Italian Consonant
The letter S has two pronunciations in Italian as in English. Most words follow specific rules that spell out which pronunciation is correct.
Soft pronunciation
Phonetic symbol [s]
- at beginning of word + vowel
- before an unvoiced consonant (c, f, p, t)
- after any consonant
- whenever there is a double S
 |
Per esempio… |
| the letter s | ||
| salve | hello | |
| una spilla | brooch | |
| la testa | head | |
| un sottoveste | slip | |
| indossare | to wear | |
Hard pronunciation
Phonetic symbol [z]
- between two vowels
- before a voiced consonant (b, d, g, l, m, n, v)
|
Per esempio… |
| una casa | house | |
| il naso | nose | |
| i piselli | peas | |
| una sveglia | alarm clock |
When I started learning Italian, I was surprised and confused to discover that the letter S is never used for plurals – unlike French, Spanish, English ….
Related lessons
- Letter combinations: SC | SCH
- Italian alphabet
- Plural nouns
En español
En français
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