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The Definite Articles (gli articoli determinativi)

How to Use the Definite Articles in Italian (articoli determinativi)

Building solid foundations is key in every foreign language you learn. Mastering the nitty-gritty of the basics will be your pathway to fluency, I promise. That’s why today we’ll cover the Italian definite articles (gli articoli determinativi) and especially when to use them and when not, and the key differences with the use of the English definite article, the.

Gli Articoli Determinativi (the definite articles)

The so-called articoli determinativi, or definite articles, are expressed in English as the. Unlike in English, in Italian the article the takes different forms depending on the gender and number of the noun it precedes.

For example, we say…

  • Il gatto – the cat
  • La casa – the house
  • I giardini – the gardens
  • Gli amici – the friends

In Italian, all nouns (with a few exceptions) have articles before them. It’s a general rule.

Articles can be masculine or feminine, singular or plural and take different forms depending on the noun they are preceding.

In the following charts you can see the various forms the article “the” takes in Italian. 

Exercice

Italian uses articles in front of most of nouns, however, there are few exceptions (noun used without any articles). 

When articles are not used in Italian

(If you’re a beginner you should skip this part for now). 
 

We don’t use articles in front of the names of cities.

  • Palermo, Napoli, Roma, Venezia 

We don’t use definite articles in front of singular nouns of family members, preceded by possessive adjectives (for example, my brother). However, they are used before family members when in the plural form (e.g., my brothers).

  • mio fratello – i miei fratelli
  • mia cugina – le mie cugine
  • mio zio – i miei zii 

We don’t use definite articles before the names of people (Anna, Maria, Marco). However, in the North of Italy, it’s common to use them in a colloquial form of Italian.

  • Anna (standard Italian)
  • La Anna (colloquial northern Italian, northern dialects) 

We don’t use definite articles in front of the names of famous people. 

  • Dante è padre fondatore della lingua italiana 

We don’t use articles in front of small islands. Instead, but we do use them in front of big islands or groups of islands.

  • Capri (small island)
  • Malta (small island)
  • La Sicilia (big island)
  • La Sardegna (big island)
  • Le Eolie (the Aeolian Islands)
  • Le Canarie (the Canary Islands)

When definite articles are used in Italian but NOT in English 

Unlike in English, we use articles with possessive adjectives: 

  • la mia famiglia – my family
  • la mia casa – my house
  • il mio cane – my dog 

Unlike in English, Italian uses articles in front of abstract nouns.

  • l’amore – love
  • l’amicizia – friendship
  • la pace – peace 

Unlike in English, definite articles are used with titles.

  • La Professoressa Rossi – Professor Rossi
  • Il signor Franchi – Mr. Franchi

However, you should omit the article if you are speaking directly to someone. For instance,

  • Buongiorno, Dottor Rossi!

Unlike in English, we use definite articles when saying the time.

  • sono le 8 e mezza – it’s 8.30 

Unlike English, we use articles for clothes and parts of the body, and use the definite article if a reflexive verb precedes the noun.

  • Mi pettino i capelli – I brush my hair 
  • Mi metto le scarpe – I put on shoes 

In Italian we can’t say “mi pettino i miei capelli”;  we have to say mi pettino i capelli, which in English is directly translated as “I brush myself the hair”. 

Unlike in English, Italian uses the definite articles in dates.

  • Oggi è il 14 aprile 2021 – today is April 14th 

However, we don’t use it if we mention the day of the week 

  • Oggi è mercoledì 14 aprile 2021 

Unlike in English, Italian uses the definite article in front of geographic terms such as countries, islands, seas, lakes, mountains, volcanos, or rivers. 

  • L’Italia – Italy 
  • La Sicilia – Sicily 
  • Il Lago di Como – Lake Como
  • L’Etna – Etna Mt.
  • Il Monte Bianco – Mont Blanc
  • Il Tevere – the Tiber

However, definite articles are omitted when the prepositions IN or DI precede the name of the country, or islands, or the likes. You should also omit the article if you are using the verb “andare” with the names of places. 

  • Abito in Sicilia and NOT abito in la Sicilia  
  • Vado in Italia and NOT vado in la Italia

Use these excellent books to improve your Italian grammar at your own pace

         

The Italian Present Tense

How To Use The Italian Present Tense 

What’s the present indicative tense in Italian?

The Italian present tense is used to describe what is happening now or to talk about a general truth (e.g. gli Italiani parlano italiano). It’s also used to say how long you’ve been doing something.

English vs. Italian  

In Italian, the present tense can translate both the English simple present (e.g.I speak) and the English present continuous (e.g.I am speaking). So, if the forms appear hard, remember that the one tense will do two jobs for you.  

How do you conjugate the Italian present tense?

In Italian, unlike in English, there is a concept known as “conjugation.” It’s when the ending of a verb changes based on the subject of the action (e.g. the subject of an action can be I, you, she, etc.). Verbs in English are not conjugated since they must always be used with subjects.

The Italian present tense is formed by simply adding different endings to the verb’s stem. The stem of the verb is the part of the verb that remains after the classical ends of the infinitive *, which are, -ere, and -ire, are removed.

For example,

In English, you say: I speak. The verb (speak) doesn’t change, but the subject “I” defines who is carrying out the action. 

In Italian, we say parlO. The “o” ending is a first-person marker that indicates the subject of the action, which is “I” in this case.T

The 3 Conjugations of Italian Verbs 

The infinitive form of a verb can be found by looking it up in the dictionary. The infinitive of many Italian verbs will end in the letters –are (the most common), -ere, or -ire. As a result, we may say that Italian has three groups of verbs, each with three different conjugations:

  • 1st group verbs, the verbs ending in – ARE  (pensare, cucinare, imparare, parlare)
  • 2nd group verbs, the verbs ending in – ERE (leggere, scrivere, ripetere)
  • 3rd group verbs, the verbs ending – IRE (dormire, aprire, sentire)

Note that the first-person forms all end in -o, which is the first person marker. The tu forms always end in -i; the noi forms always end in –iamo.

6 Tips for Using the Italian Present Tense Correctly

1. Understanding the subject object pronouns
The subject pronouns are io, tu, lui, lei, noi, voi, loro. 

Important: the subject pronouns in Italian are almost always omitted. That’s why it’s crucial to choose the proper ending, the proper marker, if you want to get the right message across.

Io stands for I 

Parlo italiano (I speak Italian)

Tu stands for You or Do you? used to address on person in a question or statement 

Parli italiano? (Do you speak Italian?)

Lui / Lei stands for he, she or it (used when referring to a person, an animal or an object)

Lei parla italiano  (She speaks Italian)

Noi stands for we (I and someone else)

Io e mio marito (implied “noi”) parliamo italiano  (My wife and I speak Italian)

Voi stands for you all, used to address two or more people in a question or statement 

Parlate italiano?  (Do you guys speak Italian?)

Loro stands for they  

Maria e Luigi (implied “they”) parlano italiano  (Maria and Luigi speak Italian)

2. How to make a negative sentence in Italian 

One way to ask questions in Italian is to add a question mark to the end of the sentence in writing and to raise the pitch of the voice at the end of the sentence. The English helping verb “do” is not translated. 

Examples

  • Non parlo italiano – I don’t speak Italian
  • Non abito in Italia – I don’t live in Italy 

As you can see, the subject pronouns (io, tu, lui, etc..) are still omitted. 

3. How to ask a question in Italian 

To ask a question in Italian, add a question mark at the end of the sentence and raise the pitch of your voice at the end of the sentence. The English helping verb “do” is not translated (Do?, Does?, Did? can’t be translated).

Examples

  • Abiti in Italia? (Do you live in Italy?)
  • Parli italiano? (Do you speak Italian?)

4.Using the Present to Express the Future

The present tense in Italian can be used to express a future happening if it’s used together with an expression of the future (e.g. domani, il mese prossimo, tra una settimana).

  • Lui va a New York tra una settimana – He’s going to New York in a week
  • Domani non lavoro – I don’t work tomorrow

5. Irregular verbs 

In Italian, just like in English, we have the concept of “irregular verbs”. These  are verbs that do not follow the rules of conjugation for regular verbs. 

The verbs “essere – to be” and “avere – to have” are the most frequent irregular verbs in the present tense. There are also a number of other irregular verbs that are rather prevalent. 

A list of common Italian irregular verbs in the present tense

  • Dire – to say, to tell
  • Dare – to give 
  • Venire – to come
  • Andare – to go
  • Volere – to want 
  • Potere – can
  • Dovere – must
  • Uscire – to go out, to leave
  • Rimanere – to remain 

Most common irregular verbs in Italian 

6. The Italian courtesy form 

The Italian courtesy form is used to express politeness to the other person in a conversation. Though it’s not a required form of speech, it is considered an important part of the language. 

The Italian courtesy form is similar to the English “please” and “thank you.” We use the courtesy form, or “you polite” in Italian, when we consider it important to show respect to people we don’t know or don’t know well, older people, or people with a title (doctors, professors, etc..). The courtesy form is generally used in formal settings too. 

The Italian courtesy form is made with the subject pronoun “Lei”, the third person singular. 

Examples

  • Parla italiano? – Do you speak Italian, Sir or Madame? [formal setting, use of the “you polite”], 
  • Parli italiano? – Do you speak Italian? [informal setting, use of the “regular you”] 
  • Vuole un caffè? – Would you like a coffee? [formal setting, use of the “you polite”], 
  • Vuoi un caffè? – Would you like a coffee? [informal setting, use of the “regular you”] 

How speak politely in Italian: LEI or TU?

Common Irregular Verbs

13 Most Irregular Common Italian Verbs

What’s an irregular verb?

One of the most common difficulties for learners is learning and remembering irregular Italian verbs.

The irregular verbs are those that do not follow the standard conjugation rules, such as the verbs ending in -are, -ere, or -ire (see my blog post here). There are some in every language. The verbs to be, can, or may are common irregular verbs in English. However, there are even more in Italian. It is important to learn and memorize the irregular verbs in Italian because they are the most commonly used verbs in everyday conversation.

How to learn Italian irregular verbs 

Make a list of the most common Italian irregular verbs in your notebook or flashcards to help you remember them. Drills, too. Exercises can be found virtually anywhere, both online and offline. I recommend these fantastic resources for those who enjoy working on their Italian through textbooks.

      

List of the most common irregular verbs

The following list includes a list of the most common Italian irregular verbs in the present tense, so you can start practicing them in order to make your Italian even more fluent.

AVERE (to have)

io ho

tu hai

lui ha

noi abbiamo

voi avete

loro hanno

ESSERE (to be)

io sono

tu sei

lui, lei è

noi siamo

voi siete

loro sono

ANDARE (to go)

io vado

tu vai

lui, lei va

noi andiamo

voi andate

loro vanno

USCIRE (to leave, to go out)

io esco

tu esci

lui, lei esce

noi usciamo

voi uscite

loro escono

VENIRE (to come)

io vengo

tu vieni

lui, lei viene

noi veniamo

voi venite

loro vengono

FARE (to do, to make)

io faccio

tu fai

lui, lei fa

noi facciamo

voi fate

loro fanno

DARE (to give)

io do

tu dai

lui, lei da

noi diamo

voi date

loro dano

DIRE  (to say, to tell)

io dico

tu dici

lui, lei dice

noi diciamo

voi dite

loro dicono

SCEGLIERE  (to chose)

io scelgo

tu scegli

lui, lei sceglie

noi scegliamo

voi scegliete

loro scelgono

RIMANERE  (to remain)

io rimango

tu rimani

lui, lei rimane

noi rimaniamo

voi rimate

loro rimangono

VOLERE (to want)

io voglio

tu vuoi

lui, lei vuole

noi vogliamo

voi volete

loro vogliono

POTERE (can, may) 

io posso

tu puoi

lui, lei può

noi possiamo

voi potete

loro possono

DOVERE (to need, must / to have to)

io devo

tu devi

lui, lei deve

noi dobbiamo

voi dovete

loro devono

The irregular verbs in the present tense tend to be irregular when they are conjugated in the other tenses (past, future) and moods (conditional, subjective).

Irregular Italian Verbs Ending in “-IRE”

A number of verbs in the third conjugation are considered semi-irregular. They are the -ire verbs’ irregular verbs. This category includes some very common verbs, such as capire (to understand), finire (to finish), or pulire (to clean). These verbs add the chunk-isc to all persons except the first and second person plural (noi e voi), as shown in the example.

FINIRE (to finish) 

io fin -isc- o

tu fin -isc- i

lui, lei fin -isc- e

noi finiamo

voi finite

loro fin -isc- ono

More verbs adding the chunk “isc”: capire (to understand) , costruire (to build), pulire (to clean), preferire (to prefer), restituire (to return something), spedire (to send, to ship). 

The “isc” conjugation of Italian verbs 

Exercise

How to Use Passato Prossimo in Italian

How to make the Passato Prossimo

What’s the passato prossimo? 

The passato prossimo tense is used in Italian to express actions and events that occurred in the past. 

Usually, it appears together with time expressions such as

  • ieri – yesterday 
  • stamattina – this morning 
  • ieri sera – last night
  • venerdì scorso – last Friday
  • l’anno scorso – last year
  • un anno fa – a year ago
  • un’ora fa – one hour ago
  • due settimane fa – two weeks ago
  • ultimamente – lately
  • recentemente – recently 

Italian vs English 

The Italian passato prossimo corresponds to the English simple past and present perfect, and so we can say that it has two possible translations, as in the examples.

  • ho viaggiato means both I travelled and I’ve travelled 
  • ha dormito means both he slept and he has slept
  • hanno studiato means both they studied  and they’ve studied
  • sono andato means both I went and I’ve gone
  • siamo stati means both we were and we’ve been

How to Make the Passato Prossimo

As you can see from the above phrases, the passato prossimo is made up of two entities: an auxiliary or helping verb and a past participle.

For example,

HO PARLATO → I spoke, I’ve spoken

The first part, “ho“, is called an auxiliary. The second part, “parlato” is called a past participle. The passato prossimo is always made up of these two entities. 

What’s the auxiliary and the past participle? 

The auxiliary is the present tense conjugation of avere or essere.

The past participle is the second part of the verb, and it’s formed by dropping the infinitive ending (-are, -ere, -ire) and by adding the suffixes -ato, -uto, and -ito to the stem of the verb.

Examples of regular past participles: 

  • parlare becomes parl-ato 
  • avere becomes av-uto
  • finire becomes finit-ito

And so,

  • Ho parlato means both I spoke and I’ve spoken
  • Ho avuto means both I had or I’ve had
  • Ho finito means both I finished or I’ve finished

This is the full conjugation of the regular verbs that use “avere” as an auxiliary in the past tense.

 

The Passato Prossimo with “Essere”

The choice of the right auxiliary: essere or avere? 

The passato prossimo is a super easy tense, but there is something that confuses most students: what auxiliary to choose between essere and avere. 

The rule says that transitive verbs use the auxiliary avere and intransitive verbs use the essere auxiliary. However, since the notion of transitive and intransitive is sometimes unclear, I prefer to teach that 97% of Italian verbs default to the avere auxiliary when conjugated in the passato prossimo.

And then, there’s a number (luckily not too large) of verbs using essere as an auxiliary. The most common ones are andare (to go), arrivare (to arrive), tornare (to return), essere (to be), stare (to stay), entrare (to enter), uscire (to go out, to leave), partire (to leave for), diventare (to become), salire (to go up), scendere (to go down), nascere (to be born).

How to conjugate the “essere verbs”

When avere is used as an auxiliary, the past participle of the verb stays the same, so it doesn’t agree with the gender and number of the subject. However, when essere is used as an auxiliary, the past participle must agree with the gender and number of the subject. It means that the past participle works as an adjective and can have four different endings, including -o, -a, i, and -e. 

“O” and “A” are used for the io, tu, lui/lei forms. “O” stands for masculine singular, and “A” stands for feminine singular. 

“I” and “E” are used for the noi, voi and loro forms. “I” stands for the masculine plural. “E” for the feminine plural. 

If you’re having trouble with this, memorize the pattern of the verbs essere and andare (two of the most commonly used Italian verbs) and apply it to the other verbs on the list above.

passato prossimo with essereNote that the verb essere (=to be) has an irregular participle form, which is “stato“.

The Irregular Forms 

Some verbs, just like in English, have an irregular past participle (the second entity). It means that the past participle has its own structure and is not conjugated in the regular forms. It may be helpful to remember that in Italian, the same verbs with an irregular past participle (past) in English also have an irregular conjugation.

Basic list of commonly irregular participles

  • fare – ho fatto (I did/I’ve done)
  • dire – ho detto (I said/I’ve said)
  • leggere – ho letto (I read/I’ve read)
  • scrivere – ho scritto (I wrote/I’ve written)
  • prendere – ho preso (I took/I’ve taken)
  • spendere – ho speso (I spent/I’ve spent)
  • chiudere – ho chiuso (I closed/I’ve closed)
  • mettere – ho messo (I put/I’ve put)
  • succedere – è successo (it happened/it has happened)
  • discutere – ho discusso (I discussed/I’ve discussed)
  • accendere – ho accesso (I turned on/I’ve turned on)
  • spegnere – ho spento (I turned off/I’ve turned off)
  • vincere – ho vinto (I won/I’ve won)
  • piangere – ho pianto (I cried/I’ve cried)
  • scegliere – ho scelto (I chose/I’ve chosen)
  • rimanere – sono rimasto (I stayed/I’ve stayed)
  • chiedere – ho chiesto (I asked/I’ve asked)
  • rispondere – ho risposto (I answered/I’ve answered)
  • vedere – ho visto (I saw/I’ve seen)
Imperfetto and Passato Prossimo: The Difference 

If you are a beginner you should skip this topic for now. If you already know the Italian imperfect tense, you can have a look at this article to clarify any doubts.

Imperfetto and Passato Prossimo: The Difference

The difference between Lasciare, Partire, Uscire & Andare via 

The difference between Lasciare, Partire, Uscire, Andare via 

In this article I want to shed light on the difference in the usage of four Italian verbs that my students mix up all the time!

  • lasciare – to leave (permanently)
  • partire – to leave for/from 
  • uscire – to leave, to go out, to hang out
  • andare via – to leave 
As you can see, they all kind of mean  “to leave“ but they’re used in different situations.  Of course, they’re not interchangeable, and you should choose the appropriate one for each circumstance.
 

LASCIARE: to leave, to break up

Lasciare means to leave something behind (1), to break up with a person (2) or to leave something or a place permanently (3). Lasciare is always followed by a noun.
 
  • ho lasciato la macchina in garage – I left my car in the garage (1)
  • Maria ha lasciato il suo ragazzo – Maria broke up with her boyfriend (2)
  • ho lasciato il mio lavoro – I left my job (3)
  • ha lasciato l’Italia quando era piccolo  – I left Italy when I was little (3)
 

PARTIRE: to leave from, to leave for

PARTIRE PER or DA has a very similar use to the English to leave from/for. It’s usually used to say you’re going on vacation or traveling for other reasons or by a form of transportation. So, remember that when using partire there should be always a form of transportation implied in the movement. 

  • domani parto per Roma – tomorrow I am leaving for Rome 
  • i miei amici sono partiti per le vacanze – my friends went on vacation    
  • il treno parte dalla stazione centrale – the train leaves from the Central Station 
Partire also means to leave when it’s a train or any other means of transport that is leaving. 
  • Il treno è partito due minuti fa – the train left two minutes ago 
  • l’autobus è partito – the bus left 
 

What’s the difference between “partire” and “uscire”?

You shouldn’t use the verb partire if you’re going out of a place, like your home. In this case, you should use the verb uscire. The typical mistake I hear all the time is “parto la casa” instead of “esco di casa“. Let’s focus on this now…
 

USCIRE: to leave, to go out, to hang out

Uscire means to leave in the sense of going out of a place (your home, your office, your gym, a shop) knowing that you’re coming back the same day or later. It’s always followed by the preposition da, with the exception of the idiomatic expression: uscire di casa (to leave your house).

  • Esco di casa alle 8 – I leave (my home) every day at 8 
  • Quando sei uscito ieri? – When did you leave yesterday?
  • Esco sempre dall‘ufficio alle 18 – I always leave my office at 6 pm

Uscire has other meanings, though.

Uscire is also frequently used with the meaning of “hanging out” or “going out,” and it’s typically used in some sentences, like the ones below.  

  • uscire con gli amici – to go out with friends 
  • uscire a bere qualcosa – to go out for drinks 

Lastly, when uscire is used with the preposition con in the combination “uscire con” it means to date someone. 

  • Esco con Marco da un po’ → I have been dating Marco for a while 

ANDARE VIA: to leave, to go away from 

Andare via  means to leave in the sense of leaving a place. In this sense, it’s similar to uscire, but it’s used differently.
  • è tardi, dobbiamo andare via – it’s late, we should leave (or go) 
  • andiamo via? Sono un po’ stanco – shouldn’t we go? I’m a little tired
What’s the difference between “andare via” and “uscire”?
 
Andare via can’t be followed by any noun, while uscire is always followed by “da” + the place you’re leaving
  • siamo usciti dalla palestra alle 9 – we left the gym at 9

 

Helpful textbooks to improve your Italian grammar at your own pace

         

How to use the Italian prepositions IN and A

The difference between the prepositions “A” and “IN”

One of the most common mistakes in Italian (for foreign learners) concerns the use of the preposition a and in.

And it is totally normal.

In fact, in some cases, specific rules are telling you how to use the preposition in and when using the preposition a. However, the truth is that in most cases, there is not a specific rule.

Smart Tip

The best way to master the  propositions is to learn them in “chunks”.

A “chunk” (or a collocation) is a recurring combination of words and prepositions (or words and verbs)

For example: andare al cinema, andare all’università, etc…

The preposition “A”

A is used before the names of cities.

  • Vado a Venezia
  • Vivo a Palermo

A becomes AD before the names of cities that starts with a vowel. 

  • Vivo ad Amburgo
  • Vivo ad Alessandria 

A is also used in front of  names of small states, such as:

  • Vado a San Marino
  • Vado a Gilbirteterra 

A is used in front of the names of small islands, for examples:

  • Vado a Malta
  • Vado a Ibiza

A is used with cardinals points:

  • A Sud, a Nord, a Est, a Ovest

A is also used with some verbs when they are followed by another action (and the infinitive verb is used), for example:

  • Continuare a – continuo a studiare più tardi 
  • Cominciare a (iniziare a) – comincio a lavorare alle 9 del mattino
  • Aiutare a  – mi aiuti a pulire?
  • Essere abituato a – non sono abituato a parlare in pubblico 
  • Riuscire a – non riesco a dormire

 

THE USE OF THE PREPOSITION “IN“

IN is used before nouns of countries:

  • Vivo in Italia
  • Vivo in Germania

If the countries is grammatically plural, such as, the United States or the Netherlands, the correct Italian prepositions to use are nei, negli.

  • Vivo negli Stati Uniti
  • Vivo nei Paesi Bassi

IN is used too with the names of regions or states:

  • Vivo  in Lombardia
  • Vivo in Texas

IN is used with names of the big islands, for instance

  • Vivo in Sicilia
  • Vivo in Sardegna

IN is used with the names of the streets or squares.

  • Vivo a Londra, in Oxford Street
  • Vivo a Milano, in via Petrarca

IN is finally used with the name of shops or places ending in –ia.

Vado…

  • in farmacia
  • in pizzeria
  • in gelateria
  • in macelleria
  • in periferia
  • in profumeria
  • in campagna

There are rules and trends when it comes to deciding whether to use the preposition in or a, but sometimes it is difficult to pick up the right one. Thus it’s better off to learn by heart the most common expressions using these prepositions.

Common Idioms Using The Preposition “IN”

In chiesa

in campagna, in montagna, in spiaggia

in macchina, in bici

in palestra, in piscina

in bagno

in ufficio

in centro, in città

in discoteca

in vacanza

in edicola

Common Idioms Using The Preposition “A”

a messa, a scuola, a lavoro, a teatro

a piedi

a letto, a tavola

a colazione, a pranzo, a colazione

a lezione

a destra, a sinistra

al bar, al ristorante, al cinema, al mare, al lago

all’università

a Nord, a Sud, a Est, a Ovest