• If the noun is masculine, it will (almost always) end in o or e (ragazzo, signore). 
• If the noun is feminine, it will (almost always) end in a or e (ragazza, chiave).

To make a noun plural you (almost always) change the last letter:

o changes to i                  (masculine)   ragazzo > ragazzi
e changes to i                  (mas. or fem.)  signore > signori         chiave > chiavi
a changes to e                  (feminine)     ragazza > ragazze

-Indefinite article: "a, an"

To use an indefinite article you will use either un, uno, una, or un’ before a singular noun, depending on whether the noun is masculine or feminine, and what letter the noun starts with.

-Definite article: "the"

To use the definite article, you will use either il, l’, lo, la, i, gli, or le before a noun, depending on whether the noun is masculine or feminine, singular or plural, and what letter the noun starts with.

-Definite article: "the"

The definite article agrees with its noun in number and gender:

il (the) is used with masculine, singular nouns: il ragazzo. - the boy

la (the) is used with feminine singular nouns: la ragazza. - the girl

l' (the) is used instead of il or la when the next word begins with a vowel:

l'amico, l'amica, l'americano, l'americana.

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Nouns ending in -o are nearly all masculine. il ragazzo.

Nouns ending in -a are generally feminine. la ragazza.

Nouns ending in -e are masculine or feminine. il padre. la madre. - the father, the mother.

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il becomes i (the) in the plural. i ragazzi.

la becomes le in the plural. le ragazze.

l' (before a masculine noun) becomes gli in the plural. gli amici. gli americani.

l' (before a feminine noun) becomes le in the plural. le amiche. le americane.

nouns ending in -o or -e form their plural by changing -o or -e to -i. i ragazzi, i padri. le madri.

nouns ending in -a form their plural by changing -a to -e. le ragazze.

lo (the) is used with masculine nouns which begin with s plus consonant, or with z, or with y:

lo specchio, lo studente, lo zero.

gli is the plural of lo. gli specchi, gli studenti, gli zeri.

Verbi: there are three types of regular verbs in italian, defined by their endings:

We'll learn the -are verbs first. Take the infinitive: example - parlare (to speak).

The stem is parl- and the ending is -are

Take the stem, and change the endings for each person, in this pattern:

So, for example, the regular -are verb parlare (to speak) is conjugated:

click on "play triangle">

The regular -are verb aspettare (to wait for) is conjugated:

click on "play triangle">

-Verbi: "-ere" verbs.

For regular -ere verbs, take the stem, and change the endings for each person, in this pattern:

-o___________-iamo

-i___________-ete

-e__________-ono

so, for example, leggere is conjugated:click on "play triangle">

leggo _________leggiamo

leggi__________ leggete

legge__________leggono

-Verbi: "-ire" verbs. The regular -ire verbs are conjugated two different ways:

partire (to depart)

parto, parti, parte. partiamo, partite, partono.

finire (to finish)

finisco, finisci, finisce. finiamo, finite, finiscono.

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The tense that we are learning is the present indicative. For all verbs in Italian, the present indicative is used extensively, and can be translated into English in several ways.

Let's take one verb as an example:

The phrase in English, "I am buying..." is expressed in Italian by just one word: "Compro..."

You can get into trouble if you try to translate word by word from English into Italian. Sometimes just one Italian word takes the place of several words in English.

The word "Compro..." can mean "I am buying..." or "I buy..." or "I will buy" or "I do buy..." depending on the context.

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-"Dove" - practice with places and asking directions.

click on "play triangle">

accanto a - next to

dietro - behind

in fondo a - at the very end of

a sinistra - on the left

a destra - on the right

lontano da - far from

vicino a - near to

di fronte a - across from, opposite, facing

fino a - as far as

sempre diritto - straight ahead

attraverso - across

-more direction words:

davanti a... - in front of...

giri a destra! - turn right

vada dritto! - go straight

-Don't say "it" or "they". Remember that Italians often leave out the subject pronoun in a sentence, because the verb lets you know what is being talked about. Notice how, in English, we say (for example) "It is nearby." or "It's downtown."

In Italian, you often don't say the "it".

For example:

È vicino. - It is nearby
È in centro. - It's downtown.

You will also not use "they".

For example

Sono qui. (They are here)
Sono in centro. (They are downtown)

-Parole da ricordare (interesting words that came up in class)

lo scontrino - the little receipt you get from the cashier, to take to the barista

numero di telefono - phone number

numero telefonico - phone number

questo - this

Vada! - Go! (formal, polite command form)

Giri! - Turn! (formal, polite command form)

Continui! - Continue! (formal, polite command form)

questo - this (masculine)

questa - this (feminine)

question words we've encountered so far:

• come? - how?
• dove? - where?
• quale? - which?
• che cosa? - what?
• quanto? - how much?
• chi? - who?

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-Handouts

Here is a list of the handouts you should have from class. All of these are double-sided. They are numbered here so that you can tell which one I'm talking about in the homework listed below.

From the first class session, June 24:

1. white: "Alfabeto e suoni" (the alphabet and pronunciation) (2-page handout)

2. ivory: "Numeri da uno a cento" (numbers from one to 100)

3. green: "Buongiorno! (How to ask for something)" (four dialogs on the front, "Vita Italiana" on the back)

4. green: Dialogs 5 through 11.

5. green: Homework exercises 1,2,3,4. And on the back, exercises 1,2,3,4,6 and a map.

6. blue: "More basic expressions (How to ask for something) Scusi..."

7. blue: "Dove..." and, on the back, "Places"

Handouts from the second class session, July 1:

8. yellow: "Avere idioms"

9. gold: "The verbs andare, dare, fare, stare"

10. green: "Dov'è: How to ask where something is" (dialogs 1 through 5)

11. purple: Two-way translation which starts: "Scusi, c'è un bagno qui?" and a "matching" exercise on the back.

Handouts from the third class session, July 8:

12. blue: "To ask the price of..." and, on the back "Parole da ricordare: Al Negozio"

13. white: (with drawings) "1. Uno Prima lezione. Ecco una casa..."

14. pink: (with drawings) "1. A. Rispondete alle domande..."

15. ivory: "1. Scusi, dov'è la stazione Termini?" and, on the back "What are you (tu) doing?"

16. pink: 2 stapled sheets. "Regular verbs" and "Top 50 verbs"

17. white: "Read the passage about cafés in Italy..." (with drawings of food items)

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-Compiti (homework)

1. Read handout #13 again. Answer the questions on handout #14. click here to check your answers.

2. Say these numbers out loud in Italian, and write them out in Italian:

a. 14

b. 16

c. 17

d. 21

e. 29

f. 32

g. 35

h. 40

i. 41

j. 53

k. 58

l. 64

m. 66

n. 71

o. 77

p. 85

q. 88

r. 92

s. 100

3. Read handout #15. It's a review of words to ask directions. We'll do the two-way translation exercise together next week in class. On the back is a practice with the verb "fare" - to do. Read that side, too.

4. click here for an audio version of handout #12 "to ask the price of..." (phrases to use at the store).

Practice saying the phrases out loud with the audio.

5. Read the front page of handout #16 to study how regular verbs are conjugated in Italian.

6. All the "advanced" students should read the paragraph "Al Bar" on the handout #17. Everyone can match the pictures with the words. For extra credit, write the indefinite article and the definite article for each item.

per esempio, cioccolata > una cioccolata > la cioccolata (hot chocolate, a hot chocolate, the hot chocolate)