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Vowels

There're five vowel in the Italian language: "a", "e", "i", "o", "u". In the table below there are the vowels and their pronunciation. Click on the letter or on the word to hear the pronunciation. "a" aria(air), amore(love), ancora(again) "e" eroe(hero),estate(summer),elefante(elephant) "i" isola(island), iniziare (to start), io (I) "o" ombra(shadow), ombrello(umbrella),onore(honour) "u" uomo(men),automobile(car),utile(useful) When a vowel is followed by another vowel, the pronunciation of the vowel doesn't change: you have to pronounce the first vowel and then the second, according to the table.

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Consonants

Consonant's pronunciation is quite easy. Look at the table below: The other consonants have some peculiarity of pronunciation. "b" like "b" in "battle" "d" like "d" in "Daniel" "f" like "ph" in "elephant" or "f" in "factory" "l" like "l" in "long" "m" like "m" in "mother" "n" like "n" in "november" "p" like "p" in "past" "r" like "r" in "run" "s" like "s" in "sister" "t" like "t" in "turtle" "v" like "v" in "victory" "z" like "z" in "zoo" The consonants "h" and "q" As for the h sound, you simply don't pronounce it.For example: Ho un fratello. I have a brother. You have to pronounce "ho" as it is a simple "o" The "h" is used to modify the pronunciation of the "g" and the "c". Look at the following paragraph more informations. The "q" in Italian is always followed by the vowel "u" and has the same pronunciation of the syllable "cu". For example: Quadro. Painting Cuore. Heart Double Consonants A lot of Italian words have double consonants. for example: letto. bed In order to pronounce the word with double consonants, you only have to stress the double consonant with the voice. When you write a word with a double consonant, you write two times the same consonant, as in "letto"(bed). The only exception to this rule is the consonant "q". To double this consonant you have to use the "c". For example: acqua. water There's only one words in Italian that have a double q: "soqquadro", which means "disorder, muddle, mess". [Top][Back to Lesson 01] Consonants Groups: "st" and "str" In a lot of Italian words you will find these sequences of consonants:"st" and "str". Well, there's no problem with them. simply pronounce the former as in the English "stamp", and the latter as in "strike". [Top][Back to Lesson 01] The consonants "c" and "g" The consonants "c" and "g" can have an hard sound (like respectively the English "k" in "kennel" and the "g" in "game") or a soft sound (like "ch" in "cheese" or "j" in "jacket") They have the hard sound when they're followed by the vowels "a","o","u", but they have the soft sound when they're followed by the vowel "i" and "e". If you want to get an hard sound with the "g"+"i" and "g"+"e" (or "c"+"i" and "c"+"e")combinations, you have to put the "h" between the consonant and the vowel. If you want to make the "c"+"a", "c"+"o", "c"+"u" and their "g" based counterparts soft, you have to put an "i" between the consonant and the vowel. Look at the table below: "C" based hard forms "C" based soft forms ca casa(house), candela(candle) cia ciao(hi), ciabatta(slipper) che Rachele(Rachel), perchè?(why?) ce cena(dinner), cerchio(circle) chi chiesa(church), chiave(key) ci cibo(food), cinema(cinema) co costola (rib), colore (colour) cio cioccolata (chocolate), ciondolo (pendant) cu cucina(kitchen,cooking), cuore(heart) ciu ciuffo,(tuft), ciurma(crew) A few words, like "cielo"(sky), "superficie"(surface) and "specie"(species) put the "i" between the "c" and the "e". In the table below you can see the combinations with the "g"+vowel: "G" based hard forms "G" based soft forms ga tartaruga(turtle), gamba(leg) gia Giappone(Japan), giacca(jacket) ghe tartarughe(turtles), ghepardo(cheetah) ge gelato(icecream), gente(people) ghi aghi(needles), (key) gi giraffa(giraffe), gita(trip) go gola(throat), ago(needle) gio formaggio(cheese), giocattolo(toy) gu gufo(owl), guerra(war) giu giustizia(justice), giungla(jungle) [Top][Back to Lesson 01] The consonant groups "sc" and "sg" Look at the table below. The rules of pronunciation for the sc groups are the same of the "c". There's only the "s" in front of the "c". When the "c" has the hard pronunciation, it sounds like the English "sk" in "skate", while when it has the soft pronunciation, it sounds like the English "sh" in "shuttle". "sc" based hard forms "sc" based soft forms sca scatola(box) scia ascia(axe), sciabola(sabre) sche scheletro(skeleton) sce scena(scene), scettro(sceptre) schi schiavo(slave) sci sciare(to ski), scivolare(to slip) sco scopa(broom) scio sciocco (silly) scu scudo(shield) sciu sciupare (to wear out) The sound "sg" exists in Italian only in the hard form. Look again at the table. "sg" based forms sga sgambetto(trip), sganciare (to unfasten) sghe sgherro(cut-throat, peeler) sghi sghignazzare(to guffaw) sgo sgonfiare(to deflate) sgu sguardo(look, glance) [Top][Back to Lesson 01] The consonant groups "cr", "gr", "scr" and "sgr" These are really easy: "cr": you should pronounce it like the English "cr" in "crime"; "gr": pronounce it like the English "gr" in "Greece"; "scr": this has the same pronunciation of the "scr" in "screen"; "sgr": There aren't English words with this sound. Simply put an "s" in front of the "gr" group. [Top][Back to Lesson 01] The sounds "gl" When the syllable "gl" is followed by "a", "e", "o", "u" you have to pronounce it like the English "gl" in "glue". In a lot of words, "gl" is followed by "i" and another vowel. In that case the pronunciation are the following: glia figlia(daughter), famiglia(family), taglia(size) glie figlie(daughters), famiglie(families),taglie(sizes) glio figlio(son), coniglio(rabbit) gliu possible in theory, no words use it gli figli(sons), conigli(rabbits) In a few words, which are derived from ancient Greek the "gl" in "gli" is pronounced like the "gl" in "glue". [Top][Back to Lesson 01] The sound "gn" This syllable has in Italian the same pronunciation of the Spanish letter "ñ". Look at the table below to get some examples: gna lavagna(blackboard), famiglia(family), taglia(size) gne figlie(daughters), famiglie(families),taglie(sizes) gno gnocca(pussy), ignorante(ignorant) gnu gnù(gnu), gnucco(stupid, dull) gni ragni(spiders) [Top][Back to Lesson 01] Stressed syllables To help you learn the right pronunciation of the words, I've put the accent on all the words in the vocabulary section. But please note that in Italian you're not supposed to put the accent on every word when you write. You have to put it only when the stressed syllable is the last of the word: perché (why), onestà(earnestness), realtà(reality) [Top][Back to Lesson 01]