It provides a set of symbols to represent the pronunciation of Italian in Wikipedia articles, and example words that illustrate the sounds that correspond to them. Integrity must be maintained between the key and the transcriptions that link here; do not change any symbol or value without establishing consensus on the talk page first.
↑Except /z/, all consonants after a vowel and before /r/, /l/, a vowel or a semivowel may be geminated. Gemination in IPA is represented by doubling the consonant (fatto[ˈfatto], mezzo[ˈmɛddzo]), and can usually be told from orthography. After stressed vowels and certain prepositions and conjunctions, word-initial consonants also become geminated (syntactic gemination): va via[ˌvavˈviːa].
12⟨z⟩ represents both /ts/ and /dz/. The article on Italian orthography explains how they are used.
12⟨gli⟩ represents /ʎ/ or /ʎi/, except in roots of Greek origin, when preceded by another consonant, and in a few other words, where it represents /ɡli/.
↑Non-geminate /r/ is generally realised as a monovibrant trill or flap [ɾ], particularly in unstressed syllables.
12/s/ and /z/ contrast only intervocalically. Word-initially, after consonants, when geminated, and before voiceless consonants, only [s] is found. Before voiced consonants, only [z] is found.
↑/h/ is normally dropped, though it can be used in the intentional pronunciation of foreign words and names containing /h/.
↑/θ/ is usually pronounced as [t] in English loanwords, and [dz], [ts] (if spelled ⟨z⟩) or [s] (if spelled ⟨c⟩ or ⟨z⟩) in Spanish ones.
↑In Spanish loanwords, /x/ is usually pronounced as [h] or [k] or dropped. In German, Arabic and Russian ones, it is usually pronounced [k].
↑Italian contrasts seven monophthongs in stressed syllables. Open-mid vowels /ɛ,ɔ/ can appear only if the syllable is stressed (coperto[koˈpɛrto], quota[ˈkwɔːta]), close-mid vowels /e,o/ are found elsewhere (Boccaccio[bokˈkattʃo], amore[aˈmoːre]). Close and open vowels /i,u,a/ are unchanged in unstressed syllables, but word-final unstressed /i/ may become approximant [j] before vowels, which is known as synalepha (pari età[ˌparjeˈta]).
↑Open-mid [œ] or close-mid [ø] if it is stressed but usually [ø] if it is unstressed. May be replaced by [ɛ] (stressed) or [e] (stressed or unstressed).
↑Since Italian does not distinguish full and reduced vowels (like the English o in conclusion vs o in nomination), a defined secondary stress, even in long words, is extremely rare.
↑Primarily stressed vowels are long in non-final open syllables: fato[ˈfaːto], fatto[ˈfatto].
