Italian Alphabet and Pronunciation Guide For Beginners and Intermediate Learners 

Why it’s Important To Practice Your Italian Pronunciation From Day 1

In over ten years of teaching Italian as a foreign language, I’ve noticed a number of patterns that are next to impossible to get rid of (or that take a great deal of time and work to unlearn). A poor pronunciation is one of these patterns. For example, I’ve noticed that advanced Italian speakers who never practiced their pronunciation when they first started out are more likely to retain that problem over time. A bad pronunciation habit picked up as a beginner will eventually turn into an automated error. And only God knows how difficult it is to unlearn mechanical mistakes.

That’s why I always encourage my clients to spend time on pronunciation drills from day one.A clear articulation of the Italian sounds will help a native speaker to understand you, even as a beginner. Poor pronunciation, on the other hand, may make it difficult to understand an intermediate or advanced Italian speaker.

How To Work On Your Italian Pronunciation 

#1 Learn the Italian pronunciation rules and apply them.

#2 Read easy graded readers in Italian, like short stories or other simplified content from your textbooks. Use only content that is accompanied by slow audio recordings, if possibile.

#3 Listen to audio sources that are accompanied by scripts. Read and listen simultaneously. Then read it aloud and use your phone to record yourself.

#4 Get this book

#5 Work with a tutor on Preply or use this online dictionary to look up the correct pronunciation of Italian words.

#5 Buy this book 

Accent vs. Pronunciation 

The Italian Pronunciation

Italian is a phonetic language, and this is good news for any complete beginner. It means that you read just what is written in the vast majority cases, unlike in English.

That makes it easier to read and speak Italian as a beginner, as you won’t have to spend a lot of time on pronunciation rules. 

Most of the Italian consonants are pronounced just like in English. However, there are a few differences in the way we pronouns the vowels (a, e, i, o, u ) in Italian than in English. 

The Italian Vowels (A, E, I, O, U)

The vowels in Italian correspond to one and only sound, unlike English. There are 5 vowels in Italian. 

A is like “a” like in father.

• Amore, amico

E is pronounced “e”, like in get or end 

• Erba, emozione 

I is pronounced “ee” like in cheese, beach 

• isola, fine, iniziare 

O is pronounced “o” not

• orso, vino, gelato 

U is pronounced “oo”, like in boot or school 

• uva, uomo, scuola 

The Italian Alphabet 

Before anything else, it’s a good idea to learn the Italian alphabet. There are 5 vowels, 16 Italian consonants, and 5 foreign consonants (k, j, y, w, x) in the Italian alphabet.  Only foreign words use the five foreign consonants.

A is pronounced like “a” in “father”.

B is pronounced like “b” in “baseball”.

C is pronounced like “k” in “Karen” or “ch” in “chocolate” (see explanations below)

D is pronounced like “d” in “dad”

E is pronounced like “e” in “get” or “bet” 

F is pronounced like “f” in “flower”

G is pronounced like “gh” in “ghetto” or “j” in “Jordan” (see explanations below)

H is always silent 

I is pronounced like “ee” in “see” or “leave”

L is pronounced like “l” in “like”

M is pronounced like “m” in “mum”

N is pronounced like “n” in “night”

O is pronounced like “a” in “all”  or “audience”

P is pronounced like “p” in “party”

Q is pronounced like “qu” in “queen”

R is rolled on the tongue 

S is pronounced like “s” in “Simon”

T is pronounced like “t” in “table”

U is pronounced like “oo” in “school” or “boot”

V is pronounced like “v” in “very”

Z is is pronounced like “z” in “pizza” or “Mozart”

The Pronunciation Rules 

Despite most Italian consonants being pronounced just like in English, there are a few letter combinations with different pronunciations. Let’s call them “exceptions.” If you master these, you will be golden.