Writing on signs in Poland
Ł, ą, ę and sz
Polish uses Latin letters with ł, ą, ę, ś, ź and ż, and lots of letter pairs like sz, cz and rz.
- ł (l with a slash) is the strongest clue.
- ą and ę have a small tail underneath.
- Words like Sklep, ulica and Apteka.
10 photos, grouped by the clue they show.
Key clue Shop sign 7
Key clue Street sign 3
Poland: what its writing looks like
Polish uses Latin letters with ł, ą, ę, ś, ź, ż and ń. The ł, an l with a slash, is the strongest clue.
Letter pairs like sz, cz and rz make Polish words look long and full of consonants: Sklep, Przychodnia, ulica.
Polish is used across Poland, from Gdańsk to Kraków.
Look-alikes: how to tell them apart
Poland vs 
Czech Republic
Lithuania
Czech uses háčeks (č, ř, š) instead of Polish pairs like cz and sz. Lithuanian also has ą and ę, but adds ė, į and ų.
Questions about the writing in Poland
Which letter is only Polish?
ł, an l with a slash through it, and ż, a z with a dot.
How can I tell Polish from Czech?
Polish writes sounds with pairs like sz and cz. Czech uses marks instead: š and č.