2
Identifying people and things
In this unit, you will learn how to:
• ask for something
• ask or say what something is
• ask or say who someone is
• indicate or point out something or someone
Language points
• nouns (an object, a person, or an animal)
• indefinite articles un, uno, una, un’
• plurals of nouns
• Chi è?
• Cos’è? (Cosa è?)
• questo, questa, questi, queste
INTRODUCTION
Study these examples of things you might want to ask for in Italy:
Un cappuccino, per favore. A cappuccino, please.
Una cioccolata, per piacere A hot chocolate, please
… e una spremuta. … and a fresh fruit juice.
Due paste e due cappuccini. Two cakes and two cappuccinos.
Unit 2 Identifying people and things 15
ESSENTIALITALIAN_GRAMMAR.indd 15 9/12/12 3:04 PM
You might want to know what something is:
Che cos’è? What is it?
È un telefonino. It’s a mobile phone.
Or what several things are:
Che cosa sono questi? What are these?
Sono biscotti per Carnevale. They’re biscuits for Carnival.
Or who somebody is:
Chi è? Who is he?
È un collega americano. He’s an American colleague.
Chi sono? Who are they?
Sono amici inglesi. They’re English friends.
Focus on grammar
1 NOUNS AND INDEFINITE ARTICLES UN, UNA, ETC.
A noun is a person, animal, object or abstract thing. In Italian,
objects, as well as people, are either masculine or feminine. The
choice of un, uno, una or un’ depends on whether the noun is
masculine or feminine, and whether it starts with a vowel or a
consonant. Knowing the gender of nouns is important, since it
determines the form of the article.
It can be helpful to look at the ending of the word.
a Nouns that end in -o
Nouns that end in -o are usually masculine. Masculine nouns
normally take the indefinite article un, but they take uno before a
word starting with gn, pn, ps, s followed by a consonant, x or z, as
well as before y and i followed by another vowel.
16
ESSENTIALITALIAN_GRAMMAR.indd 16 9/12/12 3:04 PM
un cappuccino a cappuccino
un espresso an espresso
uno gnomo a gnome
uno pneumatico a tyre
uno psicologo a psychologist
uno spuntino a snack
uno xilofono a xylophone
uno zoo a zoo
Exceptions: a few nouns end in -o but are feminine and take una,
for example:
una mano a hand
una radio a radio
b Nouns that end in -a
Nouns that end in -a are usually feminine and (take the indefinite
article una). Before a vowel (a, e, i, o, u), the elided form un’ is
normally used: un’aranciata, un’esperienza, un’isola, un’ora.
una pasta a cake
una spremuta a fresh fruit juice
un’aranciata an orangeade
Exceptions: a few nouns end in -a but are masculine and take un,
uno, for example:
un programma a programme
un tema an essay
uno stratagemma a stratagem
In Unit 1, you saw some words denoting professions that end in
-ista for both sexes. When referring to men these nouns use the
masculine indefinite articles un or uno; when referring to women,
the feminine indefinite articles una or un’ are used.
Unit 2 Identifying people and things 17
ESSENTIALITALIAN_GRAMMAR.indd 17 9/12/12 3:04 PM
un dentista / una dentista a dentist
un artista / un’artista an artist
uno specialista / una specialista a specialist
c Nouns that end in -e
Some nouns that end in -e are masculine (these take un or uno) and
some are feminine (these take una or un’). You have to learn which
are which.
un giornale a newspaper una lezione a lesson
uno studente a student (male) un’automobile a car
d Foreign words
Words borrowed from other languages, particularly those without
a final vowel, are usually masculine and take un or uno.
un bar a café, bar un toast a toasted sandwich
un sandwich a sandwich un weekend a weekend
un club a club un whisky a whisky
A few foreign words are feminine and take una.
una brioche a brioche, cake
Summary
Here are examples of the various types of nouns set out in table
form, with the indefinite articles un, una, etc.
18
ESSENTIALITALIAN_GRAMMAR.indd 18 9/12/12 3:04 PM
Indefinite articles un, uno, una, un’
Masculine
singular noun Context
un cappuccino Before word starting with consonant
un giornale (except the consonant groups
un espresso below) or vowel
un buon vino
un bar
uno spuntino Before word starting with s and
uno studente consonant, gn, pn, ps, x ,z and i or
uno splendido pranzo y combined with another vowel
uno gnomo
uno pneumatico
uno psicologo
uno xilofono
uno ionizzatore
uno yogurt
Feminine
singular noun Context
una pizza Before word starting with consonant
una buon’aranciata
una lezione
una spremuta
una brioche
un’aranciata Before word starting with vowel.
un’automobile
un’unica occasione
Unit 2 Identifying people and things 19
ESSENTIALITALIAN_GRAMMAR.indd 19 9/12/12 3:04 PM
e Male and female
You may be surprised to learn that – grammatically speaking –
Italian does not always have a male and a female of each animal
species.
Una giraffa (giraffe) is always female.
Un ippopotamo (hippopotamus) is always male.
In order to provide the other half of the species, you have to say:
una giraffa maschio a male giraffe
un ippopotamo femmina a female hippopotamus
Some animals – as in English – have a different name for the male
and the female of the species:
un cane dog una cagna bitch
un gallo cock una gallina hen
2 NOUNS (PLURAL FORMS)
a Masculine nouns ending in -o
Masculine nouns ending in -o have plural ending in –i.
un cappuccino a cappuccino due cappuccini two cappuccinos
uno spuntino a snack due spuntini two snacks
b Feminine nouns ending in -a
Feminine nouns ending in -a have plural ending in -e.
una cioccolata a hot chocolate due cioccolate two hot chocolates
una spremuta a fresh fruit juice due spremute two fresh fruit juices
c Nouns ending in -e
Both masculine and feminine nouns ending in -e have plural in -i.
20
ESSENTIALITALIAN_GRAMMAR.indd 20 9/12/12 3:04 PM
un giornale a newspaper due giornali two newspapers
uno studente a student due studenti two students
una lezione a lesson due lezioni two lessons
un’automobile a car due automobili two cars
d Other noun patterns
• The following nouns have an irregular pattern.
un uomo a man due uomini two men
una mano a hand due mani two hands
• Nouns which are foreign in origin have the same form for
singular and plural.
un bar a bar due bar two bars
una brioche a brioche due brioche two brioches
• Words ending in an accented syllable have the same form for
singular and plural.
un caffè a coffee due caffè two coffees
un tè a tea due tè two teas
una città a city due città two cities
• Some nouns ending in -a can be either masculine or feminine and
have different plural forms according to their gender.
un pianista a pianist (m.) due pianisti two pianists (m.)
una pianista a pianist (f.) due pianiste two pianists (f.)
un artista an artist (m.) due artisti two artists (m.)
un’artista an artist (f.) due artiste two artists (f.)
uno stilista a designer (m.) due stilisti two designers (m.)
una stilista a designer (f.) due stiliste two designers (f.)
For further examples of nouns that do not fit the main patterns,
please refer to the Grammar Appendix §1.
Unit 2 Identifying people and things 21
ESSENTIALITALIAN_GRAMMAR.indd 21 9/12/12 3:04 PM
Summary
Here are examples of the various types of regular nouns and their
plural forms set out in table form:
un cappuccino due cappuccini una pasta due paste
uno spuntino due spuntini una spremuta due spremute
un amaro due amari un’aranciata due aranciate
un giornale due giornali una chiave due chiavi
3 ADDING AN ADJECTIVE
In Unit 1, you met adjectives of nationality with two different
patterns: adjectives ending in -o/-a (italiano/italiana) and adjectives
ending in -e (inglese). An adjective has to ‘agree’ with the person or
object it refers to, both in gender (masculine/feminine) and number
(singular/plural).
The adjective may not have the same pattern of singular/plural
endings as the noun, so the endings will not necessarily look the
same.
un ragazzo italiano an Italian boy
due ragazzi italiani two Italian boys
una ragazza italiana an Italian girl
due ragazze italiane two Italian girls
un ragazzo inglese an English boy
due ragazzi inglesi two English boys
una ragazza inglese an English girl
due ragazze inglesi two English girls
uno studente italiano an Italian student (m.)
due studenti italiani two Italian students (m.)
una studentessa italiana an Italian student (f.)
due studentesse italiane two Italian students (f.)
uno studente inglese an English student (m.)
due studenti inglesi two English students (m.)
una studentessa inglese an English student (f.)
due studentesse inglesi two English students (f.)
22
ESSENTIALITALIAN_GRAMMAR.indd 22 9/12/12 3:04 PM
un pianista famoso a famous pianist (m.)
due pianisti famosi two famous pianists (m.)
una pianista famosa a famous pianist (f.)
due pianiste famose two famous pianists (f.)
un violinista giapponese a Japanese violinist (m.)
due violinisti giapponesi two Japanese violinists (m.)
una violinista giapponese a Japanese violinist (f.)
due violiniste giapponesi two Japanese violinists (f.)
4 ORDER OF NOUNS AND ADJECTIVES
In English, the order ‘article–adjective–noun’ is inflexible.
a bad hotel, a famous artist, an Italian friend
In Italian, word order is more flexible. The most common
arrangement is ‘article–noun–adjective’.
un aperitivo sardo una bibita fresca un caffè freddo
Adjectives of nationality, shape or colour always come after the noun.
uno studente spagnolo una tavola rotonda una casa bianca
Many common adjectives (nuovo, bello, buono, giovane, vecchio,
piccolo, grande) can come either before or after the noun, with
a slightly different meaning, depending on position: when they
come after, there is more emphasis on that particular quality or
characteristic.
Abito in una piccola casa. I live in a small house. (description
of house)
Abito in una casa piccola. I live in a small house
(emphasising its small size).
Giorgio ha una nuova macchina. Giorgio has a new car. (a new car,
not his old one)
Giorgio ha una macchina nuova. Giorgio has a new car. (a new car,
not a second-hand one)
Unit 2 Identifying people and things 23
ESSENTIALITALIAN_GRAMMAR.indd 23 9/12/12 3:04 PM
5 CHI È?
To ask who someone is, chi (who) and è (he/she/it is) are used.
Chi è? Who is it?
È Giorgio. It’s Giorgio.
And for more than one person, Chi sono?
Chi sono? Who are they?
Sono Paolo e Giulia. They’re Paolo and Giulia.
6 CHE COS’È?
To ask what something is, you use che (what), cosa (thing) and
è. You can also just use cosa and è. Before è, cosa is usually
abbreviated.
Che cos’è? / Cos’è? What is it? (lit.: What thing is it?)
È un elenco telefonico. It’s a telephone directory.
For more than one thing, you say:
Che cosa sono? / Cosa sono? What are they?
Sono biscotti per Carnevale. They’re biscuits for Carnival.
Language plus
QUESTO
To make it quite clear who or what you are referring to, you can
point and/or add questo to your question or your reply. Questo
(this, this one, this object, this person) indicates something or
someone near you. The forms of questo vary according to the
24
ESSENTIALITALIAN_GRAMMAR.indd 24 9/12/12 3:04 PM
gender (masculine/feminine) and number (singular/plural) of
the object/person it is referring to, but if you don’t know what
something is called in Italian, far less its gender, just point and use
the masculine form questo (or questi if plural).
a Pointing out an object
Masculine singular:
Cos’è questo? What’s this?
(Questo) è un aperitivo sardo. (This) is an aperitif from Sardinia.
Feminine singular:
Cos’è questa? What is this?
È una bibita analcolica. It’s a non-alcoholic drink.
Masculine plural:
Cosa sono questi? What are these?
Sono gnocchi di patate. They’re potato gnocchi.
Feminine plural:
Cosa sono queste? What are these?
Sono paste di mandorla. They’re almond cakes.
• While pasta means pasta (spaghetti, tagliatelle, etc.), una pasta
can also mean a cake, as in una pasta di mandorla. To avoid
confusion, you can also call it un pasticcino (a little cake).
b Indicating or introducing a person
Chi è questo? Who is this?
È Luigi. It’s Luigi.
Chi è questa? Who is this (woman)?
Questa è una collega americana. This is an American colleague.
Unit 2 Identifying people and things 25
ESSENTIALITALIAN_GRAMMAR.indd 25 9/12/12 3:04 PM
Chi sono questi? Who are these (people)?
Sono Henry e Henrietta. They’re Henry and Henrietta.
Chi sono queste? Who are these (women)?
Queste sono amiche italiane. These are Italian friends.
c Questo or questa?
With people, you know whether their gender is masculine or
feminine, so it’s obvious when to use questo and questa, but with
objects it’s not so easy. It’s safest to assume the object is masculine
and use questo (questi for the plural).
Chi è questo? Who is this (man)?
È un professore. He’s a teacher.
Chi è questa? Who is this (woman)?
È un’amica. She’s a friend.
Cos’è questo? What’s this?
È una spremuta d’arancia. It’s a fresh orange juice.
For questo as adjective (this), see Unit 5.
Language in action
EXERCISE 1
Fill in the gaps with the correct form of indefinite article (un, una,
uno, un’). If you have not met the word before, this is a chance to
look it up in your dictionary and find out what gender it is.
a ____ cornetto f ____ caffè j ____ spremuta
b ____ birra g ____ cappuccino k ____ aperitivo
c ____ brioche h ____ aranciata l ____ digestivo
d ____ toast i ____ limonata
e ____ bicchiere di acqua minerale
26
ESSENTIALITALIAN_GRAMMAR.indd 26 9/12/12 3:04 PM
EXERCISE 2
Now you decide you want two of everything you have just ordered
in Exercise 1.
e.g. Un cornetto? No, due cornetti.
EXERCISE 3
You are in a bar, ready to order some items for your friends! Order
the items you see in the pictures below, using the words in Exercise
1. Here are some more words to help you.
per favore, per piacere please
un cornetto Italian version of a croissant; can be plain
or filled with jam or pastry cream and is
generally eaten in the mornings; sometimes
called un croissant in the north of Italy
un cono ice-cream cone
un aperitivo aperitif (for before the meal)
un digestivo digestif (for after the meal)
Test yourself
Check your progress! Do you know how to do the following
in Italian?
1 Ask for two cakes and two coffees.
2 Ask what something is/what some things are.
3 Say that it is:
a a mobile phone.
b a non-alcoholic drink.
Unit 2 Identifying people and things 27
ESSENTIALITALIAN_GRAMMAR.indd 27 9/12/12 3:04 PM
c almond cakes.
d cheese rolls.
4 Ask who someone is/who some people are.
5 Say that he is/they are:
a an English student.
b an Italian designer.
c English tourists.
d Italian friends.
6 Write the correct indefinite article un, una, etc.
a ____ spuntino
b ____ caffè
c ____ spremuta di arancia
d ____ aranciata
e ____ studente
f ____ automobile
7 Work out the correct plural form of these nouns.
a un aperitivo
b una pasta
c un giornale
d una lezione
e un programma
f un’artista
g un bar
h un caffè
8 Point to these people using questo.
a ____ sono Carlos e Gianni.
b ____ sono Maura e Teresa.
c ____ è mia madre.
d ____ è mio marito.
9 Write out the correct form of the adjective shown in brackets.
a una ragazza ____ (inglese)
b un aperitivo ____ (analcolico)
c una birra ____ (fresco)
d paste di mandorla ____ (sardo)
e gnocchi ____ (buono)
f panini ____ (grande)
28
ESSENTIALITALIAN_GRAMMAR.indd 28 9/12/12 3:04 PM
10 Put these phrases in the correct order.
a studente italiano uno
b tavola rotonda una
c automobile una italiana
d signora una anziana
e casa una piccola
Unit 2 Identifying people and things 29
ESSENTIALITALIAN_GRAMMAR.indd 29 9/12/12 3:04 PM
