Italiano

A a (a) · B b (bi) · C c (ci) · D d (di) · E e (e) · F f (effe) · G g (gi) · H h (acca) · I i (i) · L l (elle) · M m (emme) · N n (enne) · O o (o) · P p (pi) · Q q (cu) · R r (erre) · S s (esse) · T t (ti) · U u (u) · V v (vu) · Z z (zeta) · J j (i lunga) · K k (cappa) · W w (doppia vu) · X x (ics) · Y y (ipsilon) Italian has 21 traditional letters; J, K, W, X and Y appear mainly in borrowed words. Accented vowels are not separate letters. Vowels: a, e, i, o, u; e and o have open and closed sounds. Final stress may be marked: città, caffè. C and G are hard before a, o, u: casa, gatto; soft before e, i: cena, gelato. CH and GH keep a hard sound: chi, spaghetti. GN sounds like the middle of lasagna; GLI has a palatal sound in famiglia. H is silent: ho. Double consonants are held longer: pala (shovel), palla (ball). R is tapped or rolled: rosa.