A1 · Alphabet and pronunciation
c and g: hard or soft
The next letter decides how c and g sound.
Before a, o and u, c sounds like k and g like the g in go: casa, come, gatto, gusto. Before e and i both go soft — and here English almost helps you, because English softens them before e and i too, as in city and gem. The difference is the soft sound itself: Italian c is the ch of church, not the s of city, and g is the j of jam. So cena, cinema, gelato, giro.
To keep the sound hard before e or i, Italian puts an h in between: che, chi, chiesa, spaghetti. This is the exact reverse of English. In English ch is the soft sound of church; in Italian ch is always a k, as in chemistry.
To make the sound soft before a, o or u, Italian puts an i in between, and that i is not heard: ciaois chowgiornois jor-nogiallois jal-lo
The same pattern turns sc before e and i into a single sh: pesce, scendere, and with a silent i sciarpa. Before a, o and u it stays s plus k: scuola, fresco. And q always comes with u and sounds like kw, as in English: quattro, questo.
The form
| k before a, o, u | casa, come, cura |
| ch (as in church) before e, i | cena, cinema |
| k before e, i: add an h | che, chi, chiesa |
| ch before a, o, u: add a silent i | ciao, cioccolato |
| j (as in jam) before e, i | gelato, giro |
| hard g before e, i: add an h | spaghetti, ghiaccio |
| sh | pesce, sciarpa |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is about
Before e and i, c and g go soft.
Il cinema è vicino alla gelateria.The cinema is near the ice-cream shop.
An h after c or g keeps the sound hard.
Chi ha preso le chiavi?Who took the keys?
An i before a, o, u makes the sound soft and is not heard itself.
Ciao! Oggi è una bella giornata.Hi! It's a lovely day today.
sc before e and i sounds like sh.
Il pesce è fresco.The fish is fresh.
How to spot it
- ce
- ci
- che
- chi
- gi
- ghi
- sce
Example sentences
Mia cugina cucina bene.My cousin is a good cook.
Prendo un cappuccino e due biscotti.I'll have a cappuccino and two biscuits.
La chiesa è chiusa il lunedì.The church is closed on Mondays.
Ho freddo, metto la sciarpa.I'm cold, I'll put my scarf on.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
When the ending of a word changes, the spelling has to hold the sound in place. banca is said with a k; add an -e for the plural and you get bance, which would be read ban-che with the ch of church. To keep the k, an h goes in: banche. The same with amica — amiche and lago — laghi. English instincts make this worse, because to an English eye ch looks like the soft sound and is the last thing you would add to keep a sound hard.
e and i make c and g soft; an h makes them hard again.
Your turn
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