vlak
“vlak” — train in Slovenian. Noun, level A1, topic — transport. v before a consonant sounds like "u": vlak with an initial "u" glide. In a live sentence: “Vlak za Maribor odpelje ob osmih” — The train to Maribor leaves at eight. You can hear how it sounds right here. One of 14 words in the set “transport” in the Slovenian course.
In short
| Written in Slovenian | vlak |
| Translation | train |
| Part of speech | noun |
| Level | A1 |
- vlaktrain
How to pronounce it
v before a consonant sounds like "u": vlak with an initial "u" glide
Why it looks that way
Literally "what is dragged along" — a tow in motion.
A word with a story stays in memory longer than one learned as a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
In a live sentence
A single word almost never appears alone in conversation. A sentence shows where it fits and what stands next to it.
- Vlak za Maribor odpelje ob osmihThe train to Maribor leaves at eight
Nearby words: transport
Bus, metro, taxi, stop, station. These are words you need to recognize in writing — off a departure board and off a sign.
- avtobusbusv before a consonant sounds like "u": OW-toh-boos
- postajastationOne word for the station and the stop: železniška postaja is the train station, avtobusna postaja the bus stop.
- taksitaxiYou do not hail one in the street: you phone or use an app. A rank is taksi postajališče.
- postajališčebus stopš is "sh", č is "ch"
- potnikpassengerFrom pot, "the way" — the same word names the traveler. Feminine potnica.
- sedežseatž is the "zh" of "measure"
- držalohandrailž is the "zh" of "measure"
- kontrolorticket inspectorsprevodnik walks the train and helps passengers; kontrolor comes to check tickets.
- vozninafarež is the "zh" of "measure"
- prenatrpanovercrowdedThe pre- prefix means "beyond measure": natrpan is packed, prenatrpan is too much.
Test yourself
Five questions from the same set — “transport”. Recalling a spelling from meaning is harder than knowing a familiar word on sight, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “train” in Slovenian?
Literally "what is dragged along" — a tow in motion.
- How do you say “handrail” in Slovenian?
From držati, "to hold"; neuter, plural držala. You hold za plus the accusative.
- How do you say “taxi” in Slovenian?
You do not hail one in the street: you phone or use an app. A rank is taksi postajališče.
- How do you say “overcrowded” in Slovenian?
The pre- prefix means "beyond measure": natrpan is packed, prenatrpan is too much.
- How do you say “seat” in Slovenian?
Known from sedež ob oknu; on its own masculine, genitive sedeža, plural sedeži.
How not to forget this word
Reading a word and remembering it are different jobs. A day later, little survives of a single reading — and that is not bad memory, that is how memory works.
- This has been tested on foreign words too. The difference shows up most when you test yourself a few days later rather than straight away.checked many timesKim & Webb, 2022, Language Learning 72(2) · 48 experiments, 3,411 participants, 98 comparisons.
- Recalling beats re-reading. Covering the translation and trying to remember it does more than reading it ten more times.checked many timesAdesope, Trevisan & Sundararajan, 2017, Review of Educational Research 87(3) · 188 experiments, 272 comparisons. g = 0.61; against plain re-reading 0.51, against passive review 0.93.
- An answer you worked out yourself sticks better than one handed to you.checked many timesBertsch et al., 2007, Memory & Cognition 35(2) · 86 studies, 445 comparisons, d = 0.40.
Frequently asked
How do you say “train” in Slovenian?
«vlak». v before a consonant sounds like "u": vlak with an initial "u" glide. In a live sentence: “Vlak za Maribor odpelje ob osmih” — The train to Maribor leaves at eight. You can hear how it sounds right on this page. Noun, level A1, from the set “transport”.
Why does this word look the way it does?
Literally "what is dragged along" — a tow in motion. A word with a story stays in memory longer than a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
Can I hear how it sounds?
Yes, right on this page: click the word and it will play. The sound works on any phone, and nothing needs to be installed.