Sostantivi/Nomi – NOUNS
Italian nouns are gendered in the antiquated sense - they can be masculine or feminine. This distinction is important because articles, nouns, and adjectives must agree in number and gender. The best way to remember the gender of a noun is to learn it with its definite article (il/l’/lo/i/gli/la/l’/le). Singular nouns that end in -o are generally masculine.
Singular nouns that end in -a are generally feminine.
Singular nouns that end in -e, can be masculine or feminine.
|
masculine |
il gatto
the cat |
feminine |
la penna
the pen |
nouns ending in -e |
(m) il fiore (the flower)
(f) l'opinione (the opinion) |
There are a few clues to determine gender.
Nouns with the following endings are masculine: -ore
-ere / -iere
-ame / -ale
Nouns with the following endings are feminine: -ione
-udine / -igine
-ice
-tà / -tù
Sometimes, the gender of a noun ending in -e can be determined by the gender of the person it refers to - masculine when it refers to a male, feminine when it refers to a female:
These feminine nouns end in -o.
Most* singular nouns that end in -i are feminine.
Nouns of Greek origin ending in -ma are masculine.
Foreign nouns are generally masculine unless they specifically refer to a female.
All months of the year and days of the week are masculine, apart from domenica (Sunday), which is feminine. All names of towns and cities are feminine, apart from Il Cairo [m]. All names of languages are masculine. Names of countries are usually feminine when they end in -a (Il Canada is one exception) and masculine when they end in any other letter Practice what you've learned! ESERCIZI/EXERCISES Are the following nouns masculine or feminine? >> double-click the adjacent spaces or highlight with a cursor to reveal the answers! << 1. cipolla _feminine_ 2. orologio _masculine_ 3. spazzolino _masculine_ 4. aula _feminine_ 5. albero _masculine_ 6. televisione _feminine_ 7. attrice _feminine_ 8. città _feminine_ 9. chiave _feminine_ 10. giornale _masculine_ 11. gamba _feminine_ 12. direttore _masculine_ 13. caffè _masculine_ 14. radio _feminine_ |