Picture this: You step outside your apartment in Sofia on a January morning. "Студено е! Минус пет градуса и вали сняг." (It's cold! Minus five degrees and it's snowing.) Your neighbour nods: "Да, но утре ще е слънчево." (Yes, but tomorrow will be sunny.) Weather talk is universal — and in Bulgaria, where the climate swings from scorching 40°C summers to snowy -15°C mountain winters, there's always something to talk about.
Bulgaria's geography packs remarkable climate variety into a small country. The Black Sea coast enjoys mild, Mediterranean-influenced winters; the Thracian Plain bakes in continental summer heat; and the mountains — Rila, Pirin, Rhodopes — bring heavy winter snow and cool summer escapes. Bansko, in the Pirin mountains, is the country's premier ski resort, while the Rose Valley near Kazanlak explodes with colour every June during розобера (the rose harvest festival). Today's lesson gives you the vocabulary to describe all of it — from слънчево (sunny) to виелица (blizzard).
Section 1
Weather vocabulary
Everything from sunshine to blizzards.
Some of these words are mainly for forecasts, and some are everyday conversation words. Learners need both, because Bulgarians mix simple talk about the weather with forecast-style vocabulary all the time.
| Bulgarian | Romanised | English | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|
| времето | vremeto | the weather | |
| слънце | slantse | sun | |
| дъжд | dazhd | rain | |
| сняг | snyag | snow | |
| вятър | vyatar | wind | |
| облак | oblak | cloud | |
| мъгла | magla | fog | |
| гръмотевици | gramotevitsi | thunderstorms / thunder | |
| мълния | malniya | lightning | |
| буря | burya | storm | |
| градушка | gradushka | hail | |
| лед | led | ice | |
| слана | slana | frost | |
| дъга | daga | rainbow | |
| температура | temperatura | temperature |
Section 2
Describing the weather — key constructions
How to say what the weather is like right now and what it will be.
Bulgarian weather expressions mostly use impersonal constructions — there is no grammatical subject. The most common patterns are вали (it is raining/snowing), духа (the wind is blowing), and adjective + е (it is hot/cold/sunny).
| Bulgarian | Romanised | English | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Вали дъжд. | Vali dazhd. | It is raining. | |
| Вали сняг. | Vali snyag. | It is snowing. | |
| Духа вятър. | Duha vyatar. | It is windy. | |
| Гърми. | Garmi. | It is thundering. | |
| Гърми и святка. | Garmi i svyatka. | There is thunder and lightning. | |
| Слънчево е. | Slanchevo e. | It is sunny. | |
| Облачно е. | Oblachno e. | It is cloudy. | |
| Мъгливо е. | Maglivo e. | It is foggy. | |
| Горещо е. | Goreshto e. | It is hot. | |
| Студено е. | Studeno e. | It is cold. | |
| Хладно е. | Hladno e. | It is cool. | |
| Топло е. | Toplo e. | It is warm. | |
| Колко градуса е? | Kolko gradusa e? | How many degrees is it? | |
| Тридесет градуса. | Trideset gradusa. | Thirty degrees. | |
| Минус пет градуса. | Minus pet gradusa. | Minus five degrees. |
💡 Вали — one verb for rain and snow
Вали covers both rain and snow — what follows it tells you which: вали дъжд (it rains) · вали сняг (it snows). Used alone, вали usually implies rain from context. The past: валя (it rained) — aorist of Group 2. The future: ще вали (it will rain).
Section 3
The four seasons in depth
Seasonal vocabulary and typical activities.
| Season | Bulgarian | Typical weather | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | пролет | Топло, понякога дъждовно. | |
| Summer | лято | Горещо и слънчево. | |
| Autumn | есен | Хладно и облачно. | |
| Winter | зима | Студено и често вали сняг. |
| Expression | Romanised | English | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|
| през пролетта | prez proletta | in spring | |
| през лятото | prez lyatoto | in summer | |
| през есента | prez esenta | in autumn | |
| през зимата | prez zimata | in winter | |
| в началото на лятото | v nachaloto na lyatoto | at the beginning of summer | |
| в края на зимата | v kraya na zimata | at the end of winter |
Section 4
Weather forecasts and plans
Using weather vocabulary with all three tenses.
| Bulgarian | Romanised | English | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Какво е времето днес? | Kakvo e vremeto dnes? | What is the weather like today? | |
| Каква е прогнозата за утре? | Kakva e prognozata za utre? | What is the forecast for tomorrow? | |
| Утре ще вали. | Utre shte vali. | It will rain tomorrow. | |
| Ако е слънчево, ще отидем на плажа. | Ako e slanchevo, shte otidem na plazha. | If it is sunny, we will go to the beach. | |
| Взимам чадър, защото вали. | Vzimam chadar, zashtoto vali. | I am taking an umbrella because it is raining. | |
| Обличам се топло. | Oblicham se toplo. | I am dressing warmly. | |
| Много студено беше вчера. | Mnogo studeno beshe vchera. | It was very cold yesterday. |
Section 5
Useful weather chunks
Short phrases people use constantly in real conversation.
Section 6
Dialogue — talking about the weather
A natural conversation about weather and plans.
Страшно студено е днес, нали?
Strashno studeno e dnes, nali?
It is terribly cold today, isn't it?
Да, минус осем градуса тази сутрин. Вали сняг от снощи.
Da, minus osem gradusa tazi sutrin. Vali snyag ot snoshti.
Yes, minus eight degrees this morning. It has been snowing since last night.
Ти обичаш ли снега?
Ti obichash li snega?
Do you like the snow?
Обичам го, но не когато трябва да отивам на работа.
Obicham go, no ne kogato tryabva da otivam na rabota.
I like it, but not when I have to go to work.
Какво ще правиш през уикенда?
Kakvo shte pravish prez uikenda?
What will you do at the weekend?
Ако продължи да вали, ще остана вкъщи. Ако спре, може би ще ходим на ски в Банско.
Ako prodalzhi da vali, shte ostana vkashti. Ako spre, mozhe bi shte hodim na ski v Bansko.
If it keeps snowing, I will stay at home. If it stops, maybe we will go skiing in Bansko.
Section 7
Writing task
✏️ Writing task — Day 26
- Describe today's weather in Bulgarian using at least 5 weather expressions.
- Write what the weather is typically like in your country in summer and winter.
- Translate: "Yesterday it was sunny and warm. Today it is cloudy and cold. Tomorrow it will snow."
- Write two conditional sentences about weather and plans using ако.
Show answers
1. Free answer — use вали, духа, слънчево е, студено е, температурата е X градуса.
2. Free answer — use през лятото / през зимата + weather descriptions.
3. Вчера беше слънчево и топло. Днес е облачно и студено. Утре ще вали сняг.
4. E.g. Ако е горещо, ще отида на плажа. Ако вали, ще остана вкъщи.
Day 26 Quiz
8 questions · score 6+ to mark day complete
Question 1 of 8
"It is snowing" in Bulgarian:
Question 2 of 8
"It is sunny" in Bulgarian:
Question 3 of 8
"In summer" using the correct preposition:
Question 4 of 8
"How many degrees is it?" in Bulgarian:
Question 5 of 8
"It was very cold yesterday" — which tense?
Question 6 of 8
"If it stops raining" in Bulgarian:
Question 7 of 8
What does "духа вятър" mean?
Question 8 of 8
"The weather forecast" in Bulgarian:
Day 26 Recap
Review before Day 27. Every point builds on the last.
| Topic | Key point | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Вали | вали дъжд (raining) · вали сняг (snowing). Past: валя. Future: ще вали. | One verb for both rain and snow |
| Weather adjectives | слънчево · облачно · мъгливо · горещо · студено · хладно · топло | All end in -о (neuter/impersonal) |
| Seasons + през | през пролетта / лятото / есента / зимата | Always через + definite noun |
| Temperature | Колко градуса е? · Тридесет градуса. · Минус пет. | градуса = degrees (pl of градус) |
| Weather conditionals | Ако е слънчево, ще... · Ако вали, няма да... | Combine with future tense from Day 24 |
| Bansko | Bulgaria's premier ski resort in the Pirin mountains — знаковo зимно място. | Often mentioned in weather/winter contexts |
| 🌎 Culture | Bulgaria packs huge climate variety: Black Sea coast, Thracian heat, mountain snow; Rose Valley's розобер in June is a national highlight | Same verb вали for rain and snow — only the noun changes |