1.

Pronunciation
Italian pronunciation is very regular, and once you know a few simple rules you should be
able to pronounce any word with authority. Of course, the only way to really get down the
sound of the language is to listen to a native speaker or use an audio study tool. In general,
consonants are pronounced more tensely than in English, and vowels should be expressed as
a single sound without the "off-glide" common in English vowels.
A: Like the "a" in "father."
C: Like the hard "c" of "car" before a, o, u, or a consonant (including the marker "h"). Like the
"ch" of "chess" before e or i. Also pronounced like "ch" of "chess" when written as "ci" before a,
o, or, u; in this case, the "i" is silent.
D: Like the English "d" with the tip of the tongue firm against the back of the upper front teeth.
E: Like the "e" of "bet" with stressed syllables. Like the "a" of "fate" with unstressed syllables.
G: Like the hard "g" of "got" before a, o, u, or a consonant (including the marker "h"). Like the
"g" of "gem" before e or i. Also pronounced like "g" of "gem" when written as "gi" before a, o,
or, u; in this case, the "i" is silent.
GLI: Generally like the "lli" of "million," but in certain words like "anglicano" and "negligere" it is
pronounced like "glee."
GN: Like the "ny" of "canyon."
H: Always silent, the Italian "h" frequently comes after "c" or "g" to indicate that the consonant
is to be prounced hard.
I: Like the "e" of "bee" with the tongue pressed against the lower front teeth.
L: Like the English "l" with the tip of the tongue firm against the back of the upper front teeth.
N: Like the English "n" with the tip of the tongue firm against the back of the upper front teeth.
O: Like the "o" of "ought" with stressed syllables. Like the "o" of "no" with unstressed syllables.
P: Like the English "p" with the lips pressed together more tightly and without aspiration (a puff
of air).
R: When "r" appears as the first letter of a word or as a double "rr," it is pronounced with the tip
of the tongue vibrating strongly against the gum ridge behind the upper front teeth. In other
cases, it is pronounced with a tap of the tongue on the gum ridge as in the "t" of "butter."
S: In most cases "s" is pronounced like the English "s." However, between vowels; before "b,"
"d," "g," "l," "m," "n," "r," and "v;" and in the endings "-esimo" and "-sione," it is pronounced as a
"z."
SC: Like the "sc" of "scope" before a, o, u, or a consonant (including the marker "h"). Like the
"sh" of "shore" before "e" or "i." Also pronounced like "sh" of "shore" when written as "sci" before
a, o, or, u; in this case, the "i" is silent.
T: Like the English "t" with the tip of the tongue firm against the back of the upper front teeth.
U: Like "oo" of "too."
Z: Generally pronounced like "ts" of "bats" with the tongue touching the upper front teeth.
Sometimes pronounced like the "ds" of "leds" with the tongue touching the upper front teeth.
Double consonants: Except for the double "rr," double consonants are generally pronounced
with two distinct sounds. For example, the double "pp" should be pronounced like the last and
first letters of the phrase "top pizza."
Double vowels: "Strong" double vowels ("a", "e," or "o") strung together are pronounced as
individual syllables. "Strong" vowels in combination with other vowels are pronounced as one
syllable.
Accent: The accent is generally on the next-to-last syllable, though there are many
exceptions. An accent mark is sometimes used to indicate the stressed syllable.