C. Consonants.—Souhlásky.
Most of the consonants in Bohemian have the same sound as in English. These will be taken up first.
The following consonants have the same pronounciation in Bohemian as in English:
b, d, f, h, l, m, p, r, t, v, z. The letter s is always pronounced as the s in side; never like s in nose (sound z).
The Accent—Přízvuk.
In Bohemian the accent falls upon the first syllable. If the word contains many syllables a secondary and weaker accent falls upon the odd syllables (that is upon the third or fifth). Since the accent is regular there is no need of marking it.
Note.—Differentiate between the long syllable and the accented one! Examples: Voda (water). Here both syllables are short, the first one is accented; pátá (the fifth); here both syllables are long, the first one is accented. Kámen (the stone); here the first syllable is long and is accented; malá (small); here the first syllable is short but accented, the second is long and unaccented. The accent is the stress of the voice, while the long syllable refers merely to the prolongation in sounding. The beginner is advised to pronounce the long syllables markedly long just for the sake of practice.