Alphabet
The Uzbek alphabet uses 29 Latin letters. It was officially adopted in 1992, replacing the Cyrillic script.
A a
/a/
like 'a' in 'father'
ota (father)
B b
/b/
like 'b' in 'book'
bola (child)
D d
/d/
like 'd' in 'door'
daryo (river)
E e
/e/
like 'e' in 'bet'
ertaga (tomorrow)
F f
/f/
like 'f' in 'fine'
fikr (thought)
G g
/ɡ/
like 'g' in 'go'
gul (flower)
G' g'
/ʁ/
deep guttural 'g', like gargling — no English equivalent
g'alaba (victory)
H h
/h/
like 'h' in 'house'
havo (weather)
I i
/i/
like 'ee' in 'see'
ish (work)
J j
/dʒ/
like 'j' in 'job'
joy (place)
K k
/k/
like 'k' in 'king'
kitob (book)
L l
/l/
like 'l' in 'lamp'
lola (tulip)
M m
/m/
like 'm' in 'man'
maktab (school)
N n
/n/
like 'n' in 'name'
non (bread)
O o
/ɒ/
like 'o' in 'hot' (British)
olma (apple)
O' o'
/o/
like 'o' in 'more' — rounder than O
o'zbek (Uzbek)
P p
/p/
like 'p' in 'pen'
pul (money)
Q q
/q/
deep 'k' sound from the back of the throat — no English equivalent
qiz (girl)
R r
/r/
rolled 'r', like in Spanish
rang (color)
S s
/s/
like 's' in 'sun'
suv (water)
T t
/t/
like 't' in 'top'
tuz (salt)
U u
/u/
like 'oo' in 'food'
uy (house)
V v
/v/
like 'v' in 'van'
vaqt (time)
X x
/x/
like 'ch' in Scottish 'loch'
xat (letter)
Y y
/j/
like 'y' in 'yes'
yil (year)
Z z
/z/
like 'z' in 'zoo'
zarur (necessary)
Sh sh
/ʃ/
like 'sh' in 'ship'
shahar (city)
Ch ch
/tʃ/
like 'ch' in 'chair'
choy (tea)
Ng ng
/ŋ/
like 'ng' in 'sing'
rang (color)
Special Letters
Pay special attention to these letters that don't exist in English: O' o' (a rounded vowel), G' g' (a guttural sound), Q q (a deep throat K), X x (like Scottish "loch"), and the digraphs Sh, Ch, Ng.