Level 1 – Foundation Course (A1)

🇮🇹 Lezione 2: L’Alfabeto e la Pronuncia 🇮🇹

Lesson 2: Italian Alphabet and Pronunciation

Foundation Course – Level A1

👨‍🏫 Benvenuti! Welcome to Your Second Italian Lesson

Ciao! I’m Sofia from Roma. Today we’ll master the Italian alphabet and pronunciation rules that will help you speak Italian clearly and confidently. These are the building blocks of perfect Italian pronunciation!

💡 Tip: Click the 🔊 buttons to hear perfect Italian pronunciation and practice along!

📝 The 5 Italian Vowels – Foundation of Everything

A a

[ah] – like “father”

Always sounds the same!

💡 Casa, Papà, Amare – never changes sound

E e

[eh] – like “bed”

Never like English “ee” sound

💡 Bene, Verde, Festa – always “eh”

I i

[ee] – like “machine”

Pure “ee” sound always

💡 Vino, Pizza, Amici – crystal clear “ee”

O o

[oh] – like “more”

Always open “oh” sound

💡 Solo, Roma, Bello – consistent “oh”

U u

[oo] – like “food”

Never like English “up” sound

💡 Luna, Frutta, Punto – always “oo”

🎯 C and G Rules – Very Important!

CA, CO, CU = Hard [k]

[KAH-sah] [KOH-meh] [KWOH-reh]

Before A, O, U sounds like “cat”

💡 Casa, Come, Cuore – hard K sound

CE, CI = Soft [ch]

[CHEH-nah] [CHEE-boh] [CHAH-oh]

Before E, I sounds like “church”

💡 Cena, Cibo, Ciao – soft CH sound

GA, GO, GU = Hard [g]

[GAHT-toh] [GOH-lah] [GOO-stoh]

Before A, O, U sounds like “go”

💡 Gatto, Gola, Gusto – hard G sound

GE, GI = Soft [j]

[JEN-teh] [JOR-noh] [jeh-LAH-toh]

Before E, I sounds like “gentle”

💡 Gente, Giorno, Gelato – soft J sound

🎵 Double Consonants – Changes Meaning!

Double = Longer + Stronger

[NOT-teh] [MAM-mah] [BEL-loh]

Hold the consonant longer

💡 Notte, Mamma, Bello – very important!

Single vs Double

Different meanings!

Nonno (grandfather) vs Nono (ninth)

💡 Listen carefully to the difference

🎪 Special Combinations

CH = [k] sound

[keh] [kee] [per-KEH]

Makes C hard before E and I

💡 Che, Chi, Perché – K sound

GLI = [lyee] sound

[fa-MEE-lyah] [FEE-lyoh]

Like “million” but softer

💡 Famiglia, Figlio – one soft sound

GN = [ny] sound

[NYOK-kee] [see-NYOH-rah]

Like Spanish “ñ” or “canyon”

💡 Gnocchi, Signora – one NY sound

🇮🇹 Cultural Tip: Why Italian Pronunciation is Easy!

Unlike English, Italian pronunciation is incredibly consistent! Once you learn these rules, you can read ANY Italian word correctly. Italians say “Come si scrive?” (How do you write it?) instead of “How do you spell it?” because spelling follows pronunciation perfectly.

Fun Fact: Italian only has 7 vowel sounds compared to English’s 20+ vowel sounds. This makes Italian much easier to pronounce than English!

🎯 Final Practice Challenge

Try reading these Italian words using the rules you’ve learned:

Easy words: “Casa, Bene, Pizza, Roma”

With C/G rules: “Ciao, Gelato, Cucina, Giorno”

With doubles: “Cappuccino, Spaghetti, Mamma”

Challenge: “Famiglia, Gnocchi, Perché”

🎉 Lesson Complete! Lezione Completata!

Ottimo lavoro! (Great work!) You now know the essential Italian pronunciation rules and can read Italian words correctly.

Practice these rules daily, and you’ll sound like a natural Italian speaker! In the next lesson, we’ll learn numbers 1-20.