italian words are divided into syllables as follows:
a single consonant goes with the following vowel.
| italian | english |
|---|---|
| ca–sa | house |
| po–si–ti–vo | positive |
double consonants are divided.
| italian | english |
|---|---|
| bab–bo | dad |
| ros–so | red |
| bel–lo | beautiful |
| at–to | act |
two consonants, the first of which is l, m, n, or r, are divided.
| italian | english |
|---|---|
| al–ber–go | hotel |
| con–ten–to | contented |
| am–pio | ample |
| for–tu–na | fortune |
otherwise, a combination of two consonants belongs to the following syllable.
| italian | english |
|---|---|
| ba–sta | enough |
| fi–glio | son |
| pa–dre | father |
| ba–gno | bath |
| so–pra | above |
| sa–cro | sacred |
the first of three consonants, except s, goes with the preceding syllable.
| italian | english |
|---|---|
| sem–pre | always |
| fel–tro | felt |
| mem–bro | member |
| men–tre | while |
