LingoDrop
Italian · Pronunciation Guide
How do you pronounce "dovere" in Italian?
doh-VEH-reh, stress on the middle syllable. In IPA: /doˈve.re/.
Three even syllables, do-ve-re, each held to full length and clarity — none of them fades the way an unstressed English syllable would.
Listen: dovere
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Sound it out
Same pattern as avere, potere, volere, and sapere: three clean syllables with the stress on the middle one, and every vowel pronounced in full.
Hear it in a sentence
Devo studiare stasera.
I have to study tonight.
Listen: Devo studiare stasera.
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"Devo studiare stasera" uses devo, the io-form of dovere, followed directly by another infinitive, studiare — the standard Italian pattern for expressing obligation, with no equivalent of English "to" needed between the two verbs. This is the everyday way to say "I have to" or "I must" about anything, from chores to homework.
Learners who've studied French sometimes carry over the cognate devoir, importing its softer, more nasal vowel quality or its tendency to compress endings. Italian dovere keeps every syllable distinct and fully voiced, with none of French's vowel reduction.
Where English speakers slip
As with the other modal verbs in this family, the main trap is stressing the first syllable by default, saying "DOH-veh-reh" instead of the correct do-VE-re, with stress on the middle syllable.
The other common slip is turning the stressed e into an English-style glide, "doh-VAY-reh," rather than keeping it a single, pure closed vowel from start to finish.