Section 1
Media vocabulary
Every type of media and the words around it.
| Bulgarian | Romanised | English | Gender |
|---|---|---|---|
| медия / медиите | mediya / mediite | media (pl: the media) | F |
| вестник | vestnik | newspaper | M |
| списание | spisanie | magazine | N |
| новини | novini | news | F pl |
| новинарска емисия | novinarska emisiya | news bulletin | F |
| телевизия | televiziya | television | F |
| радио | radio | radio | N |
| онлайн издание | onlayn izdanie | online publication | N |
| социални мрежи | sotsialni mrezhi | social media | F pl |
| подкаст | podkast | podcast | M |
| блог | blog | blog | M |
| репортаж | reportazh | report / feature | M |
| репортер | reporter | reporter / journalist | M |
| журналист | zhurnalist | journalist | M |
| редактор | redaktor | editor | M |
| главен редактор | glaven redaktor | editor-in-chief | M |
| заглавие | zaglavie | headline / title | N |
| статия | statiya | article | F |
| рубрика | rubrika | section / column | F |
| коментар | komentar | comment | M |
| интервю | intervyu | interview | N |
| прес конференция | pres konferentsiya | press conference | F |
Section 2
News topic vocabulary
The subjects that appear in every bulletin.
| Bulgarian | Romanised | English |
|---|---|---|
| политика | politika | politics |
| икономика | ikonomika | economy / economics |
| здравеопазване | zdraveopazvane | healthcare |
| образование | obrazovanie | education |
| екология | ekologiya | environment / ecology |
| климатични промени | klimatichni promeni | climate change |
| международни отношения | mezhdunarodni otnosheniya | international relations |
| война | voyna | war |
| мир | mir | peace |
| кризис | krizis | crisis |
| избори | izbori | elections |
| правителство | pravitelstvo | government |
| опозиция | opozitsiya | opposition |
| скандал | skandal | scandal |
| протести | protesti | protests |
| икономически растеж | ikonomicheski rastezh | economic growth |
| инфлация | inflatsiya | inflation |
| безработица | bezrabotitsa | unemployment |
Section 3
Discussing news — phrases for reaction and analysis
How to talk about what you have read or heard.
| Bulgarian | Romanised | English |
|---|---|---|
| Чул/а съм, че... | Chul/a sam, che... | I have heard that... |
| Чел/a съм, че... | Chel/a sam, che... | I have read that... |
| Според последните новини... | Spored poslednite novini... | According to the latest news... |
| Говори се, че... | Govori se, che... | It is being said that... / Rumour has it... |
| Смята се, че... | Smyata se, che... | It is thought that... |
| Изненадващо ми се струва, че... | Iznenadvasho mi se struva, che... | I find it surprising that... |
| Тревожно е, че... | Trevozno e, che... | It is worrying that... |
| Добра новина е, че... | Dobra novina e, che... | The good news is that... |
| Не мога да повярвам, че... | Ne moga da povyarvam, che... | I cannot believe that... |
| Трябва да се направи нещо за... | Tryabva da se napravi neshto za... | Something needs to be done about... |
| Следя ситуацията отблизо. | Sledya situatsiyata otblizo. | I am following the situation closely. |
| Не съм запознат/а с темата. | Ne sam zapoznat/a s temata. | I am not familiar with the topic. |
Section 4
Bulgarian media landscape
What to read and watch in Bulgaria.
Understanding the Bulgarian media landscape helps you choose quality sources and understand references you will encounter in conversation.
| Type | Key outlets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| National TV | БНТ 1 (Bulgarian National Television) · bTV · Nova TV | БНТ is the public broadcaster. bTV and Nova are commercial. All have online streaming. |
| Radio | БНР (Bulgarian National Radio) — Хоризонт programme · Дарик радио · FM+ | БНР Хоризонт is the main news radio. Broadcasts 24h news. |
| Newspapers | Труд · 24 часа · Дnevnik (business/quality) · Капитал (premium business) | 24 часа and Труд are the highest-circulation dailies. Дnevnik and Капитал are higher quality. |
| Online news | Actualno.com · Mediapool.bg · BTV Novinite · Epicenter.bg | Mediapool is respected for investigative journalism. |
| News agency | БТА (Bulgarian Telegraph Agency) | The official state news agency — all major outlets cite it. |
💡 Watching Bulgarian news online
All major Bulgarian TV channels stream free online. БНТ (bnt.bg) is the public broadcaster with reliable, relatively neutral news. bTV (btvnovinite.bg) is the most-watched commercial channel. For radio, Хоризонт (bnr.bg/horizont) streams 24/7 news in clean, standard Bulgarian — excellent for listening practice at B1 level.
Section 5
Grammar note — perfect tense for recent news
Using съм + past participle to report recent events.
When reporting news that has just happened or is relevant now, Bulgarian uses the perfect tense: съм/е/са + past participle. This is distinct from the aorist (completed past) and imperfect (ongoing past). It is especially common in news headlines and oral reports.
| Aorist (completed past) | Perfect (recent/relevant past) | English difference |
|---|---|---|
| Правителството реши. | Правителството е решило. | The government decided. / The government has decided. |
| Президентът пристигна. | Президентът е пристигнал. | The president arrived. / The president has arrived. |
| Обявиха резултатите. | Обявени са резултатите. | They announced the results. / The results have been announced. |
Section 6
Dialogue — discussing the morning news
A natural conversation about current events.
— Видя ли новините тази сутрин?
— Видях заглавията. Говори се за нови избори?
— Да, правителството е подало оставка. Очаква се президентът да разпусне парламента.
— Изненадващо не ми е. Тази коалиция никога не беше стабилна.
— Съгласен съм. Тревожно е, че пак ще имаме период на несигурност.
— А за икономиката — инфлацията спада ли?
— Чел съм, че е паднала малко. Но безработицата е нараснала в някои региони.
— Трябва да се направи нещо за провинцията. Хората се изселват към градовете.
— Точно. Следя темата — пишат много в Дневник.
— Добра идея. Аз предпочитам БНТ за новините — по-неутрална ми се струва.
— Vidya li novunite tazi sutrin?
— Vidyah zaglaviyata. Govori se za novi izbori?
— Da, pravitelstvoto e podalo ostavka. Ochakva se prezidentat da razpusne parlamenta.
— Iznenadvasho ne mi e. Tazi koalitsiya nikoga ne beshe stabilna.
— Saglasen sam. Trevozno e, che pak shte imame period na nesigurnost.
— A za ikonomikata — inflatsiyata spada li?
— Chel sam, che e padnala malko. No bezrabotitsata e narasnala v nyakoi regioni.
— Tryabva da se napravi neshto za provintsiуata. Horata se izselvaт kam gradovete.
— Tochno. Sledya temata — pishat mnogo v Dnevnik.
— Dobra ideya. Az predpochitam BNT za novinite — po-neotralna mi se struva.
— Did you see the news this morning?
— I saw the headlines. Is there talk of new elections?
— Yes, the government has resigned. The president is expected to dissolve parliament.
— That doesn't surprise me. This coalition was never stable.
— I agree. It is worrying that we will have another period of uncertainty.
— And the economy — is inflation going down?
— I have read that it has fallen a little. But unemployment has risen in some regions.
— Something needs to be done about the provinces. People are moving to the cities.
— Exactly. I am following the topic — Dnevnik writes a lot about it.
— Good idea. I prefer BNT for news — it seems more neutral to me.
Section 7
Writing task
✏️ Writing task — Day 41
- Write a short paragraph (6 sentences) about a news story — real or imaginary — using vocabulary from today.
- Translate: "According to the latest news, the government has decided to increase the minimum wage. It is thought that this will help reduce poverty."
- Name three Bulgarian TV or radio channels and describe what each is known for.
- What is the difference between "Правителството реши" and "Правителството е решило"? When would you use each?
Show answers
1. Free answer — use Според последните новини... · Говори се, че... · Тревожно е/Добра новина е, че...
2. Според последните новини правителството е решило да увеличи минималната заплата. Смята се, че това ще помогне за намаляване на бедността.
3. БНТ (public broadcaster, neutral news), bTV (commercial, most-watched), Хоризонт/БНР (radio, 24h news).
4. Реши = aorist (specific completed act, often used in historical/narrative context). Е решило = perfect (recent decision with current relevance — more common in news).
Day 41 Quiz
8 questions · score 6+ to mark day complete
Question 1 of 8
"Newspaper" in Bulgarian:
Question 2 of 8
"According to the latest news" in Bulgarian:
Question 3 of 8
"It is worrying that..." in Bulgarian:
Question 4 of 8
What is БТА?
Question 5 of 8
"Elections" in Bulgarian:
Question 6 of 8
"I am following the situation closely" in Bulgarian:
Question 7 of 8
The perfect tense in news uses which structure?
Question 8 of 8
"Unemployment" in Bulgarian:
Day 41 Recap
Review before Day 42. Every point builds on the last.
| Topic | Key point | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Media types | вестник · списание · новини · телевизия · радио · социални мрежи · подкаст | |
| News topics | политика · икономика · избори · правителство · инфлация · безработица · война · мир | |
| Discussing news | Чул/Чел съм, че · Според последните новини · Говори се, че · Тревожно е · Добра новина е | |
| Key outlets | БНТ (public TV) · bTV (commercial) · БНР Хоризонт (radio) · БТА (agency) · Дневник (quality press) | |
| Perfect in news | е решило · е пристигнал · са обявили — recent events with current relevance | More common than aorist in headlines |
| Passive in news | Обявени са резултатите · Смята се, че · Очаква се — very common in journalism |