Collins Easy Learning Italian Grammar

163 Pages·2006·151.12 MB·English

by  Lorna Knight

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Collins
Collins
Italian
Crammar
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CONTENTS
Foreword for language teachers vii
ntroduction for students viii
I
Glossary of grammar terms x
Nouns I
Using nouns 'I
Making nouns plural 7
Articles to
Two types of article 'to
The definite article l1
The indefinite article 17
Adjectives 20
Using adjectives 20
How to make adjectives agree 21
Comparing people or things ZD
Demonstrative adjectives 3o
I nterrogative adjectives 32
Adjectives used in exclamations 33
Possessive adjectives 34
Indefinite adjectives 37
Pronouns 40
Different types of pronoun 40
Subject pronouns 4'l
Object pronouns 44
Possessive Dronouns 52
ne and ci 54
Indeflnite pronouns 57
Relative pronouns 6o
nterrogative pronou ns 63
I
Demonstrative Dronouns o5
Verbs 66
Overview ofverbs 66
The present tenses 68
The present simple tense 69
essere and stare 79
The present continuous tense 8t
The imperative 8z
Reflexiv€ verbs 8t
The future tense 93
The conditional 98
The imperfecttense r04
The oerfect tense ro8
The past historic 1-t4
FOREWORD FOR LANGUAGE TEACHERS
The pluperfect or past perfect tense rr6
The passive n9
. Thegerund r'3
lmpersonalverbs 127 The Easy Learning ltolian Crammor is designed to be used with both young and adult
The subjunctive 'r3o learners, as a group reference book to complement your course book during classes,
The infinitive 138 or as a recommended text for self-study and homework /cou rsework.
Prepositions after verbs r43 The text specifically targets learners from beginners to intermediate or CCSE level,
Verbal idioms 146 .rnd therefore its structural content and vocabularv have been matched to the
Negatives 149 relevant specifications u p to and includ ing H igher CCSE.
Questions 152 Ihe approach aims to develop knowledge and understanding of grammar and your
Different types of questions 152 learners'ability to apply it by:
Question words 155
o defining parts of speech at the start of each major section with examples
Adverbs 'r6o
How adverbs are used r60 i n Engl ish to clarify concepts
How to form adverbs i6o o minimizing the use of grammar term inology and providing clear
explanations of terms both within the text and in the Glossary
Making comparisons using adverbs toJ
Some common adverbs toD . illustrating all pointswith examples (and theirtranslations) based on
Where to put adverbs lV topics and contexts which are relevant to beginner and intermed iate
course content
Prepositions 172
Using prepositions 172 I he text helps you develop positive attitudes to grammar learn ing in your classes by:
a, di, da, in, su and per 174
Some other common prepositions r83 o g iving clear, easy-to-follow explanations
.
prioritizing content according to relevant specifications forthe levels
Conjunctions 187
.
e, ma, anche, o, perch€, che and se 187 sequencing points to reflect course content, e.g. verb tenses
Some other common conjunctions t8g r highlighting usefulTips to dealwith common difliculties
Split conjunctions '190 . summarizing Key points atthe end ofsectionsto consolidate learning
Spelling r9l
Stress 196 lrr addition to fostering success and building a thorough foundation in ltalian
{lrammac the optionalGrammar Extra sections will encourage and challenge your
Which syllable to stress 196
Ir,arners to further their stud ies to hiqher and advanced levels.
Numbers r99
Time and date 203
Main index 206
Verb tables 1-91
Verb index 92-96
Note on trademarks
Entered words which we have reason to believe constitute trademarks have been designated
as such. However, neitherthe presence northe absence ofsuch designation should be regarded
as affecting the legal status ofany trademark.
I NTRODUCTION FOR STU DENTS
rw
Whether you are starting to learn ltalian for the very fi rst time, brushing up on When you translate an Eng lish sentence wh ich starts with a noun,
top ics you have stud ied i n class, or revisi ng for you r GCS E exams, the Eosy Learning don't forget to use the defi nite article in ltalian.
Italian Crammar is here to help. Th is easy-to-use gu ide takes you through all the Le mdcchine costano caro. Cars cost a lot.
basics you will need to speak and understand modern everyday ltalian. La frutta fa bene. Fruit is good foryou
Learners sometimes struggle with the technical terms they come across when they
start to explore the g ram mar of a new language. The Easy Learning ttalian Crammar
explains how to get to grips with all the parts of speech you will need to know, Key points sum up all the important facts about a particular area of grammar, to
using simple language and cutting out jargon. save you time when you are revising and help you focus on the main grammatical
Doi nts.
The text is divided into sections, each dealing with a particulararea of grammar.
Each section can be studied individuallv as numerous cross-references in the text
poi nt you to relevant points i n other sections ofthe book for fu rther i nformation. Key points
y'
Every major section beg ins with an explanation of the area of grammar covered r,lostltalian adjectives go after the noun.
y'
on the following pages. For quicl< reference, these definitions are also collecteo rnemeaning of someadjectives changes depending on whether
togetheron pagesviii-xii in a glossaryof essential grammatical terms. they come beore or after the noun.
What is a verb? lf you think you would like to continue with your ltalian studies to a higher level,
A verb is a word which describes what somebody or something does, look at the Grammar Extra sections. These are i ntended for advanced students
who are interested in knowinq a little more about the structures thev will come
what they are, or what happens to them, for example, ploy, be, disappear
across bevond GcsE.
Each grammar point in the text is followed by simple examples of real ltalian, Grammar bfira!
complete with English translations, to help you understand the rules. Underlining
has been used in examplesthroughoutthetextto highlightthegrammatical point To say that someth i ng is getting better ond better,worse and worse, slower and slower, and so
on, use sempre with the comparative adverb.
being explained.
Le cose vanno semDre meglio. Things are going betterand better.
) Mio nonno sta sempre peggio. My grandfather's getting worse and worse
To say fhe one in ltalian use quello to referto masculine nouns or quella to
refertofeminine nouns.The relative oronoun is che. Cammina sempre pii lento. He's walking slower and slower.
E quello che non firnziona. That's the one wh ich isn't workino
E quello che preferisco. That's the one I Drefer.
E quella che parla di pii. She's the one who talks most. Finally, the supplement at the end of the bool< contains Verb Tables, where
90 important ltalian verbs (both regularand irregular) are declined in full.
Examples show you how to use these verbs in your own work. lf you are unsure
In ltalian, as with any foreign language, there are certain pitfalls which have to be of how a verb declines in ltalian, you can look up the Verb Index on pages 92-97
avoided. Tips and tnformation notes throughout the text are useful reminders of to fi nd either the conj ugation ofthe verb itsell or a cross-reference to a model
the th i ngs that often tri p learners u p. verb, which will show vou the patterns that verb follows.
G LOSSARY OF G RAM MAR TERMS sometimes a vowel, as in any. In ltalian i EXCLAMATION a sound, word orsentence
sometimes has a vowel sound (ee) and that is spoken suddenly by somebody who
sometimes the consonant sound ofy in is surprised, excited or angry, for example
ABSTRACT NOUN a word used to referto CARDINAL NUMBERa number used in year, for example, italiano (eetalyano). Oh!; Look who's coming!; How dare you!
a qual ity, idea, feel ing or experience, rather counting, for example, one, seven, ninet1. ComDarewith vowel. FEMININE a noun, pronoun, article or
thhaapnp inae pshs.y sCicoaml opbajerec t,w fiothre xcaomnpclere,stiez en, orueans.on, Compare with ordinal number. CONTINUOUS TENSE a verb form made form ofadjective used to refer to a I ivi ng
CLAUSE a group of words containing a verb. u p of to be and the -ing form, for example, being, thing or idea that is not classed as
ACTIVE a form of the verb that is used when COMPARATIVE an adjective or adverb I'm thinking;TheV were quarrelling. ltalian masculine. For example, una (feminine
the subject ofthe sentence does the action, with -er on the end of it or more or less in continuous tenses are made with stare indeflnite article) bella (adjectivewith a
for example, A dog bit him (subiect: a dog: front of it that is used to compare things and the gerund. feminine ending) casa (feminine noun).
active verb: bit).Compare with passive.
or people, for example, faster, more DEFINITE ARTICLE the word the. Compare FUTURE a tense used to talk about
ADJECTIVE a'describing'word that tells you i m portont, less i nteresting. with indefinite article. somethi ng that will happen, or be true
something abouta person orthing, for COMPOUND NOUN a word fora living DEMONSTRATIVE ADJ ECTIVE a word used i n the future, for exam ple He'll be here soon;
example, a blue shirt, a bjgcar, a aoodidea. being, thing or idea which is made up of to poi nt out a particu lar th i ng or person. I'll give you o coll; It will be sunny tomorrow.
ADVERB a word used with verbs to give two or more words, for example, prime There are fou r demonstrative adjectives GENDER whetner a noun, pronoun or
information on where, when or how an minister, mobile phone, home truth. i n En g I ish: this, these, that and those. adjective is masculi ne orfemi ni ne.
action tal<es place, for exam ple, here, todoy,
4tou iackdljye.c Atinv easd vaenrdb octahne ra lsaod vaedrdb si,n ffoorrmation aC OphNyCsRicEaTl Eo bNjeOcUt Nra tah ewro trhda tnh aat q rueafelirtsy toor DusEeMd OinNsSteTaRd AoTfIaV En oPuRn OtoN OpoUiNnt Ao WuOt Tpdeople -cinEgR, UfoN rD ex ian mE pn glel,i seha,t ian gv,e rsble efpoi rnmg . eI nn dltianl gia inn
example, extremelv quick, verv quickly. i dea, for exam ple, ball, school, apples. or things, for example, Thdts my brother. th e g eru nd ends i n -ando or -endo "
Compare with abstract noun. In English the demonstrative pronouns IMPERATIVE a form of the verb used to
aaAwdre rpGieoffpef,rR edrrh roEe teepo Eninr.sM ti.da F IfE toino enNr r lgmteTtasoxstl hta tioaehmf on etpr h m Vlpele,oae ,yu prtotcs ehuuohres sniae no v ngdnvedo e r ioobhr bnfre tgsw:to h I ot i hbanirne emdt gh sh,a e atycoh softreouioyrnm, atICr rewbuOqooe Nuuu eultDd snt IthTdshi IeenOalrgp nN scdy Aeo torLhutfa aafie fti nwrIvs coec, oruofbounl ddrlFd eoi.htlxritamoa pimns p us aes,pnl eslf edooo, r t ruCoewso xeoutaadludml lkidnyp olebu,e atvfDlooerIe Rwrs bEethh.r CosiFsT,wo , trhtwOheeBoxh aJtos,Em u tCobhpTejrlee wsca,e ht naaionont fu dtthnih st e ehao o srfvsf eeeepnr.crbtotee nnidsoc ueHb neyH t(uheths eseeednr gtIShhMiaivti nPpedgpE ooeswRrn ndFwi!neE;eDgrCsr,oe Tna wa'lnti lh d(tgeae o int ni !ns;uLs esett hretuu'edssc etstpoidtoaa snhtrtotsa,! ,psf opfaorey rne w exahxanaamdmt pwwplealhe;sa,t
and articles and adjectives have masculine, lend me some money?; I could give you a lift. person who did the sending) and the It was sunny otthe weekend;Thev weren't
feminine and plural forms to match (or CONJ UGATE (to) to g ive a verb d ifferent dh ei r escetn ot)b. jCeoctm opfa trhee wviethrb iins dfliorwecerts o(bwjehcatt. listening;TheV used to live in Spain.
aqree with) the noun they go with. endings depending on whether its subject IMPERSONALVERB A VETb With thC
Aa PnOouSnT RtoO PsHhoEw so awn neenrdsihnigp , (f'so)r aedxdaemdp tloe, wis hI,e ythoue,r fiye oaun da reso r eofne,r rai nndg dtoe ptehned p irnegs eonnt, DmIeR, EhCimT, OusB JaEnCdT t hPeRmO uNseOdU iNns tae wado rdo f sau ncho uans sspuebcjeifcict itth, iwnhge;froer' ite'dxoaemsp len,o tI t'rse gfeorintog taon ryain;
Pete(s car, the companV's headquarters. past or futu re, for exarhple, I hove, she has, to showwho orwhat is affected bVtheaction It's nine o'clock.
ARTfCLE aword such as the, a, and an thE listened. ohfim th. eC ovemrbp,a rfeo r inedxairmecptle o Hbijse cfrtie pnrdosn hoeulpne.d INDEFINITE ADJECTIVE one of a small
which goes with nouns: the sun, o happ\ CONTUCATION a group ofverbs that has ENDING something added to the end of group ofadjectives used to give an idea
boy, an oronge. See also definite article, a particular pattern ofendings. of amounts and numbers, forexample,
a word. In English nouns have plural
indefinite article. CONTUNCTf ON a word such as and, but ol endings, for example boy + boy5, child - several, all, every.
AUXILfARY VERB a verb such asbe. hove becdusethat links two words or Dhrases. ch i ldren and verbs have the end i ngs -s, -ed INDEFINITE ARTICLE the word d or 4n.
and do that is used with a main verb to or two parts of a sentence, for example, and -ing, for example wdlk + walks, walked, Compare with definite article.
form tenses, negatives and questions. Diane and I hove been friends for years. wolking.In ltalian there are plural endings INDEFINITE PRONOUN a word lil<e
BASE FORM the form ofthe verb that has CONSONANTa sound made by letters for nouns, verb endings, and masculine, everything, nobody ond something which is
no end ing added to it, for exam ple,walk, such as b, g, m, s and t. In English y is femini ne and plural endings for adjectives used to refer to people or th i ngs i n a non-
have, be, go. Comparewith infinitive. someti mes a consonant, as in Vear, and and Dronouns. specific way.
INDIRECTOBJECTa noun or pronoun used INTERROGATIVE PRONOUN one of the oBJECT PRONOUN one of the following: PLURAL the Form of a word which is used
to show who benefits or suffers from an following: who, which, whose, whom and tne, Vou, him, her, it, us, them. They are used to referto morethan one person orthing.
action. For example, i n the sentence He whdt.These words are used without a I rrstead of nouns after prepositions, for In ltalian, nouns, adjectives, articles,
sent Cloire 'flowers, the d irect o bj ect (what noun, when asking questions, for t'xample, flor me, with us and as the object pronouns and verbs can be plural.
was sent) isflowers and the indirect object example, What do Vou wont? of verbs, forexample,The complny sacked him; POSITIVE a Dositive sentence does not
is Cloire (the person the flowers were sent INTRANSITIVE VERB a verb used without You'll enjoy it. Compare subject pronoun. contain a negative word such as not.
to). An indirect object often has to in rront a d irect object, for example, The shop is ()RDINAL NUMBERan adjective used Compare with negative.
of it: He told lies to everyone; He told everyone closing; Nothing grows here. Compare with l{) showwhere something comes in POSSESSIVE ADJ ECTIVE a word such as
lies. In both these sentences the direct transitive verb. r r u merical order, for exam ple, frrst, seventh, mV, your, his that is used with a noun to
object is lies and the indirect object is ninetieth. Compare with cardinal number.
INVARIABLE the term used to describe an show who it belongs to.
eINveDrIyRoEneC. TC oOmBpJEa CreT wPi RthO dNi OreUcNt oab pjercotn.oun afodrjtehcetfievem iwnhin eicohr tdhoee s pnluorta cl,h oarnag neo uitsn fwohrmich (''JArRamT mOaFt iScPalE EfuCnHc taio wno, rfdo rw eitxha ma pplea,r tnicouunla,r mPOinSeS,yEoSurSsI,V Eh isPtRhOatN iOs UusNe da winostreda sdu cohfa as
such as to me (or me),to you (or you) and does not change its end i ng i n the plural. tdjective, verb, preposition, pronoun. possessive adjective followed by a noun.
tcoh ohceorl a(toets hetor) .m I en othned tsheen ftleonwceers Hteo ghoevre, tthhee fIoRrRmEsG dUoL AnRo t VfoElRloBw Ino nltea loiaf nth, ea tvherrebe wmhaoisne \tu'AbsjselcVtE o aft vheervb efrobr mis tthhaet pise russoend owrhtheinn gthe oFnoer ,eYxoaum cpalne , sianysMteiande so tfh Me Vb lbueo go inse t.he blue
d i rect objects arethe chocolates andthe the action is done to, for example, Shaun
flowers (what he gave), and the ind irect Datterns. wIs bitten by o dog.Shaun is the subject of pREPOSITION a word such as ot, for, with,
obiect pronouns are to me and to her (who MASCULINE a noun, pronoun, article or I he sentence, but he did not do the action. into orfrom, ora phrasesuchasinfrontof or
he gave them to). I n the sentence He gave form ofadjective used to refer to a I ivi ng ( ompare with active. near to. Prepositions are usual ly followed
mIi NnedD tiI hRreeE ccCth Too bcoQjelaUctetE sSp rToonInOdo Nhue anr stmh aeor erfel o/ nwr eoe uarnnsdd,t ahhbeeor.ut fdbeeemifninigni,ti nete ha.i nrFtgioc rloe er) x idpaemraimp tlohe ,a (tial di(smj enacotsti vcceula liwsnseiethd aas rIl))'nAadSsitTn pgPa A-reRtidcT,iI pCfolIePrseL Exa armea viprerleerb g luifvolaerdrm,, wfouorsr kueeaxdlal.y mSpolme,e sbpeeynoatp enlneoc uaenn, dfoo rtrha ie npxgraosmn rpoeluelan,t eSa hnteods tsahhte oh rwoem shet ;oo wIftt'hsefu
way of asking a question, for example, masculine ending) treno (masculine noun). qone, slt, broken. Past participles are used to Vou;You'll get into trouble; lt's in front of you .
instead ofWhere are you going?you can say NEGATIVE a question or statement rnal(e the perfect, pluperfect and passive, PRESENT a verb form used to talk about
Tell me where you are going, or l'd |ike to know wh ich contains a word such as not, never f or example Thev've qone;Thet/ hadn't noticed what is true at the moment, what generally
where you are going. othothing: IsIt he here?; I never eat meat; nrc ; Nobodv wos hurt Past participles are also happens and what is happening now;
INDIRECT SPEECH the words Vou use to She's doing nothina obout it. Lrsed as adjectives, for example , a boiled egg. for example, I'm a student; I trovel to college
report what someone has said when you NOUN a naming word fora living being, [,AST PERFECT see pluperfect. by train;The phone's ringing.
aren't usi ng thei r actual words, for example, thing or idea, for example, woman,Andrew, PERFECTa tense used in English to talk PRESENT PARTICIPLE a verb form ending
He soid thot he was going out. Also called desk, happiness. ,r bout what has or hasn't happened, for i n -ing, for exam ple, eating, sleeping.
reported speech. NUMBER in grammar a verb agrees in 0xample We've won,l haven'ttouched it. Compare with gerund.
INFINITIVE the base form of the verb, numberwith its subject by being singular (.ompare simple past. PRONOUN a word you use instead of a
for example, walk, see, hear.ltis used after with a singular subject and pluralwith a PERSON in grammar one of the following: noun, when you do not need orwantto
otherverbs such as should, must and can. plural subject, for example, I om o teocher; t he first person (1, we), the second person name someone or something d irectly,
The infinitive is often used with to: theY ore teochers. (you) or the th i rd person (he, she, it, they). for example, it, Vou, somebodv.
to speok, to e!t, to live. Compare with OBJ ECT a nou n or pronou n that, i n PERSONAL PRONOUN a word such as l, PROPER NOUN the name ofa person, place
base form. English, usually comes after the verb and you, he, she, us,them, wh ich make it clear or organization. Proper nouns are always
INTERROCATIVE ADJECTIVE a question shows who orwhat is affected bV it, for who you are tal ki ng about or tal ki ng to. written with a capital letter, for example,
word such aswhich. what or how much example, I (subject) want (verb) a new cor PLUPERFECTa tense used to talkabout Kate, NewYork, the Forestry Commission.
that is used when asking abouta noun, (object), They (subject) phoned (verb) him what had happened or had been true at a QUESTION WORD a word such as why,
for example, Which colour?;Whot. size?; (object). Compare direct object, indirect point in the past, for example, l'd forgotten where, who, which or howthat is used to ask
How much sugor? object and subject. to send her a card. Also called past perfect. a ouestion.
xtl xill
REFLEXIVE PRONOUN a word ending in SUBJECT a noun or pronoun that refers to
NOUNS
-self or -selves, such as nyselfa nd ourselves, the person orthing doing the action or
that is used as the object ofa verb, for being in the state described by theverb,
example I surprised musqlf;We're going to for example Pdt likes climbing;The bus is late.
treot ourselves. Compare with object. What is a noun?
A noun is a nam ing word for a living being, a thing, or an idea, for example,
REFLEXIVE VERB a verb where the subject SUBTECT PRONOUN a word such as l, he,
and object are the same, and which uses sheand they used forthe person orthing w o mon, Andrew, desk, h appi ness.
reflexive pronouns such as myself, Vourself carrying out the action described by the
and themselves,for exam ple l've hurt myself; verb. Pronouns reDlace nouns when it is Using nouns
Look ofter yourselfl ; They' re enjoying themselves. clearwho is being talked about, forexample,
REGULAR VERB in ltalian, a verb whose My brothels not here atthe moment. He'll be ,llThebasics
forms follow one of the three main Datterns. back in an hour. D Inltalian,allnouns,whetherreferringtolivingbeingsortothingsandideas,
Compare with irregular verb. SUBJUNCTIVE a verb form often used in are either masculine orfeminine.This is theiraender.
RELATIVE PRONOUN one of the following: Italian to express wishes, thoughts and
who, which, that and whom.TheV are used suppositions. In English the subjunctive is Masculine Feminine
to specify exactly who or what is being only used occasionally, for example, lf l were olio oil acqua water
uomo donna
talked about, for example,The mon who hos you. . .;So be it;He asked that they be removed. man woman
iust come in is Annl's boyfriend;The vose that 5U PERLATIVE an adjective or adverb with delfino dolphin tigre tiger
vou broke cost a lot of money. -est on the end ofit or most or ledst in front concetto concept idea idea
REPORTED SPEECH see indirect speech. of it that is used to compare th ings or armadio wardrobe sedia chair
SENTENCE a group of words which usually people, for example, fdstest, most important, > Theletteranounendswithisoftenareliableguidetoitsgender.Forinstance,
has a subject and a verb. ln writi ng, a sentence Ieast interesting. words ending in -o will nearly always be masculine,
begins with a capital and ends with a full SYLLABLE a unit containing a vowel sound.
stop, question markorexclamation mark. Aword can have one or more svllables, for D When you use an ltalian noun you need to know if it is masculine orfeminine
SIMPLE TENSE a verb form made up of example, l, o-pen, ca-the-drat. so that you can make other words that go with it masculine or fem in ine too:
one word, for example,She lives here; Te llSE a particularform oftheverb. ltshows . how you translate the words for'the' or'a' depends on the noun's gender.
They arrived lote. Comparewith whether you are referri ng to the present, For instance, with mascul ine nouns Vou use il and un, and with fem inine
Continuous Tense and Perfect Tense. past orfuture. nouns you use la and una.
SIMPLE PAST a tense used in English to say TRANSITIVE VERB a verb used with a direct Masculine Feminine
when exactly something happened, for obj ect, fo r exa m ple, CI ose the doo r! ; They g row. il giorno the day la notte the night
example, We met last summer; I ate it lost wheat. Compare with i ntransitive verb. un gelato an icecream una mela an apple
night; lt roined a lotyesterday. In ltalian the UNSTRESSED PRONOUN an object pronoun
perfect tense is used in this ki nd ofsentence. used in ltalian when you don'twantto put o adjectives describing a noun are masculine orfeminine in form
SINGULAR the form of a word used to refer any special emphasis on the wordfor me, him, Masculine Feminine
to one person orthing. Comparewith plural. them and so on. Comparestressed pronoun. suit
un abito carq - an expensive una macchina cara - an expensive car
STEM what is left of an ltalian verb when VERB a word thatdescribes what somebodv lAntice Testamento - the old Testament I'antica Roma - ancient Rome
you take away the -are, -ere or -ire end ing or something does, what they are, orwhat
.
ofthe inflnitive. happens to them, for example , play, be, wordsthat replace nouns-called Dronouns- mustalso be masculineor
STRESSED PRONOUN an object pronoun disoppear. fem in ine. The translation fo r Do Vou want it? is "Lo vuoi?" if you're offering
used in ltalian after prepositions and when VOWEL one of the sounds made bv the un gefato (dn ice cream),and" La vuoi?" ifyou're referring to una mela(on opple).
you wantto stressthe word for me, him, them letters d, e, i, o u, and sometimes y. t) For more information on Aftictes, Adjectives or Pronouns, see p^ges p, 20 Ind 40.
and so on- Compare unstressed pronoun. Compare with consonant.
2 NOUN5 NouHs 3
> Just like English nouns, ltalian nouns can be singular or plural. Most English [} trtotethatafewverycommon nouns ending in-o arefeminine.
nouns add -s in the plural, for exam ple doys, apples. Most ltalian nouns change
theirfinal letterfrom one vowel to another: la mano the hand
una foto a photo
Singular Plural
giorno giorni la radio the radio
day days
mela mele una moto a motorbil<e
apple apples
rivoluzione revolution rivoluzioni revolutions > Thefollowing are typical feminine nouns ending in -a:
la casa the house
la macchina the car
una donna a woman
When in doubt, you can find out a noun's gender by looking it up in a una regola a rure
d ictionary. When you come across a new word it's a good idea to memorize una gatta a (she) cat
the article that goes with it, to help you remember its gender. un'italiana an ltalian (woman)
[f ruote that some very common words ending in -a are masculine.
Key points ilproblema the problem
y' il programma the programme
All nouns in ltalian are either masculine orfem inine.
y' il sistema the system
this affects thewords you use with them.
y ,n ,.n"r.."r", ,, oorr,o *;;*;r;;r; ;oun's senderrrom its endins. il clima the climate
'i M ost words for professions and jobs end i ng i n -ta are mascu I i ne or fem i n i ne,
according to whethera male orfemale is meant.
ll How to recoqnize what oender a noun is qn giornalista a (male) journalist
) There are some simple rules that will enable you to worl( out the gender of una giornalista a (female) journalist
a very large number of ltal ian nouns from thei r last letter in the singular: u3 dentista a (male) dentist
o nearly allwords ending in -o are masculine. una dentista a (female) dentist
o nearly all words ending in -a are feminine. > f he following are typical feminine nouns ending in *i, -sione, and -zione:
o nearlyall wordsending in -i, -sioneand -zionearefeminine. Ending Example Meaning
o
nearlyall wordsending with a consonantare masculine. una difficoltri a difficulty
A Note that words endi ng in -e are masculine in some cases and feminine in la realtti the reality
others. sione la versione the version
) The following are typical masculine nouns ending in -o: un'occasione an opportunity
il treno the train zione una lezione a tesson
il supermercato the supermarket una conversazione a conversation
l'aeroporto the airport
N ouns ending in a consonant are nearly always masculine.
il toro the bull un film a film
un topo a mouse bar
un a bar
un gatto a (tom) cat
un comPuter a computer
un italiano an ltalian (man)
BUT
Forfurther explanation ofgrammatical terms, please see pages x-xiv. unajeep r ipen