Language/Italian/Grammar/Adjectives

Italian Grammar - Adjectives

Hi Italian learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will cover Italian adjectives. Adjectives are words that describe or modify nouns. They agree in gender and number with the noun they refer to. For example, if the noun is masculine and singular, the adjective also needs to be masculine and singular.

Let's get started with some basic rules of Italian adjectives.

Take a moment to explore these relevant pages as you conclude this lesson: Present Tense of Irregular Verbs, When to use GLI or LI in Italian?, Adjectives and Adverbs & Simple Past Subjunctive.

Regular Adjectives

Italian regular adjectives have different endings depending on the gender and number of the noun they refer to. Here are some endings:

Examples of Regular Adjective Endings

Gender/Number	Noun	Adjective Ending
Masc. Sing.	figlio (son)	−o
Fem. Sing.	figlia (daughter)	−a
Masc. Plural	figli (sons)	−i
Fem. Plural	figlie (daughters)	−e

Exceptions

As with any rule in Italian grammar, there are exceptions. Some adjectives have irregular forms that do not follow the regular rules. Here are some examples:

Examples of Irregular Adjective Endings

Gender/Number	Adjective
Masc. Sing.	buono (good)
Fem. Sing.	buona (good)
Masc. Plural	buoni (good)
Fem. Plural	buone (good)

Placement of Adjectives

Italian adjectives usually come after the noun they modify, but there are some exceptions. Adjectives like bello (beautiful), buono (good), and grande (big) come before the noun. Here are some examples:

• La bella casa (The beautiful house)
• Un buon amico (A good friend)
• La grande città (The big city)

Dialogue Examples

• Person 1: Ciao, come stai? (Hi, how are you?)
• Person 2: Sto bene, grazie. E tu? (I'm good, thank you. And you?)
• Person 1: Anche io sto bene, grazie. Hai visto la nuova macchina di Luca? È molto bella. (I'm good too, thanks. Have you seen Luca's new car? It's very beautiful.)
• Person 2: Sì, l'ho vista. È davvero fantastica. (Yes, I've seen it. It's really fantastic.)

If you want to improve your Italian Grammar, you can also use the Polyglot Club website. Find native speakers and ask them any questions!

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Other Lessons

• Plural
• Negation
• How to Use be
• Present Tense
• Prepositions
• Indefinite Articles in Italian
• Definite Articles in Italian
• Gender
• Future Tense

Sources

• How to Use Italian Adjectives
• Adjectives – Learn Italian
• Italian Adjectives - Rocket Languages