When must we use “tu” and when must we use “lei”? And what about “voi”? Here’s how to understand the correct way to use courtesy forms in Italian.
Grammar
Italian Grammar
Prepositions of Place in Italian
Prepositions of place in Italian
Pronouns Ci vs Ne
How to use pronouns Ci and Ne in Italian
Possessive Pronouns and Adjectives in Italian
Possessive pronouns and adjectives are used in both English and Italian to indicate the ownership of a noun. Possessive pronouns express a relation between a noun and who possesses it, and are used alone, in the place of the noun. The six possessive pronouns in Italian all refer to a […]
Relative Pronouns in Italian
A relative pronoun links two clauses, a dependent proposition to a previous proposition, taking the place of a name or a thing and establishing a relationship between the two. The relative pronoun, in referring to a person, place or thing, is used to avoid repetition. In English, relative pronouns are […]
Adjectives I
ADJECTIVES (aggettivi) Adjectives are the part of speech that is added to a noun to describe it or to determine it more precisely. Adjectives have not an independent existence, but must always be used together with the noun to which they refer. The adjective, in relation to the noun to […]
Articles in Italian
In Italian, as in English, there are definite articles (articoli determinativi) and indefinite articles (articoli indeterminativi). There is also a third type of articles called partitive articles (articoli partitivi). All articles agree in gender and number with the substantive they refer to. Note: In Italian there are only two genders: […]
Demonstrative Pronouns/Adjectives
A pronoun is a variable part of speech that replaces a noun. (Noun = a person, place or thing). Pronouns like “he,” “which” or “you” are used to make sentences simpler and less repetitive. An adjective is a variable part of speech used to modify or describe nouns. Demonstrative […]
Pronouns I
ITALIAN PRONOUNS (pronomi) THE PRONOUNS in ITALIAN Pronouns are used, above all, to replace a noun as a way to avoid repetitions, but they can also replace adjectives, verbs, other pronouns and even whole phrases. Examples: Pensavo che tu fossi cattivo e invece non lo sei (I thought you were […]
Interrogative Pronouns in Italian
Chi, Che, Quale, Quanto In Italian, as in English, we use an interrogative pronoun to introduce a question. Examples of these are: About person: CHI? = Who? (invariable, subject and complement) About things: CHE? = What? (invariable, subject and complement that corresponds to “che cosa?”) Note: Often in spoken Italian we […]