What you hear is not written
You read a casa and expect two separate words. What you hear is a single block of sound with a long k in the middle: [akˈkaːsa]. The same happens in è vero: spoken [ɛvˈveːro], with a long v.
This is called raddoppiamento sintattico, syntactic doubling: certain words make the first consonant of the next word long. Nothing of this is written. The goal is to recognise the doubling; you may imitate it, but you do not have to. The long consonant is one hold, not two taps and not a puff of air: the sound is simply held longer.
Four cases to listen to
Vado a casa.
[[ˈvaːdo akˈkaːsa]]
I'm going home.
a + casa gives a long k.
È vero, hai ragione.
[[ɛvˈveːro ai raˈdʒoːne]]
It's true, you're right.
è + vero gives a long v.
Parla più forte.
[[ˈparla pjufˈfɔrte]]
Speak louder.
più + forte gives a long f.
Resto tre giorni.
[[ˈrɛsto tredˈdʒorni]]
I'm staying three days.
tre + giorni gives a long dʒ.
The fixed triggers
A short list of small words triggers the doubling when a word with a single consonant follows. These nine cover most of what you meet every day. Look at them with English eyes: to, and, from, that, how are exactly the words English shrinks to a schwa. In Italian they keep a full vowel, and that gives the doubling something to hang on to.
Nine triggers
| Trigger | Meaning | Example | Spoken |
|---|---|---|---|
| a | to, at, in | a casa | [akˈkaːsa] |
| e | and | e poi | [epˈpɔi] |
| è | is | è bello | [ɛbˈbɛllo] |
| da | from, at, since | da me | [damˈme] |
| che | that, what, who | che cosa | [kekˈkɔːsa] |
| più | more | più tardi | [pjutˈtardi] |
| tre | three | tre giorni | [tredˈdʒorni] |
| come | how, like | come va | [komevˈva] |
| dove | where | dove sei | [dovesˈsɛi] |
The spelling never changes, only the pronunciation.
Ci vediamo a cena.
[[tʃi veˈdjaːmo atˈtʃeːna]]
See you at dinner.
Vengo da Napoli.
[[ˈvɛŋɡo danˈnaːpoli]]
I come from Naples.
Che bello vederti!
[[kebˈbɛllo veˈderti]]
How nice to see you!
More short words join them, such as ho, ha, ma, su, tra and qualche. You do not need to learn them; your ear picks them up over time.
Words stressed on the last syllable
The second group is a rule: every word whose last syllable is stressed triggers the doubling. You usually recognise such words by the written accent on the final vowel: à, è, é, ì, ò, ù. They include città, caffè, perché, così, già, però and future forms such as sarà and andrà.
Vive in città vecchia.
[[ˈviːve in tʃitˈta vˈvɛkkja]]
He lives in the old town.
Prendo un caffè freddo.
[[ˈprɛndo un kafˈfɛ fˈfreddo]]
I'll have an iced coffee.
Sarà difficile, lo so.
[[saˈra ddifˈfitʃile lo ˈsɔ]]
It will be difficult, I know.
Perché no?
[[perˈke nˈnɔ]]
Why not?
When it does not happen
The doubling needs a close join and a consonant that can be made long. It does not happen:
before a vowel, because there is no consonant to lengthen (and unlike English, Italian puts no glide between the vowels: the two just touch)
before s plus consonant, as in studio or strada
after a pause or a comma
after words that are not triggers, such as di, il, per, con
Vado a Ancona.
[[ˈvaːdo a anˈkoːna]]
I'm going to Ancona.
Torno a studiare.
[[ˈtorno a stuˈdjaːre]]
I'm going back to studying.
Sono di Roma.
[[ˈsoːno di ˈroːma]]
I'm from Rome.
When the doubling is written after all
In a few words two words have fused into one, and the doubling is part of the spelling.
davvero
from da + vero: really
soprattutto
from sopra + tutto: above all
appena
from a + pena: hardly, just now
eppure
from e + pure: and yet
Not the same everywhere
Raddoppiamento sintattico is part of standard pronunciation and is heard throughout central and southern Italy. In northern Italy it is mostly not spoken: a Milanese says [a ˈkaːsa] with a short k. Both are correct Italian, so you do not have to choose.
