BULGARIAN

for English
Speakers


 
 
  



BULGARIAN for English Speakers is a brand new self-study

book specially designed to meet the needs of anybody intending
to learn Bulgarian well in a short time. Whoever you are - a student,
a businessperson or a visitor to the country, this book is for you.
BULGARIAN for English Speakers contains all the knowledge
that you need, emphasizing on real-world tasks. The book includes many
dialogues and other texts specially created to help you speak and be
understood. It develops your vocabulary systematically and also covers
all the required grammar skills.

Bulgarian
for English Speakers

 


 :

  


 
  :
 
 -


 


  


:
  

 :
 ! -  "

# :
60/90/16


 : 24
ISBN 954-8805-69- 3

    2005
www.gramma-bg.com
2

CONTENTS
The Bulgarian Alphabet
Pronunciation Table ............................................................................................ 9
How to read Bulgarian ...................................................................................... 11
LESSON 1
DIALOGUES. ..................................................................................................... 27
GRAMMAR NOTES .......................................................................................... 34
Categories of Person, Gender and Number ................................................ 34
Personal Pronouns ...................................................................................... 35
Auxiliary Verb $% (to be) - Positive, Negative, Interrogative
and Negative-Interrogative Forms. ......................................................... 35
The Present Tense of the Verb $% (to be) - Conjugation of the Verb ...... 35
Nouns Used When Speaking about Countries and Nationalities ............... 37
Interrogative Pronouns &'?, &*?, &+?, &8? (who?; which?);
%?, ?, &?, 8? (what?) .................................... 39
LESSON 2
DIALOGUES. ..................................................................................................... 44
GRAMMAR NOTES. ......................................................................................... 57
The Noun.
Gender of the Noun. ..................................................................................... 57
Use of the Article with Nouns of Masculine,
Feminine and Neuter Genders in the Singular ...................................... 58
Demonstrative Pronouns for Near and Distant Objects. .............................. 60
Short Accusative Forms of the Personal Pronouns in the 3rd Person,
Singular and Plural. ................................................................................ 60
Forms of Address. Vocative Forms. .............................................................. 62
Imperative Forms of Some Frequently Used Verbs. .................................... 62
LESSON 3
DIALOGUES. ..................................................................................................... 67
GRAMMAR NOTES. .......................................................................................... 81
Modes of Conjugation. Groups of Verbs. First, Second and Third Group. ... 81
The Present Tense of the Verb 8 (to have).
Impersonal use of 8 (to have) - 8 (there is) ................................... 83
Verbs of the Third Group in Present Tense - Conjugation
of Some Frequently Used Verbs ............................................................ 84
Cardinal Numbers From 1 To 10 .................................................................. 86
Ordinal Numbers From 1 To 10 .................................................................... 87
The Prepositions  (in), = (on, at),
+> (in, during, through) ................ 89

LESSON 4
DIALOGUES. ..................................................................................................... 92
GRAMMAR NOTES ........................................................................................ 102
Countable Form of Masculine Nouns in the Singular .............................. 102
Plural of Masculine, Feminine and Neuter Gender Nouns ....................... 102
Use of the Article with Masculine,
Feminine and Neuter Gender Nouns of in Plural ................................ 105
Cardinal Numbers From 10 To 1000 ......................................................... 106
Questions &? (when?), %!+? (where?), >@&? (why?) ................ 107
LESSON 5
DIALOGUES ..................................................................................................... 111
GRAMMAR NOTES ......................................................................................... 119
Present Tense of Verbs of the First Group - Conjugation.
Positive, Negative, Interrogative and Negative-Interrogative Forms .... 119
Possessive Pronouns - Short Forms ......................................................... 121
The Past Simple Tense of the Verb $% (to be) - All Forms ..................... 123
LESSON 6
DIALOGUES. ................................................................................................... 127
GRAMMAR NOTES. ....................................................................................... 138
Present Tense of Second Group Verbs - All Forms ................................... 138
Ordinal Numerals from 10 To 1000 ............................................................ 140
The Adjective. Agreement of the Adjective with the Noun.
Use of the Article with Adjectives.
Forming Degrees of Comparison ........................................................ 141
Comparison of Adjectives .......................................................................... 143
LESSON 7
DIALOGUES. ................................................................................................... 147
GRAMMAR NOTES ........................................................................................ 157
Future Tense of the Verb $% (to be) ....................................................... 157
Future Tense of Verbs Maintaining the Same Form
in the Present and the Future Tense .................................................... 158
Negative Pronouns .................................................................................... 160
The Position of the Interrogative Particle E8 ............................................. 161
The Prepositions =! (above, over, more than),
&! (under, less than),

+! (in front of, before),
+!8 (ago, before), $E+! (after, in) ...... 162
LESSON 8
DIALOGUES. ................................................................................................... 165
GRAMMAR NOTES. ........................................................................................ 174
The Present Tense of Reflexive Verbs ........................................................ 174
The Place of the Reflexive Personal Pronoun .......................................... 175

Possessive Pronouns - Complete Forms .................................................. 176

Prepositions ,
8, J .............................................................................. 178
Verbal Nouns (Gerund Participles) ............................................................ 180
LESSON 9
DIALOGUES ....................................................................................................
GRAMMAR NOTES ........................................................................................
Relative Pronouns .....................................................................................
Complete Accusative Forms of Personal Pronouns ..................................
Compound Predicate .................................................................................
The Active Present Participle ....................................................................

183
195
195
196
197
199

LESSON 10
DIALOGUES. ................................................................................................... 202
GRAMMAR NOTES. ....................................................................................... 211
Imperfective and Perfective Aspects of Bulgarian Verbs
(1st and 2nd Form of Verbs) ................................................................. 211
The Future Tense (KL ) - Formation; Positive,
Negative, Interrogative and Negative-Interrogative Forms ................. 212
Use of the 2nd Form of Verbs after the Modal Verbs &
(can, may, to be able to), "* (must, should, would,
have to, have got to, need to, ought to), 8$ (want) ...................... 217
Indefinite Pronouns .................................................................................... 219
Demonstrative Pronouns "%, ", "&, "8
(such; like this/these) ............................................................................ 220
Preposition 8> (throughout, in, around, about) ........................................ 220
LESSON 11
DIALOGUES. ................................................................................................... 223
GRAMMAR NOTES. ....................................................................................... 235
The Future Tense - Continuation .............................................................. 235
The Imperative Mood ................................................................................. 235
LESSON 12
DIALOGUES. ................................................................................................... 242
GRAMMAR NOTES ........................................................................................ 252
The Past Simple Tense .............................................................................. 252
The Location of the Short Accusative Form of Personal Pronouns .......... 260
The Location of the Short Accusative and Dative Forms of Personal
Pronouns Used Simultaneously ......................................................... 261
The Preposition +Y!J (
&+Y!J) (between) ................................... 261

LESSON 13
DIALOGUES .................................................................................................... 264
GRAMMAR NOTES ........................................................................................ 274
The Past Simple Tense
of the verb Z  - [ .................................................................... 274
The Past Simple Tense - Continuation ...................................................... 274
The Compound Predicate in the Past Simple Tense ................................ 277
Complex Sentences Containing Subordinate Object Clauses ................. 279
LESSON 14
DIALOGUES. ................................................................................................... 285
GRAMMAR NOTES ........................................................................................ 294
The Active Past Simple Participle .............................................................. 294
The Past Indefinite Tense .......................................................................... 295
The Past Perfect Tense - Meaning, Formation, Forms ............................. 299
LESSON 15
DIALOGUES. ................................................................................................... 304
GRAMMAR NOTES. ....................................................................................... 310
The Past Continuous Tense - Conjugation and Forms ............................. 310
The Verbal Adverb ..................................................................................... 312
The Passive Participle. The Passive Voice
The Present, Past and Future Tenses of Passive Constructions .............. 312
LESSON 16
DIALOGUES. ................................................................................................... 318
GRAMMAR NOTES ........................................................................................ 331
The Future in the Past ................................................................................ 331
The Conditional Mood ............................................................................... 332
The Future Perfect Tense ........................................................................... 334
The Narrative Mood / The Indirect Indicative Mood .................................. 335
TABLES
TABLE 1
A Comparison of Bulgarian and English Tenses
Juxtaposition of the Tenses - A Simple Guide ................................................ 338
TABLE 2
Verb  (to be) - Present, Past, and Future Tenses - All Forms .................... 340
TABLE 3
Present Tense of the Verbs of the First, Second, and Third Groups ............... 341
TABLE 4
First and Second Forms of Some Verbs . ..................................................... 342

TABLE 5
The Past Simple Tense of the Verbs from Table 4. .......................................... 343
TABLE 6
Past Continuous Tense ................................................................................... 344
TABLE 7
Future (Simple) Tense ..................................................................................... 345
TABLE 8
Prepositions and Their Meanings ................................................................... 347
TABLE 9
Pronouns ......................................................................................................... 354
TABLE 10. ....................................................................................................... 358
/ Confirmation and Agreement
/ Disagreement
/ Requests
/ Warnings
!/ Gratitude
+/ Excuses or Apologies
Y/ Lack of Information
>/ Suppositions or Assumptions
8/ Neglect or Ignorance
'/ Hope
/ Praise
E/ When Somebody Is Waiting for Us
TABLE 11
Some Frequently Used Idiomatic Expressions in Bulgarian ......................... 362
TABLE 12
Business Contacts and Correspondence ........................................................ 363
The Customs .................................................................................................... 364
Travelling .......................................................................................................... 366
In Town ............................................................................................................. 368
At the Hotel ....................................................................................................... 369
At thePost Office. On theTelephone .................................................................. 370
At the Bank. Money ............................................................................................ 371
At the Restaurant .............................................................................................. 372
Shopping .......................................................................................................... 375
At the Doctors .................................................................................................. 379
At the Chemists ................................................................................................ 380
The Human Body .............................................................................................. 381
Family. Relatives ............................................................................................... 382
Holidays ............................................................................................................ 382
Education. Occupations .................................................................................... 383

List of Abbreviations:
English:
abt. about
e.g. (exempli gratia) for example
i.e. (id est) that is
n noun
m masculine
f feminine
ntr neuter
sng singular
pl plural
adj adjective
v verb
1p 1st person
2p 2nd person
3p 3rd person
1gr 1st group
2gr 2nd group
3gr 3rd group
1f 1st form
2f 2nd form
colloq. colloquial speech
o.s. oneself
o.s ones
s.b. somebody

s.o. someone
s.th. something
Bulgarian:
..   /masculine gender
.. 
  /feminine gender
.. 
 /neuter gender
.. 
 
  /singular

.. 
 
  /plural
^.. ^ _
  /the Present
Tense
K.. KL  /the Future
Tense

... 
 _

 /the Past Simple Tense

.
.. 

_

 /the Past Continuous Tense

.
`.. 


`
  /the Past
Indefinite Tense

.`.. 

`  
  /the Past
Perfect Tense
K..
. KL  

  /the Future in the Past

The Bulgarian Alphabet

Pronunciation Table

Bulgarian Alphabet Pronunciation


K

^
!
+
Y
>
8
'

E

=

&

`

$
"
J
#}
~


_
@L
%

*

[a]
[b]
[v]
[g]
[d]
[e]
[zh]
[z]
[i]
[y]
[k]
[l]
[m]
[n]
[o]
[p]
[r] (hard)
[s]
[t]
[u]
[f]
[h] (aspirate)
[ts]
[ch]
[sh]
[sht]
[]
[~] (softener)
[yu]
[ya]

Examples of respective
English sounds
after, past, path
bit, bright, be, bear
vogue, vivid, violin, vision
get, go, glory, tag
day, dream, destiny, devotion
set, bet, tell, let
illusion, vision, division, fusion
zero, amazing, Zen, zip
grin, inn, sit, hit
boy, toy, yacht, yeoman
key, kid, keep, kit
live, light, letter, litter
man, miracle, make, almost
night, not, near, on
opt, top, stop, dot
pet, pall, please, part
red, rest, read, rubber
set, sit, stop, said
top, talk, tell, let
put, look, took, pudding
fusion, fire, flame, fantasy
hope, hear, had, hut
tsunami, sits, meets
chair, teach, charity, chat
she, shall, shark, shift
ashtray, fishtail, wished, washed
camel, campus, letter, better
(no literal English equivalent)
yurt, you, new, music
yard, yarn, Yankee





INTRODUCTION

The Bulgarian Alphabet consists of 30 letters. They represent the

sounds as shown below.
There are six vowels:



are wide (open) vowels

are narrow (closed) vowels;

and two diphthongal vowels:

= +
 = +
The remaining letters represent consonants:




 are voiced consonants

"

are resonant (sonorous) consonants;

is a short ;

softens the sounds before/after which it is placed;

is an aspirate consonant;

are voiceless consonants;

% = + and is therefore a diphthongal consonant.

10

How to read Bulgarian

K
How to read letters.
Each letter has own designation that is used when pronouncing either
the
whole alphabet or a single
letter:
12345678901
1234567890
1234567890
12345678901
12345678901
12345678901
&
12345678901
12345678901
12345678901
'
12345678901
12345678901
12345678901
12345678901


12345678901
12345678901
12345678901
12345678901
(
12345678901
12345678901
12345678901

12345678901
12345678901
12345678901
12345678901

12345678901
12345678901
12345678901
)
12345678901
12345678901
12345678901
12345678901
*
12345678901
12345678901
12345678901

12345678901
12345678901
12345678901
12345678901
,
12345678901

(a)
(b)
(v)
(g)
(d)
(e)
(zh)
(z)
(i)
('i 'kratko)

1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
-
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
/
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
;
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
!
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
<
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
>
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
?"
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
@
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
F
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
J
1234567890

(k)
(l)
(m)
(n)
(o)
(p)
(r)
(s)
(t)
(u)

1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
K
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
Q$
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
V
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
W
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
X
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
[%
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890


1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
#
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
\

1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
1234567890
]
1234567890

(f)
(h)
(ts)
(ch)
(sh)
(sht)
('er go'lyam)
('er 'malk)
(yu)
(ya)

L
How to read words. The placing of stress.
All the letters in words should be pronounced in the way they are marked
in the Pronunciation Table. Some more explanations as well as special cases
and exceptions are given below.
Bearing in mind that word stress in Bulgarian takes a different place in
each word, there are no rules for learning the placing of stress. Therefore,
each new word should be learned by itself. For the purpose of marking stress,
in this book we have adopted the sign ['] preceding the stressed syllable.
Vowels:
When the wide (open) vowels , ,  are stressed, they should be
pronounced clearly:
[a]  [o]  [e]
Examples:
&  [a]
_^
^

 
`

['avgust]
[grat]
[mlat]
['kazvam]
[po'dark]

August
a town; a city
young
to say
a present
11

<  [o]
[`
`[
[ 
`
[

['opit]
['prolet]
['ostrof]
[sport]
[kri'lo]

experience
spring
island
sport
wing

 [e]
 

K
K



['eftin]
['bezhof]
[bes]
[k'de]
[mom'che]

cheap
beige
without
where
boy

However, when the vowels and  are unstressed, they get narrower by
reducing their length:
becomes [ ]
.
(a medial sound of [a] and  [])
 becomes [o]
.
(a medial sound of  [o] and  [u]).
Examples:
&  [ ]
.
K
`

Z^
 K[



['azbuk ]
.
['lamp ]
.
['knig ]
.
[v 'blok ]
.
[n . cho'vek ]
.

alphabet
lamp
book
in the block
to/of the man

<  [o]
.

K

`
Z

[o'rel]
.
[o'bufk]
.
[mo're]
.
[po'le]
.
[ o'ris]
.

eagle
shoe
sea
field; ground
rice

The remaiining vowels should be pronounced in the way they are

marked in the Pronunciation Table.

12

Examples:

[]
`

j^

`

`



[pt]
['gl]
[prst]
[pk]
[t 'kf]
.

way
angle; corner
soil
but; yet
such

J  [u]


Z 
 ^

^

[um]
['uch ]
.
[u'chitel]
[ur 'gan]
.
[dru'gar]

mind
to study; to learn
teacher
hurricane
mate; friend

  [i]

Z
Z

` 



[mil]
[ili]
['kin o]
.
[pri'yatel]
[ide'alno]
.

dear; kind
or
cinema
friend
perfectly, ideal

12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
The alteration of to [ ]
. is the most frequently found.
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
In
particular,

becomes
[ ]
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
. at the end of some words.
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
The other above-mentioned vowel reductions are not as pronounced.
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212

The diphthong vowels [yu] and  [ya] are each made up of two
letters/sounds:
= +
 = +
However, they should be read as single sounds.
The diphthong vowel should be pronounced [yu]:
\ [yu]
^
[yuk]
South


['yuzhen]
southern
}
[yuf'ka]
noodles


[yu'nak]
hero

_
['yun osh
teenager
. ]
.
13

The diphthong vowel  can be pronounced in two ways depending on

the position of the letter and its stress. If  is stressed, it should be
pronounced [ya]:
]  [ya]
K
 K

K
^

['yablk ]
.
['yastrep]
['yatka]
[ ob'yav
]
.
.
['yagod
. ]
.

apple
hawk
kernel
ad(vertisement)
strawberry

However, when  is not stressed, in particular when placed at the end

of a given word, it should be pronounced [y ]:
.
]  [y]
`
Z

^
`

Z 

['pravy ]
.
['misly ]
.
['angliy ]
.
['pey ]
.
[na u'chitely ]
.

to do
to think
England
to sing
to/of the teacher

12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
The vowel alterations
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
to [ ]
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
. and
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
 to [y ]
.
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
are the most frequently found.
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
In particular, a becomes [ ]
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
. and  becomes [y ]
. at the end of some
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
words.
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
Other vowel reductions are not as pronounced.
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212
12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212

Consonants.
Voiced consonants should be pronounced in one of two ways:
When a voiced consonant is placed in any position in a given word,
except as the last letter, it should be pronounced in the usual way as a
voiced consonant.
Examples:
'  [b]
KK
['bab ]
grandmother
.
K
['byal ]
white (f)
.

14

K
^
~K

[broy]
[bl'gariy ]
.
['hubost]

number; copy
Bulgaria
beauty

 [v]

 


 


[vr 'ta]
.
['vtre]
[vn]
['vyarv m]
.
['varn ]
.

door
in
out
to believe
Varna (a Bulgarian city)

(  [g]
^


[^
^[
^
^_

['garv n]
.
['mnogo]
.
[ge'roy]
[go'lyam]
['greshk ]
.

raven
much; many
hero
big
mistake; error

  [d]
[


K



[dr'vo]
[den]
[do'br]
[de'te]
[da]

tree
day
good
child
yes

)  [zh]


Y

Z 


[zhe'na]
['yuzhen]
[zhe'neva]
['zhito]
[zhif]

woman
southern
Geneva
wheat
alive

*  [z]
K

 

 



['zebr ]
.
[izvi'nyav m]
.
[zo'ra]
[iz'vesten]
[zvez'da]

zebra
to excuse
dawn
well-known
star

15

 When the last letter of the word represents a voiced consonant, the
voiced consonant devocalizes and becomes voiceless. Each devocalized
voiced consonant obtains the sound of the respective voiceless
consonant. Therefore:

K

^




[b]
[v]
[g]
[d]
[zh]
[z]

Examples:
'  [p]
~K
K
^K
KK
^K

becomes ` [p]
becomes } [f]
becomes  [k]
becomes [t]
becomes _ [sh]
becomes  [s]

[hlyap]
[dp]
['glp]
[bop]
[grup]

bread
oak
pigeon
beans
rude

 [f]

Z

Z 
 
~K 

[vf ]
['molif ]
['nik kf
]
.
[k 'kf
]
.
['hub f
. ]

in
pencil
none; any; no
what
beautiful; pretty

(  [k]
^
^
^
 ^
^

['dlk]
[vlok]
[druk]
[drak]
[yuk]

long
bank deposit
other; another
dear
South

  [t]
^ 
K
K
^ 

[glat]
['obet]
[blet]
[grat]
[nat]

hunger
lunch
pale
city; town
above

16

)  [sh]
 
 
B!
!!


[tara'lesh]
[v 'lesh]
.
[vish]
[drsh]
[ush]

hedgehog
rainfall; snowfall
Look!
Hang it!
as if

*  [s]
`



K

[pres]
[vles]
[iz'les]
[sles]
[bes]

through
come in
go out
come down
without

The above-mentioned devocalization of voiced consonants can also be

found in another case. This is when a voiced consonant is placed in the
middle of the word and before a voiceless consonant or before the aspirate
consonant ~:
 
[te'tratka]
notebook

['slatk o]
jam; sweet(ly)
.
K_
[bifsh]
ex
^
['gratski]
of the town/city/urban

['drshk ]
handle
.
^
['gletk ]
view
.
Z`
['ispit]
exam

[tse'lufk ]
kiss
.

[ko'leshk ]
colleague (f); mate (f)
.

['ryatk o]
rare(ly)
.
`~[ L [pret'hozhd sht]
previous
.
Z
['fsichko]
everything; all
Voiceless consonants should always be pronounced as indicated in the
Pronunciation Table.
Examples:
>  [p]
`Z_
['pish ]
to write
.
`
['pravy ]
to do
.
`

['pesen]
song
`
['pamet]
memory



['pleven]
Pleven (a Bulgarian city)
17

K  [f]
}Z 
}
}

} Z
} _Z

['filtr]
[film]
[f n'taziy
]
.
.
[f v
. o'rit]
.
[f l'shif]
.

filter
film; movie
fantasy
favourite; pet
false; fake

-  [k]
 
Z
`
 
Z 

[kray]
['kriy ]
.
['krp ]
.
[k 'set
]
.
.
['isk m]
.

end
to hide
towel
cassette (tape)
to want

F  [t]
K
`
`

Z




['tryabv ]
.
[tr'py ]
.
[tr'penie]
['tikv ]
.
[t ole'rantn
ost]
.
.

must, to have to
to bear
patience
pumpkin
tolerance

X  [sh]
_^
`Z_
_

_}
 


[she'ga]
['pish ]
.
[shans]
[shef]
[sh ot'landiy
]
.
.

joke
to write
chance
boss; a chief
Scotland

@  [s]
 
 
Z 

Z 

$[}

[sto'y ]
.
['stay ]
.
['istin ]
.
['istinski]
['sofiy ]
.

to stay
room
truth
true, real
Sofia

The resonant (sonorous) consonants , ,

,  should always be pronounced as indicated in the Pronunciation Table. However, they must be articulated clearly, especially the letter  [r], much stronger than the English [r].

18

Examples:
/  [l]
`
[
Z 
K[


['lamp ]
.
['lotk ]
.
['lilaf]
[lyu'bof]
[let]

lamp
boat
lilac
love
ice

;  [m]


[^




['mam ]
.
['mnogo]
.
['malk o]
.
[miriz'ma]
['mlyak o]
.

Mum
much, many
a few; a little, small
smell
milk

 ! [n]





Z



['nyak oy]
.
['nyakde]
['nik oy]
.
[ne]
[n 'dezhd
]
.
.

somebody
somewhere
nobody
not
hope

? " [r]
[
ZK
`
`
` 

['roz ]
.
['rib ]
.
[pret]
[pri]
[pri'yatel]

rose
fish
before; in front
at
friend

The pronunciation of the short sound as represented by the letter  is [y].

The letter  is never used alone. It is either combined with  as the syllable
 [yo] at the beginning of a word; or with any other vowel positioned anywhere
else in the word.
Examples:
,  [y]


[nay]
most

[moy]
my

[yot]
iodine
'[

['yonk o]
Yonko (a mans name)
.
 
[stoy]
stay
19

The letter is not used alone either. This letter softens the sounds before/after which it is placed. is almost always used in the combination ,
pronounced [~o]=[yo].
Examples:
# [~]
 [
}
[
Z



_}[

[ k'tyor]
.
[f nt
. 'zyor]
.
['siny o]
.
['vany o]
.
[sh o'fyor]
.

actor
dreamer
blue
Vanyo (a mans name)
driver

There is no difference in the pronunciation of the sound combinations 

[yo] and  [~o] = [yo]. The only difference is written. ' is used at the
beginning of a word or after a vowel, in contrast to , that is used exclusively
after a consonant.
The letter $ represents the aspirate consonant [h]. This consonant should
be pronounced clearly, like -ch in loch.
Examples:
Q $ [h]
!
~
~[
~ 


~ 

['haide]
['hvaly ]
.
['hor ]
.
[hristi'yanin]
[hrast]

Come on!
to praise
people
Christian (m)
bush

The letter % [sht] comprises two separate consonants:  [sh] and  [t]
linked as single sound.
Examples:
[ % [sht]
L
L
L 
L`
L K

20

[shtu'rets]
['shtuk ]
.
['shtastie]
['shtamp ]
.
[shtap]

cricket
pike
happiness
print
staff; headquarters

The letter  [ts] should be pronounced as a single sound.

Examples:
V  [ts]
 
Z^






[tsar]
['tsig nin]
.
[tsirk]
[tsyal]
['tsrkv ]
.

tsar; king
gypsy (m)
circus
whole
church

The letter  [ch] should also be pronounced as a single sound.

Examples:
W  [ch]

[
 
Z 


[che'ta]
[chis'lo]
['chetiri]
['chisty ]
.
['chudo]
.

to read
number
four
to clean
wonder

There also are two sounds,  and  that although not included in the
alphabet, should be pronounced as a single sound.
Examples:
 [dzh]
K
[dzhop]
 
[dzhas]


[dzhin]


['dzhentlmen]
`
[dzhip]
 [dz]




[dzen]
[dzn]

pocket
jazz
gin
gentleman
jeep

Zen
ting

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These are the main rules on reading Bulgarian. For ease of use we
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shall simplify some of them, as you will see in the pronunciation
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examples that follow.
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21

M

How to read phrases, sentences and a whole text.

When reading phrases, care should be taken with voiced consonants

located alongside voiceless ones - in this case, voiceless consonants are
shortened:
  
[fte'tratkata]
in the notebook
! ` 
[natpo'leto]
over the field
Care should be taken with the opposite case. Voiceless consonants are
lengthened when located next to a voiced one (especially if the voiceless
consonant precedes the voiced one):
 

[szzelen'chutsi]
with vegetables
 KK
['zbaba]
with grandmother
Any other letter should be pronounced as printed/written.
N

Learn to read Bulgarian correctly. Some examples.

 
^

.
[as sm angli'chanin.]

I am (an) English(man).

" K^ 
 ?
[ti 'blgarin li si?]

Are you Bulgarian?

  K^   ^.

[az 'ucha 'blgarski v bl'garia.]

I am learning Bulgarian in Bulgaria.

  K^   ^ .

^  Z

 
[^ 
 
.
['blgarskiyat e'zik
e 'mnogo 'truden za men.]

Bulgarian
is very difficult for me.

[    .
['moyat mzh e le'tets.]

My husband is a pilot.

[ 
  .
['moyata zhe'na e 'lekar.]

My wife is a doctor.

22

.
.
.

8  ^ L  `Z
 .
['imame go'lyama 'kshta
f pro'vintziyata.]

We have a big house in the country.

Y  $[}.
[zhi'veem f 'sofiya.]

We live in Sofia.

`  


 KZ  ^ .
[aparta'mentt ni e
'blizo do 'garata.]

Our apartment
is near the station.

.

.

$    
.
[se'stra mu e o'mzhena.]

His sister is married.

^   Z  
.
[bl'gariya e kra'siva stra'na.]

Bulgaria is a beautiful country.

Y[    ~  .
[zhi'vott tuk mi ha'resva.]

I like living here.

-   Z ^[ ?
- [ K
^Z.
 
  
.
 Z?
- >  
 
 

Z 
Z
 Z. = Z  ^[


 

.

- Which language do you speak?

- I speak English well.
At the moment I am learning Italian.
What about you?
- Unfortunately I do not know
any foreign languages. But I have
a great desire to learn German.

[- ka'kv e'zik go'vorite?

- go'vorya do'bre an'gliyski
v mo'menta 'ucha itali'anski a 'vie
- za szha'lenie az ne znam 'nito
e'din chuzhd e'zik, no 'imam
og'romno zhe'lanie da na'ucha
'nemski.]

- ?
- .
.
?
-
.

.

.
.
.

23

-  [  K[ _?
-   
Z .
 K[   
[ `
.

- What is your job?

- I am a journalist.
I work for a magazine.

[- kak'vo ra'botish?
- as sm zhurna'list. ra'botya za
ed'no spi'sanie]

- ?
- .
.

- 8  ~ 
KZ?
- Z ~  
Z
 
 .

- Is there a hotel near here?

- All the hotels are to be found
in the city centre.

[- 'ima li ho'tel na'blizo?

- 'fsichki ho'teli se na'mirat
v 'tsentra]

- ?
-
.

- "
^
  ?
- =,   Z
.
-     ?
-   = _ .

- Is she English?
- No, she is Russian.
- What is her name?
- Her name is Natasha.

[- tya angli'chanka li e?
- ne tya e rus'kinya.
- kak se 'kazva?
- 'kazva se na'tasha.]

- ?
- , .
- ?
- .

- > , .

- > , "
!
-   ?
-  ^ . !K .  ?
- [-[.

- Hello, Julia.
- Hello, Tanya!
- How are you?
- I am fine, thank you. And you?
- So-so.

[- zdra'vey 'yuliya
- zdra'vey 'tanya
- kak si
- blagoda'rya. do'bre sm .a ti?
- 'gore 'dolu.]

- e, .
-, !
- ?
- . . ?
- -.

24

- ![K 
, ^`!
- ![K 
, ^`Z
!
-

  .
   8

.
8  ^[
L .
- > `  , ^`Z

.
J`    .
Y  
L  `Z
  },  , 

?
-  ^  . E
  },
 KZ .

- Good morning, Madam!

- Good morning, Sir!
- Nice to meet you.
My name is Ivan Kounchev.
I have an appointment.
- Do come in, r Kounchev.
The manager is waiting for you.
Would you like something to drink coffee, tea, mineral water?
- Thank you. Coffee, please.

[-'dobr den.
-'dobr den.
- Pri'yatno mi e. 'kazvam se i'van
'kunchev. 'imam ugo'vorena 'sreshta.
- zapo'vyadayte, gospo'din 'kunchev.
gospo'din up'ravitelyat vi o'chakva.
zhe'laete li 'neshto za 'piene ka'fe, chay, mine'ralna vo'da?
- blagoda'rya vi. ed'no ka'fe,
ako o'bichate.]

- o !
- o !
- . a
. .
- , - .
.
, , ?
- . E ,
.

- ![K , !
- ![K , L.
&   K _?
- "-L ` Z^
~  
^.
$   L  L.
- 
[^   . @   .
 L   `  .
-      .
! [!

- Good evening, mum!

- Good evening, daughter.
Where are you phoning from?
- I have just arrived from England.
I will be home in an hour.
- I am so glad. I will be waiting for
you. Your father says hello (to you).
- Kisses to you both.
See you soon!

[- 'dobr 'vecher, 'mamo.

- 'dobr 'vecher 'dshte. otky'de se
o'bazhdash?
- to'ku shto pri'stignah ot 'angliya.
slet chas sm f'kyshti.
- 'mnogo se 'radvam. shte te
'chakam. ba'shta ti te pozdra'vyava.
- tse'luvam vi i 'dvamata. do 'skoro.]

- e, !
- e, .
?
- -
. .
- .
. .
- . !
25

- !K[ , =!   

  _ 
?
- !
     `-K
  .
- $Z^
,   L 

`
   .
- =     Z _ `.

- Good morning, Nadya! How are

you feeling today?
- Today I feel better than yesterday.
- I am sure that by tomorrow you
will be fully recovered.
- I hope you are right.

- , !
?
- -
.
- ,
.
- .

[- dobr'o 'utro 'nadya! kak se

'chustvash dnes?
- dnes se 'chustvam po-do'bre ot
'fchera
'- siguren sm che utre shte si
na'pylno ozdra'vyala.
- na'dyavam se da 'imash 'pravo]

NOTA BENE
In Bulgarian, there are two styles of fonts. Note that small letters like ,
, , , , ,  sometimes confuse English speaking people because of
their similarity with Latin letters.

K

^
!
+
Y
>
8
'


26

=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=














E

=

&

`

$
"
J

=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=








!
"#

#}
~

=
=

$%
&



_
@L
%

*

=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=

'(
)*
+,
-.
/0
1
23
45