Italian Basic Italian Grammar Syllabus

Basic Italian Grammar syllabus — full chapter and topic list

Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics. This is the whole examinable outline for Basic Italian Grammar in Italian, not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Nouns and Articles

   3 topics

   • Learn Gender of Nouns
   • Understand Definite and Indefinite Articles
   • Practice Using Articles with Nouns
2. 2

   Pronouns and Verbs

   3 topics

   • Learn Subject Pronouns
   • Introduction to Regular Verbs
   • Conjugate Present Tense Verbs

Basic Italian Grammar flashcards for Italian

18 of 50 cards from the Basic Italian Grammar deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. In Italian, every noun has one of two grammatical genders. What are they?

   Masculine (maschile) and feminine (femminile). Every noun is one or the other, even inanimate objects.

2. What gender and ending typically characterize most Italian nouns ending in -o?

   They are usually masculine. Example: il libro (the book), il tavolo (the table).

3. What gender do most Italian nouns ending in -a typically have?

   They are usually feminine. Example: la casa (the house), la penna (the pen).

4. What gender can Italian nouns ending in -e be, and how do you know which?

   Either masculine or feminine; the gender is not predictable from the -e ending and must be memorized. Example: il fiore (m., flower), la chiave (f., key).

5. How do you typically form the plural of a masculine Italian noun ending in -o?

   Change the final -o to -i. Example: libro -> libri, ragazzo -> ragazzi.

6. How do you typically form the plural of a feminine Italian noun ending in -a?

   Change the final -a to -e. Example: casa -> case, ragazza -> ragazze.

7. How do you form the plural of an Italian noun ending in -e (either gender)?

   Change the final -e to -i. Example: fiore -> fiori, chiave -> chiavi.

8. Name a common exception: some nouns ending in -a are masculine. Give an example.

   Words often of Greek origin, e.g. il problema, il tema, il programma, il poeta are masculine despite the -a ending.

9. What is a common exception where a noun ending in -o is feminine?

   la mano (the hand) is feminine even though it ends in -o; its plural is le mani.

10. Do Italian nouns ending in an accented vowel (e.g. città) change in the plural?

    No. Nouns ending in an accented vowel are invariable: la città -> le città, il caffè -> i caffè.

11. What are the four masculine singular definite articles in Italian and when is each used?

    il (before most consonants), lo (before s+consonant, z, gn, ps, y), l' (before a vowel). Example: il cane, lo studente, l'amico.

12. What is the feminine singular definite article in Italian and its variants?

    la before a consonant, l' before a vowel. Example: la ragazza, l'amica.

13. What are the masculine plural definite articles in Italian?

    i (plural of il) and gli (plural of lo and l'). Example: i cani, gli studenti, gli amici.

14. What is the feminine plural definite article in Italian?

    le, used before any feminine plural noun. Example: le ragazze, le amiche.

15. When must you use lo instead of il before a masculine noun?

    Before words beginning with s+consonant (s impura), z, gn, ps, pn, x, or y. Example: lo zaino, lo psicologo, lo gnomo.

16. What are the Italian indefinite articles for masculine nouns?

    un (before most consonants and vowels) and uno (before s+consonant, z, gn, ps, etc.). Example: un libro, un amico, uno studente.

17. What are the Italian indefinite articles for feminine nouns?

    una before a consonant and un' before a vowel. Example: una casa, un'amica.

18. Why does the masculine indefinite article un never take an apostrophe before a vowel, but the feminine un' does?

    un is the full masculine form (no elision needed), so no apostrophe: un amico. The feminine una is elided to un' before a vowel: un'amica. The apostrophe signals the dropped -a.

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