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D eufonica
In Italian, there are some words that change form in very specific constructions for reasons of pronunciation. These can be divided into two categories:
- Masculine articles and adjectives in front of complex sounds
- Three tiny words that take on the d eufonica, explained in this lesson
These three words are
| 1. | a | "to, at, in" | (preposition) | ||
| 2. | e | "and" | (conjunction) | ||
| 3. | o | "or" | (conjunction) |
When these single-letter words precede a word that starts with the same letter, the d eufonica is added to prevent a doubling of that vowel sound.
Per esempio…
| Vado ad Amsterdam. | I’m going to Amsterdam. | |
| Nico è cortese ed eloquente. | Nico is polite and eloquent. | |
| Quest’anno le classi sono settanta od ottanta. | There are seventy or eighty classes this year. |
Ma…
When the second word starts with that vowel followed by d, the d eufonica is generally not used in order to avoid repeating the same sound (e.g., ad ad), especially when speaking.
Per esempio
| Andiamo a Addison. | We’re going to Addison. | |
| Luciana è cordiale e educata. | Luciana is friendly and polite. | |
| È amore o odio? | Is it love or hate? |
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