Learn Italian: Mio cognato non è severo. - My brother-in-law is not strict.

Usually in Italian, you need an article like "il" or "la" before a possessive word (like "il mio cane" for "my dog"). But there is a special rule for family members! When you are talking about a single, singular family member like cognato (brother-in-law), you drop the article. So it is just mio cognato, not il mio cognato.

How do you pronounce the "gn" in "cognato"?

The gn sound in Italian is very similar to the "ny" sound in the English word "canyon" or "onion". You don't pronounce the "g" and "n" separately.

Why does non come before the verb instead of after it?

In English, we put "not" after the verb (is not). In Italian, the negative word non always goes directly in front of the verb it changes. So "is not" becomes non è.

How would this sentence change if I were talking about my sister-in-law?

Everything would change to feminine! "Brother-in-law" is cognato, so "sister-in-law" is cognata. You would also change the possessive to mia and the adjective to severa. The sentence would be: Mia cognata non è severa.