G-1. Phonetics

Italian Pronunciation Made Simple

Learning Italian pronunciation is easier than you think. Unlike English, Italian is mostly phonetic: words are pronounced the way they are written. Let’s go step by step.

The Italian Alphabet

The Italian alphabet has 21 letters. Each one is pronounced as written:

a – /a/ → like a in father
b – /bi/
c – /tʃi/ → like ch in chess
d – /di/
e – /e/ → like a in late
f – /ɛffe/
g – /dʒi/ → like j in jam
h – /akka/ → always silent (like h in honest)
i – /i/ → like ee in see
l – /ɛlle/
m – /ɛmme/
n – /ɛnne/
o – /o/ → like o in go
p – /pi/
q – /ku/
r – /ɛrre/ → rolled or tapped (like Spanish r in pero)
s – /ɛsse/
t – /ti/
u – /u/ → like oo in rule
v – /vu/ (sometimes /vi/)
z – /dzeta/ → like ts in pizza or dz in zero

Five extra letters appear only in foreign words:

j – /i lunga/ → like y in yes
k – /kappa/
w – /doppia vu/
x – /iks/
y – /ipsilon/ or i greca

Vowels (Le vocali)

Italian vowels are pure sounds: one letter = one sound.

a /a/ → la mia cara mamma (like a in father)
e /e/ (closed) → se Ebe vede te (like a in late)
e /ɛ/ (open) → ecco sette fratelli (like e in let)
i /i/ → i vini di Rimini (like ee in marine)
o /o/ (closed) → nome e cognome (like o in oh)
o /ɔ/ (open) → oggi no (like o in soft)
u /u/ → una musica pura (like u in rule)

Tip: Keep vowels sharp and steady. No gliding like in English.

Diphthongs (Dittonghi)

When i or u are unstressed and combine with another vowel, they become semivowels:

i → /j/ → più piano, lei e lui (like y in yes)
u → /w/ → un uomo buono (like w in we)

These can also form triphthongs: miei, tuoi, guai.

Consonants (Le consonanti)

Most consonants sound like in English, but a few are special:

h → ho, hotel (silent, like h in honest)
c, g before e or i → ciao, gelato (like ch in chess or j in jam)
c, g elsewhere → casa, gatto (like c in cat, g in go)
ch, gh → chi, ghetto (like k in kite)
gn → signora (like ny in canyon or onion)
gli → famiglia (like lli in million, but softer)
r → Roma (rolled, like Spanish r in pero)
s → casa = /z/ (like z in rose); sasso = /s/ (like s in sun)
z → pizza = /ts/ (like ts in cats); zero = /dz/ (like ds in beds)

Double Consonants (Consonanti doppie)

Double consonants change meaning!

pala (shovel) ≠ palla (ball)
sono (I am) ≠ sonno (sleep)

Tip: Hold the consonant longer when it’s doubled.

Syllables (Sillabe)

Each syllable must contain a vowel:

a-ma-re
mam-ma
ra-gaz-za

Word Stress (Accento tonico)

Most words stress the second-to-last syllable:

bam-bì-no, ra-gàz-zo, can-tà-re

Some words need a written accent:

perché, città, così

Intonation (Intonazione)

Declarative sentence: voice falls → I signori Bettini sono di Milano.
Question: voice rises → Sono di Milano i signori Bettini?

Cognates (Parole affini)

A cognate is a word in Italian and English that looks similar and has the same meaning because both languages borrowed it from Latin or Greek. Cognates are your best friends when learning Italian: once you learn the patterns, you’ll be able to recognize and understand many words without memorizing them.

Common Cognate Patterns

Nouns

-y (Eng.) → -ia (It.)
- biology → biologia
- sociology → sociologia
- philosophy → filosofia
- anatomy → anatomia
-ic(s) (Eng.) → -ica (It.)
- music → musica
- republic → repubblica
- politics → politica
- mathematics → matematica
-ty (Eng.) → -tà (It.)
- city → città
- society → società
- identity → identità
- university → università
-ce (Eng.) → -za (It.)
- importance → importanza
- violence → violenza
- elegance → eleganza
- patience → pazienza
-tion (Eng.) → -zione (It.)
- nation → nazione
- education → educazione
- attention → attenzione
- situation → situazione
-or (Eng.) → -ore (It.)
- actor → attore
- professor → professore
- doctor → dottore
- motor → motore
-ary (Eng.) → -ario (It.)
- secretary → segretario
- salary → salario
- vocabulary → vocabolario
- functionary → funzionario
-ist (Eng.) → -ista (It.)
- artist → artista
- pianist → pianista
- violinist → violinista
- optimist → ottimista

Adjectives

-al (Eng.) → -ale (It.)
- special → speciale
- original → originale
- personal → personale
- sentimental → sentimentale
-ect (Eng.) → -etto (It.)
- perfect → perfetto
- erect → eretto
- correct → corretto
- direct → diretto
-ical (Eng.) → -ico (It.)
- typical → tipico
- political → politico
- classical → classico
- geographical → geografico
-ous (Eng.) → -oso (It.)
- generous → generoso
- nervous → nervoso
- curious → curioso
- ambitious → ambizioso

How to use this:
When you see a new Italian word, check its ending. If it matches one of these patterns, you can probably guess its English meaning.

Be careful with false friends!
Some words look similar but have a different meaning:

attuale = current (not actual)
parenti = relatives (not parents)
fabbrica = factory (not fabric)

Cognates are a powerful shortcut to expand your Italian vocabulary quickly, just double-check the meaning in context!

We hope this lesson was helpful and gave you more clarity on your Italian learning journey. Keep practicing step by step, every word you learn brings you closer to fluency!

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