How to Speak Latin?

Finding Your Roman Voice: A Guide to Pronunciation

One of the best things about Latin is its consistency. Unlike English, where "read" and "read" can sound different, Latin is almost always phonetic. If you know the rules, you can read any text with confidence.

1. The Vowels (Vowels are the Heart) Latin vowels have two lengths: short and long.

A is always like "ah" (as in father).
V (used as U) sounds like "oo" (as in moon).
I sounds like "ee" (as in machine).

2. The Consonants (No Silent Letters) In Classical Latin, some letters always stay "hard":

C is always "K" (as in cat). Cicero is pronounced Kee-keh-ro.
V is pronounced like "W". Veni, Vidi, Vici sounds like Weni, Widi, Wiki.
G is always "G" (as in get), never "J".

3. Diphthongs (Double Vowels)

AE sounds like "eye" (as in sky).
AU sounds like "ow" (as in now).

Conclusion

Don't worry about being perfect. The Romans are not here to correct you! The goal is to read aloud so the language becomes alive in your ears.