The Letter S in Italian (When you say /s/ or /z/)

In today’s lesson, I’ll focus on the pronunciation of the letter S in Italian. I’m gonna show you a couple of rules and many examples. Stay till the end cause I also give you the chance to practice.
In Italian, we say the letter S ("esse") in two different ways: like an es /s/, or like a zed /z/. In the first case, it’s called “sorda” while in the second “sonora”
Now bear in mind that in spoken Italian we don’t pay much attention to this rule and the pronunciation can also vary depending on the Italian region as they all have a different accent. So don't worry too much if you don't get it accurate 100% as people can still understand you. With this being said let’s see how to say this letter more in detail.

You say /s/ when:
1. the "s" is before one of the following consonants: C, F, P, Q, and T
- like in the word “pesca” that means peach
2. the "s" is at the beginning of a word and the next letter is a vowel, for example in "sale " (sault)
3. the "s" is doubled, like in the adjective "basso" (short)
4. the "s" is in between a consonant and a vowel, for example in "borsa" (bag)

You say /z/ when:
1. the "s" is before one of the following consonants: B, D, G, L, M, N, V like in the word: "sbaglio" (mistake)
2. the word ends with these letters: "asi", "esi", "isi", and "osi". For example, "crisi" (crisis)
3. the word ends in “esimo” or “esima”, for instance: "ventesimo" (twentieth)
4. the "s" is in between two vowels. For example in "esame" (exam) - but there are many exceptions

Watch the video to learn more!

Видео The Letter S in Italian (When you say /s/ or /z/) канала Ambra Connex-ita