THE ITALIAN ALPHABET

Letter Name IPA Approximate Sound

a a Like a in English "father"
b bi Like b in English "boat"
c ci When followed by e or i, like ch in English "cherry"
When followed by a, o, u, or consonant, like c in English "cook"
d di Like d in English "dance"
One like a in English "make", shown by é, One like a in English
e e
"met"
f effe Like f in English "fool"
g gi When followed by e or i, like g in English "general"
When followed by a, o, u, or consonant, like g in English "go"
h acca Always silent
i i Like i in English "machine"
l elle Like l in English "lamb"
m emme Like m in English "money"
n enne Like n in English "net"
o o One like o in English "note", shown by ó
One like ou in English "ought"
p pi Like p in English "pot"
q cu Always followed by u and sounds like qu in English "quart"
r erre Like r in English "rubber" with a slight trill
s esse Like s in English "see"
Like z in English "zero"
t ti Like t in English "table"
u u Like u in English "rule"
When followed by consonant, like w in English "was"
v vu Like v in English "vain"
z zeta Like ts in English "nuts"
Like dz in English "adze"
OTHER LETTERS

Letter Name Examples

j i lunga jazz, jingo
x ics xenofobo, xilofono
k cappa kiosco, kodak
y ipsilon yacht, yoghurt
w doppia vu water-polo, whiskey

VOWEL COMBINATIONS

Vowel IPA Pronunciation

ai ai in English "aisle"
au ou in English "out"
ei ay-ee
eu ay-oo
ia ya in English "yard"
ie ye in English "yes"
io yo in English "yoke"
iu you
oi oy in English "boy"
ua wa
ue way
ui oo-ee
uo oo-oh

CONSONANTS

h is never pronounced

ll mm nn rr ss

When two consonants occur in the middle of a word, they are both pronounced. Notice the
difference between:

caro = dear casa = house pala = shovel

 carro = truck cassa = case palla = ball

SPECIAL ITALIAN SOUNDS

Italian Example English Example

cci cce cacciatore ch chair

ch before e or i chitarra k key

gh before e or i ghirlanda g gate

gli egli, paglia lli million

gn segno, Spagna ni, ny onion, canyon

sc before e or i scendere, sciroppo sh shoe

sc before a, o or u sculoa, scarpa sk sky

STRESS
1. Words of two syllables are generally stressed on the first syllable, unless the other one bears an
accent mark:

lapis = pencil città = city

penna = pen virtù = virtue

meta = goal metaà = half

2. Words of more than two syllables are generally stressed on the syllable before the last, or on the
syllable before that:
ancòra = more àncora = anchor

dolòre = grief amòre = love

scàtola = box automòbile = car