Italian alphabet and pronunciation (letters,...)
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There are 26 letters in the Italian alphabet: 16 consonants, 5 consonants to write foreign words, and 5 vowels.
A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z
Letter | Italian name | Example |
---|---|---|
A | a as in father | Ape (Bee) |
B | bì as in been | Bicicletta (Bycicle) |
C | cì as in cheers | Cane, Cena (Dog, Dinner) |
D | dì as in deep | Dado (Dice) |
E | e as in better | Elefante (Elephant) |
F | effe as in effective | Foglio (Sheet) |
G | gi as in giant | Gatta, Giorno (Female cat, Day) |
H | acca, always mute | Hotel |
I | i as in beer | Indice (Index) |
J | gei as in Jay | Jeans |
K | kappa | Koala |
L | elle as in Ellen | Luna (Moon) |
M | emme as in lemme | Mamma (Mom) |
N | enne | Natura (Nature) |
O | o as in odd | Orologio (Clock) |
P | pì as in piece | Porta (Door) |
Q | qu as in quality | Quaderno (Notebook) |
R | erre | Rosso (Red) |
S | esse | Strada (Road) |
T | tì as in t-shirt | Tavolo (Table) |
U | u as in good | Uva (Grape) |
V | vì as in Venus | Volare (Fly) |
W | vu doppia | Wurstel |
X | ics | Xilofono (Xylophone) |
Y | ipsilon | Yogurt (Yoghurt) |
Z | zeta | Zucca (Pumpkin) |
Let's go through some Italian consonants that share similar features with English consonants.
Letter | Italian | English |
---|---|---|
B as in Butter | Bambola | Doll |
D as in Dad | Domanda | Question |
F as in Fun | Fiore | Flower |
L as in Love | Lento | Slow |
M as in Mum | Matita | Pencil |
N as in Number | Natura | Nature |
P as in Power | Palla | Ball |
Q as in Quantity | Quando | When |
S as in Same | Stivale | Boot |
T as in Time | Tesoro | Treasure |
V as in Very | Vittoria | Victory |
Let's now outline some differences between Italian and English consonants.
The pronunciation of C and G depends on the letter that follow.
C/G + e, i : sweet sound | Cena (Dinner), Gita (Trip) |
C/G + a, o, u: hard sound | Casa (House), Golfo (Gulf) |
C/G + H + e, i: hard sound | Chiedere (Ask); Ghepardo (Cheetah) |
The H in Italian is always mute. However, it produces a hard sound if it's after C or G and followed by certain vowels.
H | No H |
---|---|
Ricchi (rich, plural) | Ricci (Curls/Curly, plural) |
Cechi (blind, plural) | Ceci (chickpeas) |
The Italian R has a slightly different sound than in English and it's called the "Rolling R".
It's pronounced by flipping your tongue just behind the upper front row of your teeth.
Italian | English |
---|---|
Ragno | Spider |
Ragazzo | Boy |
Rosa | Pink |
Z is pronounced either dz or ts, depending on the word.
Listen to the following examples.
Z as ts | Z as dz |
---|---|
Pazzo (Crazy) | Zio (Uncle) |
Grazie (Thank you) | Mezzo (Means/Half) |
Here's a list of the 6 Italian vowels.
Vowel | Example |
---|---|
A | Animale (Animal) |
E | Entrata (Entrance) |
I | Inizio (Beginning) |
O | Orso (Bear) |
U | Unione (Union) |
A good rule of thumb: all Italian words usually end with a vowel.
The Italian language also includes a set of accented vowels:
Vowel | Example |
---|---|
Á | Città (City) |
É | Caffé (Coffee) |
Í | Martedì (Tuesday) |
Ó | Mangeró (I will eat) |
Ú | Ragú (Italian meat sauce) |
Unlike English or French, all the letters in an Italian word are generally pronounced and it's relatively easy to instantly know the pronunciation of any new word.
Keep in mind that pronunciation might vary from Italian region to Italian region.
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I am so excited to be your new teacher. I have been teaching for 8 years as a Foundation Phase Teacher.
I would love to help you develop your English speaking abilities, by using TPR (Total Physical Response), props, we can even play some games and sing some songs together. If you would like, I could even read you a story.
I look forward to meeting you in our new classroom!
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Louise is a very kind teacher with materials based on what you want to learn. I totally recommend her.
This review was written by a coLanguage team member during a manual screening of this teacher profile.
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Hi everyone!
My name is Daniela, I am Italian and I come from a small town in Sicily, Southern Italy. I am a qualified Italian language teacher and a CELI examiner! I work in two language schools teaching Italian and I also teach English at school.
I love foreign languages, translating, reading and listening to music. Are you ready to start your language learning path with me? We are going to learn many things and to talk a lot, if you allow me to! Don’t worry if you’ve never studied the language before: everyone can attend my classes – from beginner to advanced students. You just need passion for what you're going to do and... a good Internet connection. Materials are provided by me!
See you online!
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Daniela is very nice and a very good teacher. We are moving at a good pace and she is helping me a lot so far.
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Hi there, I’m Letizia!
I've always had a great passion for languages and have made it my life's work.
I have been teaching English, Spanish and Italian as second languages (L2) to international students for 7 years now. I mainly work with teenagers and adults, but I also have experience with school-age children.
I am specialised in Psycholinguistics and Applied Linguistics for teaching: specifically, I work on the processes of L2 language acquisition (SLA), language development and processing.
Course features:
- Exams and certifications
- Academic and colloquial language
- Vocabulary and oral skills
- Course build on your needs and goals
- Interactive activities
- Authentic and personalised study materials.
Cancellation policy: to cancel or reschedule a lesson, please give at least a 6 hours notice.
Delays are accepted for up to 15 minutes, after which the lesson will be considered not cancelled and, thus, charged.
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The classes with Letizia are very helpful. Very good mix of theory and exercises. I can highly recommend Letizia!
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Hello, I'm Paul originally from London, I've been teaching adults for 9 years online and in person, individually and in groups. I'm passionate about teaching and helping people improve their communication, I really like travelling and realise how important english can be for people's jobs and social lives so I do whatever I can so my students reach their objectives.
I love hearing people's opinions and discussing lots of subjects and I base my classes on your interests.
I have a very high success rate preparing students for exams and can offer some great tips and advice to help you pass whatever exam you're studying for.
If you'd like to meet to discuss your needs select a free lesson and you can see if you think I'm the right person to help you with your English. I look forward to hearing from you soon. Thanks!
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Paul is a well-structrured, certified and experienced teacher. He is passionate about teaching English and is a very good choice as a teacher.
This review was written by a coLanguage team member during a manual screening of this teacher profile.
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Hi everyone!
My name is Daniela, I am Italian and I come from a small town in Sicily, Southern Italy. I am a qualified Italian language teacher and a CELI examiner! I work in two language schools teaching Italian and I also teach English at school.
I love foreign languages, translating, reading and listening to music. Are you ready to start your language learning path with me? We are going to learn many things and to talk a lot, if you allow me to! Don’t worry if you’ve never studied the language before: everyone can attend my classes – from beginner to advanced students. You just need passion for what you're going to do and... a good Internet connection. Materials are provided by me!
See you online!
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Wonderful teacher, thanks to her methodology and her pedagogical skills I could to reach the required level of italian language even without living in Italy. Highly recommended!!
Daniela V.
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Thanks, Lana. Your Italian is growing more and more and I am sure that the next big goal will soon arrive! :-D
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Hello everyone! I have been teaching Italian to foreigners in Bologna for 10 years, collaborating with local associations. I graduated in History, but later I specialized in teaching Italian by obtaining the Ditals, and in 2019 a master's degree at the Ca 'Foscari University of Venice in "Advanced planning of teaching Italian language and culture to foreigners". I love my job very much and I do it with dedication and passion. I have experience with students of all levels of Italian, from beginners to advanced, and in preparing for language tests. I adapt my teaching methods to the characteristics and training needs of my students, so as to favor a more effective, engaging and motivating learning. The materials I use are authentic, original texts and videos adapted for educational purposes. I love to use computer technologies for the preparation of interactive exercises, especially for the exercise of grammar. If you want to learn Italian in an engaging and motivating way, contact me! I'm waiting for you for a trial lesson!
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Cristiana is a delightful person and a very effective teacher. As a beginner, my almost nonexistent Italian skills and understanding requires a patient teacher who is willing to take the time to ensure I understand concepts, usage etc. before moving on. I highly recommend her as a tutor.
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Hi everyone!
My name is Daniela, I am Italian and I come from a small town in Sicily, Southern Italy. I am a qualified Italian language teacher and a CELI examiner! I work in two language schools teaching Italian and I also teach English at school.
I love foreign languages, translating, reading and listening to music. Are you ready to start your language learning path with me? We are going to learn many things and to talk a lot, if you allow me to! Don’t worry if you’ve never studied the language before: everyone can attend my classes – from beginner to advanced students. You just need passion for what you're going to do and... a good Internet connection. Materials are provided by me!
See you online!
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Very Nice communication, easy to study and practice Italiano, I am a Beginner and She has the patience to understand me.
Daniela V.
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Hola Pedro, thanks for your words. I'm glad you enjoyed our first class. Get ready, we are going to learn more and more! :-D
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My name is Jay and I'm from Morocco I love to teach English and share my knowledge of Moroccan and western culture with young students.
My degree is in English Studies. I possess a CELTA certificate as well and I have also worked for 7 years in both Morocco and China.
I like basketball and going to the gym.
I believe the most effective way to feel comfortable and confident with learning English is to enjoy having conversations with a teacher who guides students in lessons that are fun and interesting, with plenty of congratulations and corrections where necessary!
I am friendly, motivated, funny, and more importantly patient.
And I love to teach children and adults.
I hope and look forward to seeing you, in one of my classes soon.
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Jalal is a teacher with experience in several countries with lots of passion about teaching English.
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Hi!
My name is Mariateresa, I'm Italian and I teach English, Italian and Spanish to foreign students.
Having lived in Spain during my last year at University, I moved to the UK, where I lived for the next five years. My English at that time was quite poor and I made a living by doing various jobs.
One day, inspired by my amazing English teacher Mandy, I had an idea: why not teach my native language and Spanish to English people and other nationalities? You wouldn’t believe how fascinated people are by these languages!
It was in 2017 when I fell in love with this job. So much so that one year later I successfully attained a TESOL Certificate, to teach English as a foreign language.
Teaching allows me to fully express myself and my personal qualities, such as patience and an ability to give my full attention to other people. By giving students a space in which to express themselves without fear, I create a safe, non-judgemental environment.
When a new student contacts me I always offer them a free trial lesson, so that we can introduce ourselves and I can get to know their level, interests and needs. It's from there that I create the ensuing lessons.
I provide students with a solid grammar base, but also help them to understand the application and use of the language in everyday life. At the same time, I tailor the lesson to suit the students' main interests – such as grammar, speaking, pronunciation, writing or exam preparation. I teach students of different levels, from beginners to advanced.
Although I love teaching in-person, I have adapted myself to teaching online as well. I have also completed a Teaching English Online course offered by Cambridge University. I have to admit that it's a really effective method, plus you meet people from all over the world!
Having lived abroad for several years I know that learning a foreign language requires time, but it's also fun. By speaking in it we can express hidden parts of ourselves – it's a bit like acting!
You can also assimilate the culture from which the language evolves. It's interesting to see how we can change and develop!
My aim is to transmit to students the idea that nothing is impossible. Learning a language is challenging, but entirely achievable if you keep in mind that it's a journey made of small steps.
What is important is to establish those small objectives every day, and reach them with calm determination.
Like a tracker counts the steps that you walk, put on your “count-words tracker” and you'll be surprised at how much you have learned by the end of the day!
For more information visit:
https://campsite.bio/mariateresa.medici
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Maria, was very helpful. I was a bit of a challenging case and so she had to modify her teaching program on the fly and did so with competence.
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Hi everyone!
My name is Daniela, I am Italian and I come from a small town in Sicily, Southern Italy. I am a qualified Italian language teacher and a CELI examiner! I work in two language schools teaching Italian and I also teach English at school.
I love foreign languages, translating, reading and listening to music. Are you ready to start your language learning path with me? We are going to learn many things and to talk a lot, if you allow me to! Don’t worry if you’ve never studied the language before: everyone can attend my classes – from beginner to advanced students. You just need passion for what you're going to do and... a good Internet connection. Materials are provided by me!
See you online!
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Daniela is a fantastic teacher: competent and kind and attentive to the needs of the student. You learn a lot due to the lesson and the abundant learning material. Moreover you learn and have fun at the same time.
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Hi everyone!
My name is Daniela, I am Italian and I come from a small town in Sicily, Southern Italy. I am a qualified Italian language teacher and a CELI examiner! I work in two language schools teaching Italian and I also teach English at school.
I love foreign languages, translating, reading and listening to music. Are you ready to start your language learning path with me? We are going to learn many things and to talk a lot, if you allow me to! Don’t worry if you’ve never studied the language before: everyone can attend my classes – from beginner to advanced students. You just need passion for what you're going to do and... a good Internet connection. Materials are provided by me!
See you online!
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Highly recommend Daniela She is professional, knowledgeable of on line teaching methods and has a good understanding of your proficiency level to know where to start you.
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Buongiorno gente!
Are you ready to learn italian with me?
My name is Mojra and I'm a qualified mother tongue tutor. Whether you need to prepare yourself for a job interview, you're planning to relocate to Italy or to spend your next holiday there, I look forward to assisting you to achieve your goals!
I am here to help you improve you grammar, sentence structure and to teach you helpful phrases in a fun and relaxed way.
I graduated from university majoring in Linguistic Mediation and in Modern Languages and then I specialized in the teaching of Italian as a second language, attending a one-year post-graduate course devoted to this and receiving excellent grades (FILIS: Formatori Interculturali di Lingua Italiana per Stranieri). I also teach in the Italian public schools.
If you'd like to learn Italian fluently, I'd love to be your teacher, then why not book a trial class with me now? In this lesson, we will design a lesson plan especially for you discussing how you will reach your specific goals.
IMPORTANT: Please contact me before booking your lesson with me and let me know your Italian level as well as the reasons why you want to learn Italian.
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Moijra is very good teacher, patient and supportive She has the know how to transfer to her beginner students the needed knowledge
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Hi, welcome to my profile!
My name is Alessia and I currently live in Italy. I spent a few years in the United States where I deepened my knowledge of English and American dialects. I am currently specializing in Spanish and German. Over the years, I have given private lessons in Italian, English, Spanish, and Japanese, with Japanese being the most requested at the moment. Regarding Japanese, I had the opportunity to teach the language at an American college with a native Japanese teacher, applying the method that they use to learn their own language. I will help you in a simple way; conversation is really important for learning a language, and a good method is even more fundamental. No days spent on textbooks are needed; consistency and fun during lessons are the most important parts of learning. You will see results right away! I am patient, flexible, and will adapt in every way to your personal needs. I look forward to seeing you on my profile for a trial lesson and discovering an easy and fun method to learn a language as soon as possible.
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I Have had a few weeks of Italian lessons with Alessia and I have found them very useful. In our first lesson we spoke about what I wanted (hoped) to learn and she has prepared resources based on this conversation and my ability level for every lesson since then. Her lessons are a nice mix of conversation, reading, written and spoken exercises. We use a text book (supplied by Alessia) as well as additional material when suitable. I recommend Alessia as a tutor.
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Welcome to my profile!
My name is Daniela, or “Daniella” as my students call me.
I have been working as Italian teacher for two years to migrants, for refugee centers and humanitarian corridors in Italy. I have had experience with first literacy and also I have worked with begginers and intermidiate students, who I prepared to Linguistic Certification. I have worked with single student and with groups.
My opinion is “Viva l’intercultura”, that means looking at the person’s linguistic needs. Italian lessons become a space where the cultures meet and match each other, and step by step, the student can build the Italian language. For me, the cultures exchange is very important.
I’d rather to teach with an inductive, interactive, and cooperative method, which focus on communication functions, but doesn’t forget the grammar. I use manuals, worksheets, interactive games, songs and video.
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Daniela is an engaging teacher who takes seriously her job. She has a solid knowledge of the Italian grammar as well as fun ideas to teach it. I'm preparing an exam and she is being quite helpful to me, since she takes the time to prepare lessons and homework. I highly recommend to book a trial lesson with her.
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I am so excited to be your new teacher. I have been teaching for 8 years as a Foundation Phase Teacher.
I would love to help you develop your English speaking abilities, by using TPR (Total Physical Response), props, we can even play some games and sing some songs together. If you would like, I could even read you a story.
I look forward to meeting you in our new classroom!
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Louise is a very kind teacher with materials based on what you want to learn. I totally recommend her.
This review was written by a coLanguage team member during a manual screening of this teacher profile.
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Hi everyone!
My name is Daniela, I am Italian and I come from a small town in Sicily, Southern Italy. I am a qualified Italian language teacher and a CELI examiner! I work in two language schools teaching Italian and I also teach English at school.
I love foreign languages, translating, reading and listening to music. Are you ready to start your language learning path with me? We are going to learn many things and to talk a lot, if you allow me to! Don’t worry if you’ve never studied the language before: everyone can attend my classes – from beginner to advanced students. You just need passion for what you're going to do and... a good Internet connection. Materials are provided by me!
See you online!
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Daniela is very nice and a very good teacher. We are moving at a good pace and she is helping me a lot so far.
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Hi there, I’m Letizia!
I've always had a great passion for languages and have made it my life's work.
I have been teaching English, Spanish and Italian as second languages (L2) to international students for 7 years now. I mainly work with teenagers and adults, but I also have experience with school-age children.
I am specialised in Psycholinguistics and Applied Linguistics for teaching: specifically, I work on the processes of L2 language acquisition (SLA), language development and processing.
Course features:
- Exams and certifications
- Academic and colloquial language
- Vocabulary and oral skills
- Course build on your needs and goals
- Interactive activities
- Authentic and personalised study materials.
Cancellation policy: to cancel or reschedule a lesson, please give at least a 6 hours notice.
Delays are accepted for up to 15 minutes, after which the lesson will be considered not cancelled and, thus, charged.
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The classes with Letizia are very helpful. Very good mix of theory and exercises. I can highly recommend Letizia!
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Hello, I'm Paul originally from London, I've been teaching adults for 9 years online and in person, individually and in groups. I'm passionate about teaching and helping people improve their communication, I really like travelling and realise how important english can be for people's jobs and social lives so I do whatever I can so my students reach their objectives.
I love hearing people's opinions and discussing lots of subjects and I base my classes on your interests.
I have a very high success rate preparing students for exams and can offer some great tips and advice to help you pass whatever exam you're studying for.
If you'd like to meet to discuss your needs select a free lesson and you can see if you think I'm the right person to help you with your English. I look forward to hearing from you soon. Thanks!
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Paul is a well-structrured, certified and experienced teacher. He is passionate about teaching English and is a very good choice as a teacher.
This review was written by a coLanguage team member during a manual screening of this teacher profile.
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