Oh, double consonants in Italian.

Learning them is particularly important so we avoid you saying things you don’t mean…like mixing up “ano” with “anno,” or “anus” with “year.”

Bonnie wrote on the Facebook page that she’s VERY conscious of this mistake.

If you haven’t had a chance to learn the alphabet and practice the vowels / consonants, go to that article now: The Alphabet in Italian (or how to make sure you’re understood speaking la bella lingua)

I’ve heard many stories where this happened, and while it’s memorable, it’s always awkward.

One that I mix up often that isn’t a huge deal is “sera” and “serra” or “night” and “greenhouse.”

The trick for never getting it wrong?

Just pronounce both letters CLEARLY.

To do this, make the vowel right before the double consonants shorter and make the double consonants longer.

— anno – AHN-no

— serra – SEHR-rah

Here are some other common words that have double consonants.

— cane – dog

— canne – reeds

• pala – shovel
• palla – ball

• camino – fireplace
• cammino – walk, stroll

• capello – hair
• cappello – hat

• cassa – cash register
• casa – house

• lego – I tie, I fasten
• leggo – I read

• note – notes
• notte – night

• polo – pole
• pollo – chicken

• rosa – pink/ rose
• rossa – red

• sano – healthy
• sanno -they know

• seno – bosom
• senno – sense, good judgment

• sono – I am/they are
• sonno – sleepy

• speso – spent {past tense of the verb spendere – to spend}
• spesso – often

• tori – bulls
• torri – towers

Words with double consonants to practice

Practice saying

— Mamma – mom

— Babbo – as in Babbo Natale – Father Christmas

CPF: Besides in Tuscany, “Babbo” it’s also rarely used to say “dad”. This word was introduced with the meaning of “dad” during Fascism by Mussolini, to avoid the Gallicism “papà”.

— Basso – short

— Caccia – hunt

— Ferro – iron

CPF: In Italian, they say “toccare ferro” to mean “touch iron” when someone has said something that might jinx the situation, like how many Americans say “touch wood.”

You might also hear “toccare legno” or “touch wood” or “faccio le corna,” which means “to do the horns” where you position the fingers of one hand to simulate two horns.

— Fetta – slice

— Nonno / nonna – Grandpa / grandma

— Pozzo – well/spring

— Ragazzo – boy/boyfriend

— Soqquadro – mess up, ransack

CPF: Soqquadro is the only word in the Italian language with a double “q.” Thanks to Raffaella for pointing that out!

Questions/a funny story to tell? Drop it in the comments below!