Letter
How to pronounce Polish letter «ł» [w]
ł
IPA[w]
The letter ł sounds like English w or Belarusian short u (ŭ) — not like a hard “l”.
How to shape the sound
A back labio-velar semivowel: lips strongly rounded and pushed forward, tongue tip down, back of the tongue raised toward the soft palate.
Common trap
East Slavic speakers substitute their dental “l” — Russian has no sound like Polish ł, while Ukrainian and Belarusian already have it under another letter.
How to fix it
Say “u” with strongly protruded lips and move straight into the vowel: u-opata gives «łopata». Practice on: łopata, mała, koło, głowa, dół.
Practice words
Pick a teacher — the word plays in their voice · Mirosław
łazienka
bathroom
Focus on pronunciation «ł»
małpa
monkey
Focus on pronunciation «ł»
stół
table
Focus on pronunciation «ł»
ładny
pretty
Focus on pronunciation «ł»