ILGUR: Italian Language, Grammar and Usage Resource

In Italian, there are some nouns and adjectives which do not change form when in the plural or change to accommodate gender. These nouns and adjectives are called invariable. Remember that adverbs are invariable, too! Nouns are considered invariable when they have the same form in both the singular and the plural. Nouns that follow this convention are:

1. Foreign words (which typically end in a consonant) such as: gli yogurt, i jeans, i film (yogurts, jeans, films)
2. Nouns that end in an accent vowel:le città, le formalità, i virtù, i caffè (cities, formalities, virtues, coffees)
3. Feminine nouns ending in “i”:le crisi, le ipotesi
4. Feminine nouns ending in an “ie”:le serie, le specieException: la moglie = le mogli
5. Abbreviated feminine nouns:singular: la moto, l’auto, la metro, la foto, la bici, il cinema plural: le moto, le auto, le metro, le foto, le bici, i cinema
6. One syllable nouns:il re, lo sci i re, gli sci
7. Other nouns:il/la giramondo, la manforte, l’infradito (m. or f.), lo stuzzicadenti, il caccia le manforte, gli infradito/le infradito, gli stuzzicadenti, i caccia
8. Possessive pronoun, loro, is invariable.
9. The following noun(s) are also invariable:il boia: executioner il rom, la rom: Roma, gypsy

Adjectives are invariable when they keep the same form and do not change form to match the gender and number of the noun that they modify. The adjectives below are invariable:

1. The possessive adjective, loro, is invariable
2. Certain colors: blu, rosa, viola, lilla, beige
3. Colors that require two words: verde bottiglie (bottle green), nero notte (night black)
4. The adjectives: pari, dispari, impari
5. The adjective: arrosto
6. The adjective: antiproiettile: bullet-proof
7. The adjective: antiscivolo: non-slip
8. The adjective: rom: Roma, gypsy
9. The adjective: cuscinetto: buffer

NB: This post is updated as new invariable adjectives and nouns are learned and/or encountered. last updated: 1 October 2008

In English, we capitalize a lot of things: languages, nationalities, countries, proper nouns, etc. In Italian, the rules are a little different. Here are some guidelines on what to capitalize in Italian:

• Proper names (i nomi propri), such as:
  Carlo, Carla, Paolo, Signor Mattini, Ministro Padoa Schioppa, etc.

• Place names, countries, cities, regions, rivers, geographic locations, archaeological sites etc:
  such as Roma, Africa, Stati Uniti, Lazio, Foro Romano, etc.
• Titles of books, magazines, newspapers, movies, articles, etc., such as:
  Panorama, La Repubblica, I promessi sposi

  However…if the title consists of three or more words, then only the first word is capitalized. If the title consists of a definite/indefinite article + 1 noun, then both are capitalized (La Repubblica, Il Santo, etc.). If more than one noun follows a definite/indefinite article, then the title is considered long enough and only the first word is capitalized (I promessi sposi, Il giorno della civetta). If a proper noun is part of the title, then it would be capitalized (La vita di Giovanna).
  

• Organizations, such as:
  Onu, Ansa, Cgil, etc.
  *note on abbreviations: In Italian, typically only the first letter is capitalized, unlike in English where we write UN, ANSA, NATO, etc.
• Religious figures/terms:
  La Vergine, L’Ultima Cena, San Pietro
  
• Holidays, festivals, and other cultural events, such as:
  Natale, Festa della Repubblica
  
• Specific and important historical periods, such as:
  Il Rinascimento, Il Medioevo
• Names of companies, such as:
  Alitalia, Banco Popolare, etc.
• The first word of a sentence
• Formal pronouns are typically capitalized for respect as well as to prevent ambiguity to distinguish between informal forms:

  Non sapevo che Lei non è andata, Signora Martinelli.
  I didn’t know that you were not going, Signora Martinelli.

In Italian, the following are generally not capitalized:

• languages

• days of the week
• The first letter after a colon in Italian is not capitalized
• Scientific and technical terms are not capitalized — however, if said term contains a proper noun, such as the name of the scientist, then that word would be capitalized
• points of the compass (north, south, east, west)

• The noun, l’oceano, is never capitalized, even when referring to a specific ocean, but the word that follows is capitalized: l’oceano Pacifico, l’oceano Atlantico, etc.
• streets, highways and roads are not capitalized save for the proper noun that accompanies them (via Appia, autostrada di Massachusetts)
• historical periods that do not have a weighty historical relevance
• months
• seasons
• adjectives (unless it is the first word of a sentence)
• unnamed individuals:

  Conosci gli americani all’albergo? | Do you know the Americans at the hotel?

• the subject pronoun, io (unless it is the first word of a sentence)

There are some Italian nouns that end in “a” but are masculine. Typically they have the ending of -ema or -amma. Be sure to watch your agreement when combining these nouns with adjectives!! Here is a list of some common nouns that follow this pattern:

il problema, i problemi (problem)
a complex problem = un problema complesso
il sistema, i sistemi (system)
il teorema, i teoremi (theorem)
il diagramma, i diagrammi (diagram)
il dramma, i drammi (drama)
il programma, i programmi (program)
il tema, i temi (theme)

Nouns that end in -si are also of Greek origin and equate to the English nouns that end in -sis. In Italian, these nouns are feminine and are invariable:

l’analisi (anlaysis)
la crisi (crisis)
l’ipotesi (hypothesis)
la tesi (thesis)

NB: The noun, il brindisi, is masculine because it is of Germanic origins.

Forming the plural of nouns that end in -io is not difficult at all.

Just remember these simple rules:

• When the stress* is on the next to last syllable, drop the o and add another i.
  An example would be the noun: lo zio, l’invio
  The plurals would be: gli zii, gli invii
  

• When the stress* is anywhere else, simply drop the o:
  il negozio = i negozi
  il vivaio = i vivai
  l’orologio = gli orologio
  

There are some exceptions, notably il paio = le paia

Always check a dictionary when you are in doubt of the plural!

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*The underlined vowel shows the location of the stress in the words.

Some nouns in Italian have two plurals. But often times, these two plurals can have different meanings, depending upon the word.

See the following examples below, note the figurative or alternate meaning and the actual one:

il braccio > i bracci, le braccia
il braccio = arm
*i bracci = arms on a scale, cross, etc
*le braccia = arms of the human body

il budello > i budelli, le budella
il budello = bowel, gut
*i budelli = tubes or alley
*le budella = intestines

il cervello > i cervelli, le cervella
il cervello = brain (as in, the organ)
*i cervelli = wits, brains (fig. meaning, as in smarts, intelligence)
*le cervella = brains, as in the cerebral material itself

il ciglio > i cigli, le ciglia
il ciglio = eyelash
*i cigli = boundaries, borders, edges
*le ciglia = eyelashes

il corno > i corni, le corna
il corno = horn (the instrument or on an animal)
*i corni = horns (the instruments)
*le corna = horns (on an animal)

il dito > i diti, le dita
il dito = finger
*i diti = fingers, when referring to a specific one. i diti pollici = thumbs, i diti indici = index fingers
*le dita = fingers – as in more than one of many different kinds; as in: He lost three fingers in a machining accident.

il filo > i fili, le fila
il filo = thread
*i fili = threads, blades, strands (blades of grass, threads in a stitch, etc.)
*le fila = threads, when the meaning is more figurative (as in: thread of a discussion or argument – as in, the “theme” of something)

il fondamento > i fondamenti, le fondamenta
il fondamento = foundation
*i fondamenti = foundations, bases of something abstract; as in: foundations of an argument, a science, civilization
*le fondamenta = foundations, of a building

il gesto > i gesti, le gesta
il gesto = gesture
*i gesti = gestures, as in physical movements; as in: He gestures too much when he speaks
*le gesta = gestures, acts, undertakings; as in: The firefighter’s heroic gestures helped to save dozens from the burning building.

il grido > i gridi, le grida
il grido = sream, shout, bark
*i gridi = shouts, barks, screams (from animals)
*le grida = shouts (from people, humans)

il labbro > i labbri, le labbra
il labbro = lip
*i labbri = rims, lips, edges (rims of a vase, a cup, etc.)
*le labbra = lips (of mouths)

il lenzuolo > i lenzuoli, le lenzuola
il lenzuolo = sheet
*i lenzuoli = sheets, but not on a bed; like shrouds, etc.
*le lenzuola = sheets, on a bed

il membro > i membri, le membra
il membro = member
*i membri = members of a family, of a group, club, etc.
*le membre = members of the human race

il muro > i muri, le mura
il muro = wall
*i muri = walls of a building
*le mura = city walls, walls of a castle or fortress

l’osso > gli ossi, le ossa
l’osso = bone
*gli ossi = bones, when they are not part of something; as in: The archaeologist found a set of bones in a grave.
*le ossa = bones, when they are part of a set; as in: bones of the arm, the cranium, etc.

l’urlo > gli urli, le urla
l’urlo = shout
*gli urli = screams, shouts, howls (of animals)
*le urla = screams, shouts, cries (of humans