The Italian Alphabet and Pronunciation [with audio]

Welcome to this Italian lesson for beginners! Before you start forming words and sentences, it’s important to get familiar with the Italian alphabet and pronunciation.

The Italian Alphabet and Pronunciation

Italian letters and sounds compared to English

The Italian alphabet consists of 21 letters, which are:

A B C D E F G H I L M N O P Q R S T U V Z

Unlike English, the Italian alphabet does not include the letters J, K, W, X, and Y, except in foreign words or loanwords (e.g., “jeans” or “taxi”).

Each letter in Italian has a consistent pronunciation, which makes reading and speaking much easier compared to English.

Key pronunciation rules: vowels, consonants, and accents

Vowels

Italian vowels are always pronounced clearly and distinctly:

• A – “ah” (e.g., amore – love)
• E – “eh” or “ay” (e.g., elefante – elephant)
• I – “ee” (e.g., isola – island)
• O – “oh” (e.g., orologio – clock)
• U – “oo” (e.g., uva – grape)

Consonants

• C – has two sounds:
  • “ch” sound before e or i (e.g., ciao – hello, cena – dinner)
  • “k” sound before a, o, u (e.g., casa – house, corte – court)
• G – has two sounds:
  • “j” sound before e or i (e.g., gelato – ice cream, giraffa – giraffe)
  • Hard “g” before a, o, u (e.g., gatto – cat, gusto – taste)
• S – has two sounds:
  • Soft “s” like in “rose” (e.g., casa – house, rosa – rose)
  • Hard “s” like in “sun” (e.g., sasso – stone, seta – silk)
• Z – can be pronounced as “ts” (e.g., pizza, stazione – station) or “dz” (e.g., zebra, zaino – backpack)
• H – silent in Italian (e.g., hotel sounds like “otel”)

Letters in foreign words

The missing letters (J, K, W, X, Y) appear only in foreign words and names. Here’s how they are pronounced:

• J – “i lunga” (sounds like “y” in “yes”)
• K – “kappa” (like English “k”)
• W – “doppia vu” (like English “w”)
• X – “ics” (like English “x”)
• Y – “i greca” (like English “y”)

Accents

Italian has two types of accents:

• Grave accent (`) on vowels (è, ò, ì, etc.) – indicates an open pronunciation (e.g., città – city, perché – why/because)
• Acute accent (´) on “e” (é) – indicates a closed pronunciation (e.g., perché – why)

Common pitfalls for English speakers and how to avoid them

1. Mispronouncing vowels – Always pronounce vowels clearly and do not reduce them as in English.
   • Incorrect: “pizzuh” (for pizza)
   • Correct: “peet-tsa”
2. Ignoring double consonants – Double consonants are pronounced with a stronger sound.
   • Nonno (grandfather) vs. nono (ninth)
3. Not rolling the “R” – In Italian, “R” is trilled or rolled slightly.
   • Practice with words like Roma, rosso (red), carro (cart).

Practice exercise

1. Listen to native Italian speakers pronouncing these words and repeat them.
2. Try to read aloud the following words:
   • Amico (friend)
   • Giornale (newspaper)
   • Scuola (school)
   • Ristorante (restaurant)
   • Zucchero (sugar)
3. Write down five new Italian words and practice saying them aloud.

Summary

• The Italian alphabet has 21 letters.
• Pronunciation is consistent and phonetic.
• Some letters (C, G, S, Z) have two different sounds depending on the following vowel (e.g., ciao vs. casa, gelato vs. gusto, rosa vs. sasso, pizza vs. zaino).
• The missing letters (J, K, W, X, Y) appear only in foreign words.
• Pay attention to vowel pronunciation, double consonants, and the trilled “R” to sound more natural.

Now that you know the alphabet, you’re ready to start reading and pronouncing Italian words with confidence!

Buona fortuna! (Good luck!)