Italian alphabet chart with pictures
26 letters · tap 🔊 to hear each one.
| Picture | Letter | Word | Meaning | Listen |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | A | ape | bee | |
 | B | banana | banana | |
 | C | cane | dog | |
 | D | dado | die | |
 | E | elefante | elephant | |
 | F | fragola | strawberry | |
 | G | gatto | cat | |
 | H | hotel | hotel | |
 | I | ippopotamo | hippo | |
 | J | jeans | jeans | |
 | K | koala | koala | |
 | L | leone | lion | |
 | M | mela | apple | |
 | N | nave | ship | |
 | O | orso | bear | |
 | P | pesce | fish | |
 | Q | quaderno | notebook | |
 | R | rana | frog | |
 | S | sole | sun | |
 | T | tartaruga | turtle | |
 | U | uva | grapes | |
 | V | violino | violin | |
| W | wafer | wafer | ||
| X | xilofono | xylophone | ||
 | Y | yo-yo | yo-yo | |
 | Z | zebra | zebra |
The Italian alphabet for kids is short and friendly: just 21 letters, plus five "foreign" letters used in borrowed words. This page shows all 26 on picture cards, like the alfabetiere (alphabet chart) on the wall of an Italian classroom: A come ape (A as in bee), B come banana, C come cane (dog), G come gatto (cat) and Z come zebra. Tap a card to hear the letter and its word in clear audio, then play Find it or Memory.
How many letters are in the Italian alphabet?
The Italian alphabet has 21 letters: A B C D E F G H I L M N O P Q R S T U V Z. The letters J, K, W, X and Y are called lettere straniere (foreign letters). They appear only in words borrowed from other languages, which is why the cards use jeans, koala, wafer, xilofono and yo-yo. Italian children learn all 26, but they know that the "real" Italian ones are 21.
Italian letter names
Italian letter names are musical and easy to sing. Several differ from English, so it helps to know them before you start.
| Letter | Italian name | Card word |
|---|---|---|
| A, E, I, O, U | a, e, i, o, u (pure vowels) | ape, elefante, ippopotamo, orso, uva |
| C | ci ("chee") | cane (dog) |
| G | gi ("jee") | gatto (cat) |
| H | acca | hotel |
| Q | cu | quaderno (notebook) |
| R | erre, rolled | rana (frog) |
| Z | zeta | zebra |
| J, K, W, X, Y | i lunga, cappa, doppia vu, ics, ipsilon | jeans, koala, wafer, xilofono, yo-yo |
The letter H, acca, is always silent in Italian. Its job is to change the sound of C and G: che sounds like "keh" and ghi like "ghee". It also appears in a few little verbs, such as ho (I have).
Letter groups that make one sound
When your child starts reading, a few groups are worth knowing: ci and ce sound like "chee" and "cheh" (ciliegia, cherry); chi and che are hard "kee" and "keh" (chiave, key); gn sounds like "ny" (ragno, spider); gli is a soft "ly" (coniglio, rabbit); and sc before e or i sounds like "sh" (pesce, fish). Italian first-grade teachers spend weeks on these suoni difficili (tricky sounds).
How Italian schools teach letters
In the scuola dell'infanzia (ages three to six), children play with letters, find the letter of their own name, clap syllables and sing, but they are not taught to read. Reading begins in prima elementare at six. Most classes start with stampato maiuscolo (capital letters), then move to small print and later to joined-up corsivo. Because Italian is so regular, teachers use syllables: once a child knows M and the vowels, they can read ma, me, mi, mo, mu, and soon mamma and mela. Many children read simple sentences by the end of the first year.
How to teach Italian letters at home
- Your child's name first. Find its first letter and say the Italian name and sound.
- Vowels first. Sing a, e, i, o, u together. They are the key to reading Italian syllables.
- Syllable game. Put a letter with each vowel: pa, pe, pi, po, pu. Children love the rhythm.
- Letter hunt. Find letters on packets of pasta, signs and books.
- Five letters a week. Play Listen, then Find it with just those letters.
Play the Italian word-chain game: say a word, and your child must say a new word starting with its last syllable. Gatto, topo, polpo... It builds syllable awareness while you wait for the bus.
What to expect by age
At two to three, children enjoy the pictures and the sounds, and a few recognise their own initial. At three to four, they can say the five vowels and match a few letters to words. At four to five, they clap syllables and hear the first sound of a word. At five to six, many recognise most capital letters and start writing their name in capitals. If your child is also learning the English ABCD, note that Italian vowels sound different from English letter names. Keep sessions short and shared, and praise effort.
L'alfabeto italiano per bambini
L'alfabeto italiano ha 21 lettere, più cinque lettere straniere: J, K, W, X e Y. In questa pagina ogni lettera ha un'immagine e una parola: A come ape, C come cane, G come gatto, Z come zebra. Il bambino tocca una carta e ascolta la lettera e la parola.
Cominciate dalle vocali, poi giocate con le sillabe: ma, me, mi, mo, mu. Cercate le lettere sulle confezioni, sui cartelli e nei libri illustrati. Bastano pochi minuti al giorno, con allegria e senza fretta.
Next, try numbers in Italian or animals in Italian, where many alphabet words return. For a close cousin, see the Spanish alphabet.
How to use this page at home
Say it, then find it
Play for a few minutes, then look for the same thing away from the screen: italian words on the shelf, in the kitchen, on the way to school. A child learns a word properly when they meet it twice, once on the screen and once in their hand.
Ten minutes is enough
Short and happy beats long and tired. Stop while your child still wants more, and come back tomorrow: the same page on five short days teaches far more than one long sitting. Nothing here is scored, so there is no reason to push.
Use both languages
Tap the language button at the top to hear the words in your home language first and the second language after. Hearing the same picture named in two languages is one of the few things research agrees builds attention as well as vocabulary.
