Before you can order a slice of pizza in Athens, you need to know your alpha from your omega. The Greek alphabet is the foundation for reading and speaking the language. It might look intimidating, but many of its 24 letters are surprisingly familiar. Let's break it down.

Think of the alphabet in three groups: letters that look and sound like their English counterparts, letters that look new but have familiar sounds, and a few that are completely different.

Many Greek letters have direct equivalents in English, which gives you a great head start. You already know these.

See? You're already well on your way. A few letters look familiar but have a twist in their pronunciation. For instance, the letter Beta makes a 'v' sound, not a 'b' sound.

This next group includes letters that might look new, but their sounds are common in English. This is where you start to read Greek words.

You might recognize Pi (Π) from math class. For Sigma (Σ), notice there are two lowercase forms. The 'σ' is used at the beginning or middle of a word, while 'ς' is only used at the very end. They both make the 's' sound.

Finally, there are a few letters with sounds or shapes that are less common for English speakers. These just take a little practice.

The letter Chi (Χ) is pronounced like the 'ch' in the Scottish word 'Loch,' a sound made in the back of your throat. It's not like the 'ch' in 'chair.' And Upsilon (Y) is another letter that makes the 'ee' sound, just like Iota and Eta. Yes, that's three letters with the same sound!

Let's break it down: Π (p) + ι (ee) + τ (t) + σ (s) + α (ah). It says 'pitsa,' the Greek word for pizza. Now you're ready to order.

Ready to test your knowledge? Let's see how well you know your new letters.

Learning the alphabet is the biggest first step. Once you're comfortable with these letters, reading and pronouncing new words becomes much easier.