Learn Italian: Sento i cigolii anche io, lo giuro. - I hear the creaks too, I swear it.

Sento i cigolii anche io, lo giuro.

I hear the creaks too, I swear it.

Breakdown of Sento i cigolii anche io, lo giuro.

him/it (direct object)

Questions & Answers about Sento i cigolii anche io, lo giuro.

Why does cigolii end in a double "i" instead of just one?

The singular form is cigolio (creak). For masculine nouns ending in -io, the plural spelling depends on the stress. Because the stress falls on the i in the singular (cigolìo), the plural takes a double i (cigolii) to keep that stress. If the stress fell elsewhere, like in orologio, the plural would have only one i (orologi).

How do I pronounce the double "i" in cigolii?

You pronounce it as two distinct vowel sounds, with the stress on the first one. It sounds like a lengthened "ee" sound, similar to "chee-go-LEE-ee".

Could I write anch'io instead of anche io here?

Yes, anch'io is perfectly correct and very common. Keeping them separate as anche io is also correct and is often used to put slightly more emphasis on the fact that "I" hear them too.

Why do we need the word lo in lo giuro?

The pronoun lo translates to "it" and refers back to the entire previous clause (the fact that you hear the creaks). While English speakers often just say "I swear," Italian prefers to include the direct object pronoun to show exactly what is being sworn.