Via Optimae: word endings

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Sunday

Definite Articles (plural)

(how to say "THE" for plural nouns)

Previously in this series, we covered singular definite articles (how to say "THE" for singular nouns), so "the dog" is:

il cane

Then, we talked about regular noun endings, and how those change to form the plural, so "dogs" is:

e->i

cani

Now suppose we want to combine the two and say "the dogs."

? cani

For that, we need to learn the three plural definite articles and when to use them (hint: it's easy!) so go to page 11 of the BASICS Digital Workbook (link below) and let's get started!

(New to this series?… You may want to start with…)

ITALIAN BASICS:
(1) Indefinite Articles, (How to say "A/AN")
(2) Definite Articles (singular), (How to say "THE")
(3) Pluralization, (How to make singular nouns plural)

Recapping on Masculine Articles/Plurals:

There are three singular, masculine, definite articles:

IL for most masculine nouns

L' for masculine nouns that begin with a vowel.

LO for masculine nouns that begin with z, s+consonant, ps, and gn.

Most masculine nouns end in o, which becomes i in the plural.

Some masculine nouns end in e, which becomes i in the plural.

il -> i

If the noun takes IL in the singular, it takes I in the plural:

I, masculine plural definite article on Via Optimae, http://www.viaoptimae.com/2014/05/definite-articles-plural.html

il libro -> i libri

the book the books

il ragazzo -> i ragazzi

the boy the boys

il giorno -> i giorni

the day the days

l' / lo -> gli

Any masculine noun that takes L' or LO in the singular takes GLI in the plural:

GLI, masculine plural definite article and when to use on Via Optimae, http://www.viaoptimae.com/2014/05/definite-articles-plural.html

l'occhio -> gli occhi

the eye the eyes

l'albero -> gli alberi

the tree the trees

lo zaino -> gli zaini

the backpack the backpacks

lo sport -> gli sport

the sport the sports

lo psicologo -> gli psicologi

the psychiatrist the psychiatrists

lo gnocco -> gli gnocchi

the dumpling the dumplings

Recapping on Feminine Articles/Plurals:

There are two singular, feminine, definite articles:

LA for most feminine nouns

L' for feminine nouns that begin with a vowel.

Most feminine nouns end in a, which becomes e in the plural.

Some feminine nouns end in e, which becomes i in the plural.

la / l' -> le

All feminine nouns take LE in the plural:

LE, feminine plural definite article on Via Optimae, http://www.viaoptimae.com/2014/05/definite-articles-plural.html

la cosa -> le cose

the thing the things

la ragazza -> le ragazze

the girl the girls

la casa -> le case

the house the houses

la birra -> le birre

the beer the beers

l'occasione -> le occasioni

the occasion the occasions

l'aranciata -> le aranciate

the orange sodas the orange sodas

All of the definite articles, as well as when to use each can be summed up in the following chart:

Italian definite articles: IL, L', LO, LA, I, GLI, LE from Via Optimae, http://www.viaoptimae.com/2014/05/definite-articles-plural.html

If you haven't done so already, fill-in the "Notes" section of the Definite Articles (Plural) worksheet on page 11 of the Italian Basics digital workbook and then complete the quick exercises! (Submit your answers by email for free corrections!)

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Ready for the next lesson in this series?

(05) The Partitive Article (How to say "SOME" in Italian)

Previous lessons in this series…
(01) Indefinite Articles (How to say "A/AN" in Italian
(02) Definite Articles (How to say "THE" in Italian)
(03) Pluralization, (How to make singular nouns plural)

Potrebbe pure interessarti….

The Beginner's Italian Grammar Series, starting with:

How Italian Verbs Work

Pluralization

(talking about more than one thing)

So far in this series, we've talked about indefinite and definite articles and how they change depending on the noun they are modifying.

We've only been using singular nouns so far but what if we want to talk about more than one thing? For that, we need to learn the plural forms of nouns.

Don't worry, it's easy! Just print out the worksheet on page 9 of the BASICS Digital Workbook (link below) and let's get pluralizing!

(New to this series?… You may want to start with…)

ITALIAN BASICS:
(1) Indefinite Articles, (How to say "A/AN")
(2) Definite Articles (singular), (How to say "THE")

Compare to English:

In English, the general rule of pluralization is to add "s" to the end of the noun.

the dog -> the dogs

the cat -> the cats

the boy -> the boys

the girl -> the girls

There are some spelling changes and exceptions to this rule, but more often than not, it works.

Pluralization Patterns:

Similarly, Italian also follows rules that work most of the time, but instead of adding a letter, the final vowel of the word changes:

Italian pluralization patterns, Italian plurals: o to i, gatto to gatti; a to e, farfalla to farfalle, e to i, cane to cani; www.viaoptimae.com//2014/04/pluralization.html

Exceptions to the rule:

As I said before, the above works most of the time, but there are exceptions. [More on this later!]

If you haven't done so already, fill-in the "Notes" section of the Pluralization worksheet on page 9 of the Italian Basics digital workbook and then complete the short exercises at the bottom of the page! (Submit your answers by email for free corrections!)