Nouns

Nouns in Italian are classified by gender and number. Gender refers to whether a noun is masculine or feminine, while number refers to whether a noun is singular or plural.

Gender in Italian Nouns

The gender of a noun is usually determined by its ending. Most nouns that end in -o are masculine, while most nouns that end in -a are feminine. However, there are many exceptions to this rule.

Here are some of the most common rules for determining the gender of Italian nouns:

• Nouns ending in -o: Most nouns that end in -o are masculine. However, there are some exceptions, such as "la mano" (hand) and "la radio" (radio).

• Nouns ending in -a: Most nouns that end in -a are feminine. However, there are some exceptions, such as "il problema" (problem) and "il cinema" (cinema).

• Nouns ending in -e: Nouns ending in -e can be either masculine or feminine. The gender of these nouns must be memorized. For example, "il mese" (month) is masculine, while "la legge" (law) is feminine.

• Nouns ending in -zione or -sione: Nouns ending in -zione or -sione are always feminine. For example " televisione" (television), " stazione" (station).

• Foreign nouns: Foreign nouns in Italian are usually masculine. For example, the word "computer" or "sport" are masculine in Italian.

Number in Italian Nouns

Nouns in Italian can be singular or plural. The plural form of a noun is usually formed by adding -i to the end of the singular form. For example, the singular noun "libro" (book) becomes "libri" in the plural.

Nouns that end in -a that refer to people change to -i in the plural if they refer to men and to -e if they refer to women. For example, the singular noun "dentista" (dentist) becomes "dentisti" if it refers to men and "dentiste" if it refers to women.

Irregular Plurals

There are some nouns that have irregular plural forms. For example, the noun "uovo" (egg) becomes "uova" in the plural.