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Grammar · A1

The alphabet and pronunciation

by Alessio · teacher of Italian as a foreign language, ITALS master’s

A Sicilian street with tables outside and a souvenir stall · Italian grammar A1
Ordering at the little table is your first pronunciation exercise.

Italian is read exactly as it is written, with very few exceptions: learn four pronunciation rules and you can read any word. The real work is in c, g and double consonants.

  • 5min reading
  • 16min exercises
  • A1level

What you learn

  • c dolce (ci), c dura (k), g dolce (gi), g dura (gh)
  • How it works: the alphabet and pronunciation
  • Three special clusters
  • Vocabulary: i cibi del bar

Italian and English side by side

English spelling and sound drifted apart centuries ago; Italian never did. Every letter is pronounced, always the same way, so once you know the seven sounds of c and g you can read any Italian word aloud, even one you have never seen. The trap is the opposite of English: don't swallow final vowels, and don't reduce unstressed ones to a schwa. Telefono has four clear vowels, not two and a mumble.

Half of A1 and 3 exercises a day: freeApp Store★★★★★(6)by Alessio, a teacher since 2018Continue in the app →

The words on this page

Drag each Italian word onto its definition, or tap a word first, then its box.

C and G: soft or hard

SoundWhenExamples
c dolce (ci)c + e, icena, cappuccino, ciao
c dura (k)c + a, o, u, hcaffè, cornetto, chianti, bruschetta
g dolce (gi)g + e, igelato, formaggio, Genova
g dura (gh)g + a, o, u, hgatto, ragù, spaghetti, funghi
The letter h is never pronounced: it only hardens c and g (chianti, spaghetti) or distinguishes ho (verb) from o (conjunction).

Three special clusters

ClusterSoundExamples
gncome la n di …gnocchi, lasagne, bagno
glil morbida, tutta sul palatofamiglia, aglio, bottiglia
sc + e, icome shpesce, prosciutto, uscita

Double consonants change the word

Double consonants are truly heard, longer and stronger: pala and palla are not the same word, nor are caro and carro, sete and sette, pena and penna.

Stress almost always falls on the second-to-last syllable (ra-GAZ-zo). When it falls on the last, it is written: città, caffè, perché.

The most common mistakes

  • un capucino → un cappuccino (the double c is written and heard)
  • i spagetti → gli spaghetti (the h keeps the g hard)
  • la ciesa → la chiesa (c + h + ie: hard sound)

Did you know?

Italian spelling is so faithful to pronunciation partly because the standard was modelled on the literary Florentine of Dante, Petrarca and Boccaccio, and settled early: the spelling froze around a pronunciation it still matches. English and French kept evolving away from their written forms; Italian, by historical luck, did not.

Read and understand

This chapter’s grammar. Example: a chat with the barista.

MMarta · barista
online
M
MartaCiao! Per la tessera del bar: come si scrive il tuo cognome?18:02
Ci vuole pazienza: Bakker. Bi, a, ka, ka, e, erre.18:03
M
MartaKappa? In italiano non esiste!18:03
Lo so. Voi come fate lo spelling?18:04
M
MartaCon le città: Ancona, Bologna, Como, Domodossola.18:05
Bello. E Chianti come si scrive?18:06
M
MartaCi, acca, i, a, enne, ti, i. Come il vino!18:07

Questions

Come fanno lo spelling gli italiani?

L'acca in «Chianti» serve per…

Quale di queste parole ha il suono duro «k»?

The counter of an old-fashioned bar, with the coffee machine
At the counter you hear the hard «k» sound straight away.

Exercises

Five exercises in order of difficulty. The last ones bring back what you have already seen.

  1. 01 Dura o dolce?

    Write D if the sound is hard (as in casa, gatto), M if it is soft (as in cena, gelato).

    1. cucina →
    2. cinema →
    3. gonna →
    4. giorno →
    5. chiave →
    6. gelato →
    7. spaghetti →
    8. arancia →

  2. 02 I gruppi difficili

    Complete with gn, gli or sc.

    1. la famia
    2. il bao
    3. il pee
    4. la mona
    5. il fio
    6. lo iatore
    7. gli occhi

  3. 03 Dove cade l’accento

    Split into syllables and mark the stressed one in capitals. Example: telefono → te-LE-fo-no.

    1. cucina →
    2. macchina →
    3. caffè →
    4. difficile →
    5. università →
    6. sabato →
    7. perché →

  4. 04 Una consonante o due?

    Double consonants change the word. Choose the form that matches the meaning given.

    1. Prendo la (pala / palla) per giocare a calcio. →
    2. Metto i soldi in (casa / cassa). →
    3. Il (nono / nonno) di Marco ha ottant’anni. →
    4. Ho comprato una (copia / coppia) del giornale. →
    5. Vado in Italia a (sete / sette) agosto. →
    6. Bevo un (cafè / caffè). →

  5. 05 Scrivi come si dice

    Say the word in your head and write it. Watch the silent h and the groups ch/gh.

    1. (io, verbo avere)
    2. gli amici / le amie
    3. il iesa → luogo dove si prega
    4. luni (plurale di lungo)
    5. anno tre figli
    6. il ilo (pasta lunga e sottile)

These five are a taste. There are over seven hundred on the site, free and with no sign-up. All the exercises →

Take this page with you

This chapter’s sheet as a printable PDF (tables in Italian): rules, typical mistakes and the quiz with answers. A teacher’s tip: grammar sticks by reviewing it often, not by studying it once.

Download the sheet (PDF)
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The lit display case of a bar in Syracuse, full of cornetti, raviole and graffe
Cornetti and graffe: reading the counter is already pronunciation.

Read and understand

This chapter’s grammar. Example: a café sign.

Bar Centrale

Listino, prezzi in euro

un caffè1,20

un cappuccino1,60

una spremuta3,50

uno gnocco fritto2,00

un bicchiere di Chianti4,00

Oggi niente cassa veloce: si paga al banco.

Questions

Che cosa si può bere al Bar Centrale?

In «cappuccino» ci sono…

«Pala» e «palla» sono…

One more go

Choose the correctly spelled word:

  1. Al bar ordino un e un cornetto.
  2. Stasera mangiamo fatti in casa.
  3. Mi piace il stagionato.
  4. Vorrei una d’acqua.
  5. Il oggi è freschissimo.

Frequently asked questions

How many letters does the Italian alphabet have?

Twenty-one. The letters j, k, w, x, y are not part of the native alphabet: you meet them only in loanwords and foreign names (jeans, karaoke, weekend, yogurt), which keep their original spelling.

Is it perché or perchè?

With the acute accent: perché. The acute (é) marks a closed e, as in perché, poiché, né, sé; the grave (è) marks an open e, as in è, caffè, cioè. Many Italians type the wrong one because of keyboard habits, but dictionaries and careful writing keep the distinction.

Do Italians really hear the difference between single and double consonants?

Yes, instantly: the double is held longer, and it changes the word. Pala is a shovel, palla is a ball; casa is a house, cassa is a till. If doubles do not exist in your language, practise by exaggerating the pause: pal-la.