Purpose
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to correctly match Italian adjectives to the gender and number of the nouns they describe.
Lesson Explanation
Like Spanish, Italian adjectives must agree in gender and number with the noun they describe. Adjectives ending in -o change across all four forms:
il ragazzo alto — the tall boy (masc. sing.) la ragazza alta — the tall girl (fem. sing.) i ragazzi alti — the tall boys (masc. plural) le ragazze alte — the tall girls (fem. plural)
Adjectives ending in -e have only two forms, not four — the same form serves both genders in the singular, and both genders share -i in the plural:
il ragazzo intelligente / la ragazza intelligente (singular, both genders) i ragazzi intelligenti / le ragazze intelligenti (plural, both genders)
Unlike Spanish, where descriptive adjectives almost always follow the noun, Italian genuinely allows more flexibility: many common, short, high-frequency adjectives are placed BEFORE the noun (una bella casa — a beautiful house), while longer or more specific descriptive adjectives typically follow (una casa italiana — an Italian house). Placement can even shift the nuance of a few adjectives: un grande uomo (a great man) vs. un uomo grande (a physically large man).
Practice Questions
1. Do Italian adjectives need to agree in gender and number with the noun?
View Answer
Yes.
2. Write “the tall girl.”
View Answer
La ragazza alta.
3. Write “the tall boys” (plural).
View Answer
I ragazzi alti.
4. How many distinct forms does an adjective ending in “-e,” like “intelligente,” have — two or four?
View Answer
Two.
5. Write the plural form (both genders) of “intelligente.”
View Answer
Intelligenti.
6. Does Italian, like Spanish, almost always place descriptive adjectives after the noun?
View Answer
No — Italian allows more flexibility, with many common adjectives placed before the noun.
7. Write “a beautiful house,” placing the adjective before the noun.
View Answer
Una bella casa.
8. Write “an Italian house,” placing the adjective after the noun.
View Answer
Una casa italiana.
9. What does “un grande uomo” mean, with the adjective placed before the noun?
View Answer
A great man.
10. What does “un uomo grande” mean, with the adjective placed after the noun?
View Answer
A physically large man.
11. Write “the tall girls” (plural).
View Answer
Le ragazze alte.
12. Write “the tall boy” (singular).
View Answer
Il ragazzo alto.