Punto di partenza A noun is a word

Punto di partenza A noun is a word that identifies a person, animal, place, thing, or idea. As in English, Italian nouns are singular or plural. All Italian nouns also have gender, even those that refer to objects; they are either masculine or feminine. © and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc. 1 A. 1 -1

• Nouns that refer to males are usually masculine, and those that refer to females are usually feminine. One exception is persona (person), a feminine noun that can refer to a man or a woman. masculine feminine amico (male) friend amica (female) friend attore actor attrice actress studente (male) student © and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc. studentessa (female) student 1 A. 1 -2

• Usually, nouns that end in -o are masculine, and nouns that end in -a are feminine. masculine feminine libro book casa tạvolo table domanda ufficio office idea © and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc. house question idea 1 A. 1 -3

• Nouns that end in -e may be either masculine or feminine. Memorize the gender of these nouns as you learn them. masculine esame ristorante exam restaurant © and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc. feminine automọbile notte car night 1 A. 1 -4

• Nouns ending in a consonant or -ore are masculine, and nouns ending in -ione are feminine. masculine ạutobus computer dottore bus computer (male) doctor © and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc. feminine lezione lesson stazione station televisione television 1 A. 1 -5

• To form the plural of most Italian nouns, you need to change the final vowel. The masculine ending -o becomes -i, and the feminine ending -a becomes -e. Regardless of gender, singular nouns ending in -e change the vowel to -i to form the plural. singular masculi ne feminine ragazzo ristorante donna notte © and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc. boy restaurant woman night plural ragazzi ristoranti donne notti boys restaurants women nights 1 A. 1 -6

• When referring to an all-male group or a mixed group of males and females, use the masculine plural form. gli amici the (male and female) friends © and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc. gli studenti the (male and female) students 1 A. 1 -7

• To form the plural of most nouns ending in -co, -ca, -go, and -ga, add an h in order to maintain the hard c or g sound. One exception is amico, which becomes amici. singular albergo amica plural hotel alberghi hotels friend amiche friends © and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc. 1 A. 1 -8

• Shortened nouns and nouns that end in a consonant or accented vowel do not change from the singular to the plural. singular una foto a photo plural due foto un ạutobus a bus due ạutobus un caffè coffee due caffè © and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc. two photos two buses two coffees 1 A. 1 -9

Articles • The indefinite article refers to an unspecified person or thing and corresponds to the English a/an. before. . . masculine z or s + consonant a vowel or other consonants feminine © and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc. a vowel a consonant uno studente a student un uomo a man un’idea an idea una città a city 1 A. 1 -10

• The definite article (the) indicates a specific person or thing. before. . . masculi ne feminine singular plural a vowel l’autore the author gli autori the authors z or s + consonant lo sport the sport gli sport the sports other consonants il libro the book i libri the books a vowel l’amica the friend le amiche the friends a consonant la casa the house le case the houses © and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc. 1 A. 1 -11

Maschile (masculine) or femminile (feminine)? maschile 1. ragazzo _______ 6. notte _______ 2. ufficio _______ 7. computer _______ 3. attrice _______ 8. stazione _______ 4. caffè _____ 9. idea _____ 5. dottore _____ © and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc. 10. studente _____ 1 A. 1 -12