NOTES
(by DuoItalian)
Adjectives (aggettivi) are words that describe a noun. Unlike the English language, Italian adjectives most often follow the noun.
- È una lingua difficile. (It is a difficult language.)
- Marina è una ragazza generosa. (Marina is a generous girl.)
However, there are some common adjectives that generally come before the noun.
- Anna è una cara amica. (Anna is a dear friend.)
- Gino è un bravo dottore. (Gino is a good doctor.)
- È un brutt’affare. (It’s a bad situation.)
The most common adjectives that come before the noun in Italian are listed below:
bello | beautiful | grande | large, great |
bravo | good, clever | lungo | long |
brutto | ugly | nuovo | new |
buono | good, well | piccolo | small, little |
caro | dear, cute | stesso | same |
cattivo | bad | vecchio | old |
giovane | young | vero | true |
But even these adjectives must follow the noun for emphasis or contrast, and when modified by an adverb.
- Oggi non porta l’abito vecchio, porta un abito nuovo. (Today he is not wearing the old suit, he is wearing a new suit.)
- Abitano in una casa molto piccola. (They live in a very small house.)
TIP: There are many similar adjectives in Italian for the English “short” that have varying meanings.
- When referring to height, a person or object is either alto (tall) or basso (short).
- The adjective breve is used when discussing a (short) length of time.
- Things, body parts, and everything else is either lungo (long) or corto (short).
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VOCABULARY
(from Duolingo)
nuovo | new |
vecchio | old |
stesso | same |
diverso | different |
possibile | possible |
impossibile | impossible |
bello | beautiful, pretty |
buono | good, well |
bravo | good, clever |
alto | tall, high |
basso | short (height), low |
internazionale | international |
nazionale | national |
straniero | foreigner, stranger |
caro | expensive, dear |
economico | cheap |
gratuito | free (item) |
libero | free (person) |
ricco | rich |
famoso | famous |
popolare | popular |
importante | important |
utile | useful |
moderno | modern |
quotidiano | daily |
elettrico | electrical |
chiuso | closed |
interessante | interesting |
unico | unique, only |
speciale | special |
perfetto | perfect |
capace | capable |
forte | strong |
strano | strange |
pesante | heavy |
pericoloso | dangerous |
grosso | big, thick |
solo | alone, only |
difficile | difficult |
grasso | fat |
duro | tough, hard |
intero | entire, whole |
lungo | long |
corto | short (length) |
pieno | full |
prossimo | next |
facile | easy |
sicuro | sure |
comune | common |
normale | normal |
vero | true |
giusto | just, right, fair |
certo | certain |
pronto | ready |
giovane | young |
chiaro | clear |
caldo | hot |
freddo | cold |
breve | short (time) |
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