Italian Articles Exercise Posted by Geoff on Nov 7, 2016 in Grammar
il lo la i gli le …. sounds rather like the ritornello (chorus) of a children’s rhyme doesn’t it. In fact it’s a list of the six Italian definite articles, all of which mean ‘the’.
Let’s revise how each of them is used, then we’ll have a go at an exercise to be sure that we’ve understood what goes where.
il = masculine singular, e.g. il fucile, il martello.
lo = masculine singular, used before ‘s’ plus a consonant, ‘z’, or a vowel, e.g. lo scarpone, lo zaino. N.B. lo becomes l’ before a vowel, e.g. l’albero.
la = feminine singular, e.g. la scrivania, la ragazza. N.B. la becomes l’ before a vowel, e.g. l’arancia.
i = masculine plural, e.g. i fucili, i martelli.
gli = masculine plural, used before ‘s’ plus a consonant, ‘z’, or a vowel e.g. gli scarponi, gli zaini, gli alberi.
le = feminine plural, e.g. le scrivanie, le ragazze, le arance
Se vuoi visitare ___ Alpi con noi devi portare ___ scarponi. Photo CC by Antonio De Lorenzo
Exercise
Now fill in the gap in the Italian sentences with the correct definite article
Did you see the squirrel? Where, I really like squirrels!
Hai visto ___ scoiattolo? – Dove, a me piacciono molto ___ scoiattoli!
All the ladies went into the dining room
Tutte ___ signore sono entrate in sala da pranzo
can you pass me the nails please?
Mi passi ___ chiodi per favore?
I have to use the screwdriver
Devo usare ___ cacciavite
Turn the radio on, I want to hear the latest news
Accendi ___ radio, voglio sentire ___ ultime notizie
Look, the dog is in the field with the sheep!
Guarda, ___ cane sta nel campo con ___ pecore!
Where are the sandwiches? Have you checked in the rucksack?
Dove sono ___ panini? Hai controllato dentro ___ zaino?
The bee settled upon a flower
___ ape si è appoggiata su un fiore
The men couldn’t keep up with the boys
___ uomini non riuscivano a tenere passo con ___ ragazzi
If you want to visit the Alps with us you’ll need to wear your walking boots.
Se vuoi visitare ___ Alpi con noi devi portare ___ scarponi
The motorbike overtook the car
___ moto ha sorpassato ___ auto
The students have finished the exercise
___ studenti hanno finito ___ esercizio
Click here to see the answers
Did you see the squirrel? – Where, I really like squirrels!
Hai visto lo scoiattolo? – Dove, a me piacciono molto gli scoiattoli!
All the ladies went into the dining room
Tutte le signore sono entrate in sala da pranzo
can you pass me the nails please?
Mi passi i chiodi per favore?
I have to use the screwdriver
Devo usare il cacciavite
Turn the radio on, I want to hear the latest news
Accendi la radio, voglio sentire le ultime notizie
Look, the dog is in the field with the sheep!
Guarda, il cane sta nel campo con le pecore!
Where are the sandwiches? Have you checked in the rucksack?
Dove sono i panini? Hai controllato dentro lo zaino?
The bee settled upon a flower
l’ape si è appoggiata su un fiore
The men couldn’t keep up with the boys
gli uomini non riuscivano a tenere passo con i ragazzi
If you want to visit the Alps with us you’ll need to wear your walking boots.
Se vuoi visitare le Alpi con noi devi portare gli scarponi
The motorbike overtook the car
la moto ha sorpassato l’auto
The students have finished the exercise
gli studenti hanno finito l’esercizio
Any questions? Feel free to leave a comment.
P.S. If you’re browser or app doesn’t allow you to see the answers let me know and I’ll post them in the comments section.
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Comments:
Patricia:
Great test . Actually even experienced students of Italian make mistakes.
Joan Engelhaupt:
It’s great that now we can check our answers right away! I have two questions: If “lo” and “gli” are used before an “S’ followed by a consonant and a “z”, why is it “lo albero” and “gli uomini”? Also, why “Il cane sta nel campo” and not “Il cane e in campo”? Thank you.
Geoff:
@Joan Engelhaupt Ciao Joan, I wrote:
Hence l’albero (singular), gli alberi (plural).
l’uomo (singular) gli uomini (plural)
You can use either “Il cane sta nel campo” or “Il cane è
nel campo”.
Saluti da Geoff 🙂
Joan Engelhaupt:
@Geoff Thank you, Geoff, but I still have a question: shouldn’t the rule be “lo” and “gli” before words beginning with “s” or “z” or A VOWEL? (in which case “lo” becomes “l'”)?
Geoff:
@Joan Engelhaupt Ciao Joan, yes, it should be “lo” and “gli” before words beginning with “s” and a consonant, or “z” or a vowel? (in which case “lo” becomes “l’”).
I’ve modified it in the blog it for the sake of clarity. Here’s what it now says: lo = masculine singular, used before ‘s’ plus a consonant, ‘z’, or a vowel, e.g. lo scarpone, lo zaino. N.B. lo becomes l’ before a vowel, e.g. l’albero.
I do appreciate your feedback Joan. If I haven’t communicated something clearly enough I need to know so that I can modify it.
Grazie mille, Geoff 🙂
Eduardo:
good test, also you have to know the gender of the screwdriver, il cacciavite; la radio for the radio, the alps for le Alpi.
Chippy:
Thank you so much – very useful test. Also served to remind me of other associated rules which I’d forgotten.
Geoff:
@Chippy Sei il benvenuto/a Chippy
P.S. Are you male or female? I don’t know what gender to write to you in!
A presto, Geoff 🙂
Gianna Shaw:
Could you please provide answers as I am not able to click on the ‘click here’ 🙁
Grazie
Geoff:
@Gianna Shaw Eccole Gianna:
Did you see the squirrel? – Where, I really like squirrels!
Hai visto lo scoiattolo? – Dove, a me piacciono molto gli scoiattoli!
All the ladies went into the dining room
Tutte le signore sono entrate in sala da pranzo
can you pass me the nails please?
Mi passi i chiodi per favore?
I have to use the screwdriver
Devo usare il cacciavite
Turn the radio on, I want to hear the latest news
Accendi la radio, voglio sentire le ultime notizie
Look, the dog is in the field with the sheep!
Guarda, il cane sta nel campo con le pecore!
Where are the sandwiches? Have you checked in the rucksack?
Dove sono i panini? Hai controllato dentro lo zaino?
The bee settled upon a flower
l’ape si è appoggiata su un fiore
The men couldn’t keep up with the boys
gli uomini non riuscivano a tenere passo con i ragazzi
If you want to visit the Alps with us you’ll need to wear your walking boots.
Se vuoi visitare le Alpi con noi devi portare gli scarponi
The motorbike overtook the car
la moto ha sorpassato l’auto
The students have finished the exercise
gli studenti hanno finito l’esercizio
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