What disappears at speed
In casual Italian whole sounds drop out. This isn't mumbling; it follows a few patterns: at the start of a word the unstressed beginning falls away, and before a vowel a small pronoun loses its own vowel. Native speakers use these forms all the time, educated ones included. Think of English gonna or wanna: fixed shapes, not sloppiness.
Slow and at speed
Questo film non mi piace.
[[ˈkwesto ˈfilm nommi ˈpjaːtʃe]]
I don't like this film.
Full form, spoken clearly.
'Sto film non mi piace.
[[sto ˈfilm nommi ˈpjaːtʃe]]
Don't like this film.
How it sounds among friends.
Gone at the start
Aferesi cuts the unstressed start of a word. The most common victim is questo in all its forms: 'sto, 'sta, 'sti, 'ste. Then there is 'nsomma for insomma. 'Na for una is mainly heard in central and southern Italy.
Listen and repeat
'Sta macchina non parte mai.
[[sta ˈmakkina nom ˈparte ˈmaːi]]
This stupid car never starts.
Here 'sta sounds slightly exasperated.
'Sto weekend andiamo al mare.
[[sto ˈwikend anˈdjaːmo al ˈmaːre]]
This weekend we're going to the seaside.
Com'è andata? – Mah, 'nsomma.
[[ˈnsomma] → n with no vowel before it]
How did it go? – Meh, so-so.
On its own, 'nsomma means "so-so".
C'era 'na fila incredibile.
[[ˈtʃɛːra na ˈfiːla]]
There was an unbelievable queue.
Typical of Rome and the south.
Pronouns before ho, ha, è
Before a form of avere or before è, mi, ti, si and ci lose their vowel. With lo and la this is standard (l'ho visto); with the others it is colloquial. Especially common is c'ho for ci ho: in speech avere often takes a ci that adds no meaning.
Listen and repeat
M'ha detto che passa più tardi.
[[madˈdetto] instead of [mi a ˈdetto]]
He told me he'll drop by later.
T'ho mandato un messaggio.
[[tɔmmanˈdaːto] instead of [ti ɔ manˈdaːto]]
I sent you a message.
Oggi non c'ho tempo.
[[nontʃɔtˈtɛmpo] → c'ho sounds like ciò]
I haven't got time today.
S'è rotto di nuovo il telefono.
[[sɛrˈrotto] instead of [si ɛ ˈrotto]]
My phone's broken again.
Questions with è che
Spoken questions like to slip an è che in after the question word. The question word loses its final vowel, and after è the k of che becomes long. Com'è che usually asks for the reason, often with surprise or a hint of reproach, much like English "how come".
Listen and repeat
Dov'è che hai parcheggiato?
[[doˈvɛkke]]
So where did you park?
Cos'è che non ti convince?
[[koˈzɛkke]]
What is it exactly that doesn't convince you?
Com'è che non mi hai chiamato?
[[koˈmɛkke]]
How come you didn't call me?
Quand'è che parti?
[[kwanˈdɛkke]]
So when are you leaving?
Spoken, texted, written
In chats and messages many people write the short forms as they say them. There is no fixed spelling for c'ho: you will see c'ho and ciò. Since ciò also means "this", c'ho is the clearer spelling. In emails to strangers, reports and job applications the full forms are used.
Which form fits where
| Conversation | Chat | Formal text |
|---|---|---|
| 'sto | 'sto, sto | questo |
| m'ha detto | m'ha detto | mi ha detto |
| c'ho | c'ho, ciò | ho |
| dov'è che | dov'è che | dove |
