How to pronounce Polish letter «ź» [ʑ]

How to shape the sound

Mid-tongue palatals: the middle of the tongue arches up toward the hard palate; the tip points down.

Common trap

The main East Slavic mistake: instead of Polish palatals, learners substitute their native softened dentals (sy/zy/tsy-like) — *[z'ima] instead of [źima], *[s'je] instead of [śe] in «się». You are still understood, but it sounds clearly foreign.

How to fix it

Do not soften a dental consonant — raise the middle of the tongue toward the palate, as in the “shh, quiet” gesture. Words: siny, cicho, zima, dzień, dziesięć.