Lesson 1-La Pronuncia (Pronunciation)

Lesson 1-La Pronuncia (Pronunciation)
L’Alfabeto: (the alphabet)
A (ah) B (bee) C (chee) D (dee) E (ay) F (effay)
G (gee) H (ahkuh) I (ee) L (ellay) M (emmay)
N (ennay) O (oh) P (pee) Q (koo) R (erray) S (essay)
T (tee) U (oo) V (voo/vee) Z (zaytuh)
*the letters j, k, w, x, y are not included in the Italian alphabet.
Le vocali: (the vowels)
A (ah) E (ay) or (eh)
I (ee) O (oh) U (oo)
Combinare le lettere: (combining letters)
C when followed by e or i…. sounds like ‘ch’ as in the word ‘church’
C when followed by a, o, u or h…. sounds like ‘k’ as in the word ‘key’
G when followed by e or i…. sounds like ‘J’ as in the word ‘jelly’
G when followed by a, o, u, or h… sounds like ‘g’ as in the word ‘gum’
Sc when followed by e or i… sounds like the ‘sh’ in the word ‘shower’
Sc when followed by a, o, u or h… sounds like the ‘sk’ in the word ‘scuba’
S when beginning a word usually has a soft ‘s’ sound as in the word ‘salad’
S in the middle of a word usually has a hard ‘z’ sound as in the word ‘zoo’
-there are exceptions however! ( sgarbato… insalata)
Z when beginning a word has a ‘dz’ sound
Z in the middle of a word has a ‘ts’ sound
Gn sounds like the ‘ny’ in the word canyon
Gl sounds like the double ‘ll’ in million
Learn Italian for Travel. Lesson 1: Pronunciation. Danielle DiPietro-Hawkins
When the letter ‘h’ begins a word, it is silent.
-The Italian word ‘ho’ is pronounced ‘oh’
In Ps, the p is not silent
The ‘ia’ combination has two different sounds. One is a blended sound like ‘ya’ and the other is
individually enunciated.
-Contrast the following words: spiaggia (blended) / farmacia (enunciated)
The ‘io’ combination also has two different sounds. One is a blended ‘yo’ sound, and the other is
individually enunciated.
-Contrast the following words: gioco (blended) / radiologo (enunciated)
Other vowel combinations:
ae: ah-ay
iu: ee-ooh
ai: ay-ee
ao: ah-oh
au: ah-ooh
ei: ay-ee
Consonanti doppi: (double consonants)
Rest slightly longer on the consonant sound when they are doubled
-Contrast the following pairs of words:
sette/sete
sonno/sono
palle/pale
Accenti: (accents)
There are few written accents in Italian, and they will usually fall on the last vowel.
The 2 types are called: 1) accento grave: è (the vowel is pronounced with an open sound)
2) accento acuto: é (pronounced with a closed sound)
Learn Italian for Travel. Lesson 1: Pronunciation. Danielle DiPietro-Hawkins
The unwritten Italian accent usually falls on the second to last syllable of a word. There are many
exceptions that you will learn as you become more familiar with the language.
Read the following sentence where the accents are all placed on the 2 nd to last syllable:
La ragazza canadese mangia gli spaghetti e beve il fragolino.
The ‘tr’ combination has a trill which takes practice to develop. Practice (multiple times a day!) the
following Italian tongue twister:
Trentatré Trentini entrarono a Trento, tutti e trentatré, trotterellando
Le parole simili: (similar words)
There are many cognates in Italian with the English language. Look at the following chart to help you
figure out how to say many (not all!) Italian words:
English: Italian
English : Italian
-tion: -ion, -zione: -ione
-ty : -tà
-ous: -oso
-ce: -za
-t: -te
-ible: -ibile
-able : -abile
-ist: -ista
-ence : -enza
-ance: -anza
-ism : -ismo
-r: -re
* word combos. –ct/-pt in Eng. = -tt- in Ital., j in Eng. = g in Ital., x in Eng.= s in Ital.
Eg. information: informazione; different: differente; favor: favore
Le definizioni: (definitions)
La lettera ‘C’ (the letter C)
ciao: hi
cena: dinner
comodo: comfortable
chi: who
bicicletta: bicycle
perché: why/because
casa: house
Learn Italian for Travel. Lesson 1: Pronunciation. Danielle DiPietro-Hawkins
calcolatrice: calculator
La lettera ‘G’ (the letter G)
laghi: lakes
giro: tour/round
gonna: skirt
gala: festivity
gelato: ice cream
ghiaccio: ice
gusto: taste/flavor
*The word ‘genuo’ was misspelled in the video. The correct word is ‘ingenuo’ meaning ‘naive’.
La combinazione ‘Sc’ (the combination ‘Sc’)
sciare: to ski
scemo: fool
schiena: back
scimmia: monkey
schema: scheme
scolastica: scholastic sciopero: strike
scuola: school
La lettera ‘S’ (the letter ‘S’)
sorella: sister
cosa: what
santo: saint
messo: put
insalata: salad
casa: house
Pisa: the city, Pisa
La lettera ‘Z’ (the letter ‘Z’)
Venezia: the city, Venice
zona: zone/area
Zurigo: the city, Zurich
pezzo: piece
pizza: pizza
zaino: backpack
Le combinazioni ‘Gn’, ‘Gl’, ‘Ps’ (the combinations ‘Gn’, ‘Gl’, ‘Ps’)
gnocchi: potato dumplings
psicologo: psychologist
campagna: country
glielo: it to him
figlio: son
psicosi: psychosis
Gli accenti (accents)
città: city
perché: why/because
tassì: taxi
università: university
ventitré: twenty-three
La combinazione –ia (the combination –ia)
camicia: shirt
lascia: leave
grigia: grey
farmacia: pharmacy gelateria: ice cream shop
bugia: lie
giacca: jacket
biologia: biology
dialogo: dialogue
Learn Italian for Travel. Lesson 1: Pronunciation. Danielle DiPietro-Hawkins
spiaggia: beach
astronomia: astronomy
La combinazione –io (the combination –io)
calcio: soccer
cioccolato: chocolate
universitario: academic
proprio: own
cioè: that is
odio: I hate
zio: uncle
giovane: young
gioco: I play
radiologo: radiologist
io: I
Le combinazioni delle vocali (vowel combinations)
aeroporto: airport
asciugamano: towel
zaino: backpack
autunno: Fall
sei: the number 6/ you are
ciao: hi
Paola: girls name
aiuole: flower beds
Come si dice? (how do you say?)
1. ‘Centro’ is pronounced like ‘center’ or ‘chair’?_______________________________
2. ‘Chiama’ is pronounced like ‘cola’ or ‘church’?_______________________________
3. ‘Goloso’ is pronounced like ‘gem’ or ‘gum’?__________________________________
4. ‘Gentile’ is pronounced like ‘go’ or ‘juice’?___________________________________
5. The ‘sc’ in ‘mescolare’ is pronounced like ‘shame’ or ‘skin’?______________________
6. The ‘sc’ in ‘sciarpa’ is pronounced like ‘she’ or ‘scooter’?________________________
7. Which ‘s’ in ‘sorriso’ is pronounced like a ‘z’?__________________________________
8. The ‘gn’ in ‘montagna’ sounds like the word ‘canyon’ or ‘bigness’?_________________
9. The English word station, in Italian is: ________________________________________
10. The English word incredible in Italian is: _____________________________________
Learn Italian for Travel. Lesson 1: Pronunciation. Danielle DiPietro-Hawkins
Learn Italian for Travel. Lesson 1: Pronunciation. Danielle DiPietro-Hawkins