How to pronounce double consonants in Italian

In this video I talk about Italian double consonants. More specifically, I will explain how to pronounce the double letter N.

If you have learned Italian as a foreign language, and you are not sure how to pronounce double letters, this lesson is for you!

In this lesson I won't explain abstract or theoretical stuff, but I will give you 20 practical examples of words with a double N.

In these practical examples, I will compare 20 words including a double consonant N with 20 similar words with a single N. I will pronounce these words both in isolation and within a sentence. This will help you understand how to pronounce this double consonant in different types of sentences and based on its position within a given sentence.

This video is my response to a request I received a while ago from one of my subscribers. Some time ago, this person asked me to make a video about the pronounciation of the double letter N, pointing out that this letter is highly problematic for Brazilians (learning Italian).

If people find this video helpful, I will make another video about a different letter. In the comments section please let me know what consonant you are most interested in.

Generally speaking, people who have learnt Italian as a foreign language have a hard time pronouncing double consonants. In other words, they tend to make systematic errors.

This is partially due to the fact that double letters are poorly explained, to put it mildly. Or rather, without using euphemisms, instructors explaining double consonants typically do a half-a** job (beep).

For instance, I have seen that the Internet is full of videos (3 to 5 minutes long) explaining all Italian double consonants at once.

To be honest, I find such approach kind of idiotic, because double consonants are very different one from the other. For instance, the sound of the double letter B is completely different from the sound of the double letter S.

In my opinion, the best approach would be explaining each double letter individually. Which is what I'm gonna do in this video. In this video I will only talk about the double consonant N.

Unfortunately, many Italian language instructors use a somewhat vague and general approach and tend to draw general conclusions about double consonants in general.

For instance, not long ago I watched a video in which this cute and smart girl gave a general piece of advice on how to pronounce Italian double consonants. Basically, she said that, to pronounce a double consonant, you need to lengthen it.

The issue with that is that such advice can be useful for some consonants, but is useless, if not harmful, for other consonants.

Thing is, I understand this piece of advice as applied to the letter S: indeed we pronounce double S as ESSSE, lengthening the sound of the letter S. But I just don't f***ng understand how one is even supposed to lenghten a B?!

Anyway, I don't want to digress too much talking about this, because I've already made 2 videos about it. Here you cand find a card to them. If you want to, check them out!

What I wanted to stress is this. To learn Italian double consonants effectively, you shouldn't rush, and should learn one letter at a time. Otherwise, if you "learn" all of them at once, this will only create confusion, and it's essentially useless.

That being said, let's move on to our examples with the double consonant N.

Let's start from the case where we have NN between two A.

For instance, let's consider the name Anna.

In italian this name is spelled with two Ns. In other words, the Italian version of this name has two Ns. Hence, in Italian we say, for instance, "Si chiama Anna". Or: "La mia ragazza si chiama Anna".

In other European languages, this name is spelled with one N. In other words, there exist another version of the name "Anna" spelled with a single N, for instance in Eastern Europe. In some languages, this name isn't spelled as "Anna" with two Ns, but "Ana" with one N. So, if I met a girl who is, I don't know, let's say romanian, or moldovan, and her name is "Ana" with one N, then I should say "Si chiama Ana".

Can you hear the difference between the name Anna and the name Ana?

Similarly, in Italian we have the name "Susanna". Again, in this name we find two Ns. I say: "Susanna".

In other European languages, you will find the name "Suzana" spelled with one N.

Can you hear the difference between "Susanna" and "Suzana"? In one case I say "Si chiama Susanna", in the other I say "Si chiama Suzana".

Alright!

Let's do an example with a couple of Italian words where we can find, on the one hand, a double N, and on the other, a single N.

Let's consider the words "annata" and "analisi".

Well, you probably don't know the word "annata". "Annata" is a special alternative form of the word "anno" that is used in some cases. Anyway, right now we are not interested in its meaning, but rather in its sound.

Let's do an example with the word "annata".

"Questa è stata una brutta annata".

Can you hear the double N? "Questa è stata una brutta annata".

You most likely know the word "analisi", therefore I don't need to tell you what it means.

Let's do an example with the word "analisi".

"Ho letto la tua analisi con molto interesse".

Let's compare our 2 words: on the one hand we have "annata", on the other we have "analisi".

Annata - analisi.

Analisi - Annata.

But let's consider another pair of words!

Let's take the words "panna" and "Panama".

An example with "panna" could be: "La panna fa ingrassare".

An example with "Panama" could be: "Vive a Panama".

Can you hear the difference? Panna - Panama.

But let's consider 2 more words!

For instance, let's consider the pair of words "capanna" and "campana".

I don't know if you know the word "capanna". Here I will add a picture, so that you understand what "capanna" means. Anyway, here we are interested in its sound, not in its meaning.

Let's do an example with the word "capanna". An example could be: "Vive in una capanna". Or: "Vive in una capanna vicino al fiume".

The example with the word "campana" could be: "La campana suona alle nove".

Can you hear the difference between the N in "capanna" and the N in "campana"?

Capanna - Campana.

Basically, a double N is stronger, longer, and more salient than a single N.

Let's do an example with a pair of past participles, for instance "condannato" and "analizzato".

As an example, we could use the sentence: "È stato condannato a dieci anni". Can you hear how I pronounce the word "condannato"? You can hear a strong N sound, "è stato condannato".

The N in "analizzato" is not double and hence is much less strong. For instance, I could say: "Ho analizzato dieci articoli".

Can you hear the difference?

Condannato - Analizzato.

Ok, so far I gave you examples with a double N between two As.

Let's do an example with (words with) a double N between A and E. Or rather, not "E", but "è".

Let's take the words "annetto" and "anello".

"Annetto", well, is diminutive of the word "anno". Anyway, let's do an example with the word "annetto". "Ho vissuto per un annetto a Roma".

Let's do an example with the word "anello".

Chances are, you already know the word "anello". "Anello" is that thing you can wear on a finger. Now I don't have any ring to show. Or rather... I do have a ring, but I can't show it to you because it's Sauron's ring, I keep it here. Here I have the One ring of the Lord of the Rings, but I can't show it to you.

In any case, an example with the word "anello" could be: "Le ho comprato un anello"

Let's compare our 2 sentences. On the one hand, we have "Ho vissuto un annetto a Roma"; on the other, we have "Le ho comprato un anello". Can you hear the difference? Annetto - Anello.

Let's consider two more words.

For instance, let's take the words "fanno" and "Fano". Alright. You most likely already know the verb "fanno", so I don't need to explain it. "Fano" is the name of an Italian town.

So an example could be the sentence: "Molti fanno quest'errore". And the other sentence could be: "Vive a Fano".

Can you hear the difference between these two sentences? "Molti fanno quest'errore", "Vive a Fano".

Fanno - Fano.

Fanno - Fano.

Let's consider two more words. Sanno - sano.

For instance "Molte persone non lo sanno". And the other sentence could be "Il medico ha detto che non ha niente e che è sano come un pesce".

Can you hear the difference? "Non lo sanno", "è sano come un pesce".

Sanno - sano.

Sanno - sano.

Let's consider two more words: "annullare" e "anulare".

You probably know the verb "annullare", so I don't need to explain it.

"Anulare" is an ajective, it's the adjective related to the word "anello" we previously discussed.

So as an example, we could consider these sentences: "Voglio annullare la mia prenotazione" and the other sentence could be "Il quarto dito si chiama anulare".

This finger is called "anulare" in Italian. Why is it called "anulare"? Because on this finger married people wear a special type of ring that in Italian is called "la fede". In any case, let's focus on the sound.

Annullare - Anulare.

Annullare - Anulare.

You see? The single N is pronounced much faster and is less strong.

Let's consider two more words: "penne", "Irene". For instance: "Queste penne costano troppo". And the other sentence could be: "Ho parlato con Irene".

Can you hear the difference?

Penne - Irene.

Penne - Irene.

Let's now consider the words: "nonna", "nona". "Nonna," well, you know what that is, while "nona" is an ajective. You surely know the adjective "nono", "nona". These are words that, well, you surely know them.

Let's do 2 exemples.

"Tua nonna è molto simpatica".

"il mio film preferito è La nona porta".

Can you hear the difference between "nonna" and "nona"? Nonna - nona.

Let's consider two more words: "insonnia", "Sonia". Let's take two sentences as an example.

"Soffre di insonnia, la notte non riesce a dormire". The other sentence could be: "Si chiama Sonia".

Can you hear the difference in pronounciation of "insonnia" and "Sonia"? Insonnia - Sonia.

Let's consider another pair of words: "nonno" - "nono".

Let's take two sentences.

"Tuo nonno è molto simpatico".

"Ho partecipato alla gara e sono arrivato nono".

Can you hear the difference between "nonno" and "nono"? Nonno - nono.

Let's take another pair of words with a double N between two Os.

Let's take the words "sonno" - "cono". An example could be "Ho molto sonno". And the other sentence could be "Il cono è una figura tridimensionale".

Ok. Nineteen. Next, twenty.

Alright, then. For our last example, let's consider the words "unni" and "unicorni". For instance: "Mulan combatte contro gli unni". The other sentence could be: "Gli unicorni non esistono".

Can you hear the difference between (the words) "unni" and "unicorni"? Unni - unicorni.

Now let's briefly compare the 20 pairs of words we examined. I will repeat each pair twice.

Anna - Ana.

Susanna - Suzana.

Annata - Analisi.

Panna - Panama.

Capanna - Campana.

Condannato - Analizzato.

Annetto - Anello.

Fanno - Fano.

Sanno - Sano.

Annullare - Anulare.

Penne - Irene.

Nonna - Nona.

Insonnia - Sonia.

Nonno - Nono.

Sonno - Cono.

Unni - Unicorni.

That's it! If you found this video helpful, please leave a wonderful Like below.

In the comments, please let me know if you indeed had some issues with the consonant N. Because, as I said, this video was created in reply to someone who told me that, for Brazilians, the letter N (in Italian) is the most problematic.

Meanwhile, here you can find a card to another video I strongly recommend that you watch. If you want to speak Italian well, you might wanna to check it out!

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