Italian Letter
In Italian, the pronunciation of the letter C depends on the other letters around it.
1. When C precedes a soft vowel (E, I), it is pronounced like English’s ch as in "chip." Phonetic symbol: [tʃ]
 |
Per esempio… |
| the letter c | ||
| cena | dinner | |
| cibo | food | |
| francese | French | |
2. When C precedes a hard vowel (A, O, U) or consonant, it’s pronounced like a hard English c, as in "concrete." Phonetic symbol: [k]
|
Per esempio… |
| caffè | coffee | |
| medico | doctor | |
| cugino | cousin | |
| crema | cream |
When a hard C sound is needed in front of E or I, add H: CH.
3. There’s sometimes a third sound when C is preceded by S – see SC.
Related lesson
- Letter combinations: CH | SC | SCH
- Hard and soft vowels
- Italian alphabet
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