Grammar Rules Flashcards
Articles;
What is the indefinite article? (L’articolo inderminativo)
Equivalent to a/an
Articles;
What are the indefinite articles and when are they used?
Masculine (s) - Un
Masculine (s) - Uno - used when the masculine word begins with s (+ another constonant) or when the word begins with z or when a word begins with ps,pn or gn
Feminine (s) Una
Feminine (s) Un’ - used when the feminine word begins with a vowel
Articles;
What are the definite articles and when are they used?
Masculine (s) - il
Masculine (s) - l’ - used when the word begins with a vowel.
Masucline (s) lo - used when the word begins with s (+ another constonant), x, y, z, pn, ps or gn.
Masculine (p) - i - o becomes i
Masculine (p) - gli - where l’ or lo would have been used.
Feminine (s) - la
Feminine (s) - l’ - words beginning with a vowel
Feminine (p) - le
Nouns;
How can you tell a nouns gender?
Masculine nouns - mostly end in -o
Masculine nouns- mostly all words ending in a consonant
Feminine nouns - mostly end in -a
Feminine nouns- most words ending in à, -sione or -zione
Nouns;
Name some verbs with irregular genders
LA mano - the hand
LA foto - the photo
LA radio - the radio
LA moto - the motorbike
IL problema - the problem
IL programma - the programme
IL sistema - the system
IL clima - the climate
Nouns;
How does a noun ending in -tore become feminine?
The ending is changed to -trice
EXAMPLE-
un attore
un’attrice
un pittore
una pittrice
Nouns;
Give examples of masculine words ending in -a where the ending doesn’t need to change to become feminine.
Un dentista
Una dentista
Un turista
Una turista
Un collega
Una collega
Nouns;
What are the grammar rules for turning nouns from the singular to the plural?
Masculine - ALL masculine words (ending in -o, -e, or -a) become -i.
Feminine- -a becomes -e
Feminine- e becomes -i
Which nouns do not change in the plural?
Feminine nouns ending in -à such as la città and l’università (the article still changes)
Words ending in a consonant (il film, il manager, il computer)
Name some nouns with irregular plurals
Il dito —- le dita
Un uovo —- le uova
When is a h added before the plural ending?
For nouns ending in -ca and -ga
Amica—- amiche
Buca—- Buche
Riga —- Righe
Vanga —- Vanghe
Some nouns ending in -co or -go
Gioco—– Giochi
Fuoco —– Fuochi
Give the meaning of a and its different forms
A translates to at or to
a + il = al
a + l’ = all’
a + lo = allo
a + la = alla
a + le = alle
a + i = ai
a + gli = agli
Give the meaning of da and its different forms
Da translates to from
da + il = dal
da + l’ = dall’
da + lo = dallo
da + le = dalle
da + gli = dagli
da + i = dai
da + la = dalla
Give the meaning of di and its different forms
Di translates to of (can also be used to say some)
di + il = del
di + l’ = dell’
di + lo = dello
di + gli = degli
di + la = della
di + le = delle
di + i = dei
Give the meaning of in and its different forms
In translates to in
in + il = nel
in + l’ = nell’
in + lo = nello
in + gli = negli
in + i = nei
in + la = nella
in + le = nelle
Give the meaning of su and its different forms
Su translates to on
su + il = sul
su + l’ = sull’
su + lo = sullo
su + gli = sugli
su + i = sui
su + la = sulla
su + le = sulle
How do you express ‘some’ in Italian?
Use ‘di’ with the definite article
di + il = del burro
di + l’ = dell’olio
di + lo = dello studente
di + la = della carta
di + le = delle uova
di + i = dei bicchieri
Give the basics of using adjectives in Italian
Masculine nouns- the adjective also ends in o
Feminine nouns- the adjective also ends in a
THE ENDING DOESN’T CHANGE IF…
- The adjective ends in -e (inglese, francese)
- Some colours (rosa, blu, beige)
- If it ends with a consonant (pop, snob) (these dont change in the plural either)
How do you make an adjective plural?
Masculine nouns- the o becomes an i
Feminine nouns- the a becomes an e
If the noun ends in e it always becomes an i in both the masculine and feminine
Give the three irregular adjectives
Bello, buono and grande
Explain how bello is used
Masculine (s)
Bel (before a noun)
Bello (after a noun or a verb)
Masculine (p)
Bei (used before a noun)
Belli (used after a noun or a verb)
Feminine (s)
Bella (always)
Feminine (p)
Belle (always)
Bell’ is used before a vowel
Bello is used infront of z, s+consonant
Begli is used infront of vowels or z or s+ consonant in the plural form
Explain how Buono is used
Often shortened to buon when used infront of a masculine singular noun
Explain how grande is used
Grande is shortened to gran before a noun beginning with a consonant.
Give some adjectives that always go before the noun
Questo, quello, ogni, qualche, nessuno, quali, quanto.
What word is used to say something is bigger than, faster than or more important than?
Più
Più is used in front of an adjective e.g.- più grande (bigger)
What word is used to say something is smaller than, slower than or less important than?
Meno
Meno is used in front of an adjective e.g.- meno grande (smaller)
What is a superlative adjective and how are they formed in Italian?
A superlative adjective in English is an adjective with -est on the end, for example, biggest, smallest, tallest, and fastest.
In Italian you just put the definite article infront of the più or meno. E.g.- il più alto
Give the irregular form of these adjectives;
Buono
Cattivo
Grande
Piccolo
Alto
Basso
Buono- Migliore (better) Il migliore (the best)
Cattivo- Peggiore (worse) Il peggiore (the worst)
Grande- Maggiore (bigger) Il maggiore (the biggest/oldest)
Piccolo- Minore (smaller) Il minore (the smallest/youngest)
Alto- superiore (higher) Il superiore (the tallest)
Basso- inferiore (lower) l’inferiore (the shortest)
How do you say something is more than or less than something else?
Use di.
For example - Gio é più grande di Maddi
Remember to use the correct form of di
For example- Quello verde è meno caro del (di+il) nero.
