
• červená ruža (red rose)
• krásna ruža (beautiful rose)

As the root of the word //krásn-// is already long, the ending //-ý, -á, -é// must be shortened: //krásny, krásna, krásne//. The word roots //pekn-// and //červen-// are short, so the ending can remain "normal", i.e. long (//pekná, červená//).

When shortened, long vowels change into short vowels. Diphthongs change as follows:

• ia – a
• ie – e
• iu – u
• ô – o

There are many exceptions to the rhythmic rule.

Exemptions from the rhythmic rule

For nouns:

• declension of //vysvedčenie//, e.g.: lístie, prútie, skálie
• feminine nouns (genitive plural), e.g.: básní, tlačiarní, piesní
• declensions of //žena//, //ulica//, //mesto// (genitive plural), e.g.: výhier/výher, hospodárstiev
• with the endings //-iar//, //-iareň//, e.g.: múčiar, bieliareň
• with the prefixes //ná-//, //zá-//, //sú-//, e.g.: nátierka, zásielka, súčiastka

For adjectives:

• declension of //páví//, e.g.: líščí, kohútí

For pronouns:

• indefinite pronouns, e.g.: niekým, niečím, bárským, bohviečie, čertviečím, ktoviekým, neviemčiu

For verbs:

• repetitive verbs, e.g.: chválievať, strážievať
• conjugation of //rozumieť//, e.g.: zmúdrieť
• participle, e.g.: chváliac, súdiac
• present active participle, e.g.: chváliaci, súdiaci
• past active participle (archaism), e.g.: vyliavší, zakliavší

For different compound words, e.g.:

• prvýkrát, tisícnásobne, viacmiestny