NOTES
(by DuoItalian)

MASCULINE & FEMININE
Most colors in Italian can be masculine or feminine, depending on the context:

  • Il caffè nero. (The black coffee.)
  • La bicicletta gialla. (The yellow bike.)

ARTICLE DEPENDENCIES
The endings for the following common colors change depending on the article: bianco (white), nero (black), grigio (gray), rosso (red), giallo (yellow), and azzurro (azure blue).

  • rosso (masc. sing.)
  • rossa (fem. pl.)
  • rossi (masc. pl.)
  • rosse (fem. pl.)

PLURALS ONLY
These colors remain unchanged by gender, but do change in the plural: verde (green), arancione (orange), marrone (brown), and celeste (light blue).

  • I cani marroni. (The brown dogs.)
  • Due giacche verdi. (Two green jackets.)

EXCEPTIONS
The following colors do not conform to any of the aforementioned rules and will not change form under any circumstances:

  • blu (blue)
  • rosa (pink)
  • viola (purple)

TIP: Azzurro is the national color of Italy. Gli Azzurri refers to the Italian national soccer, rugby, and ice hockey teams, while the Italian ski team is called Valanga Azzurra (Blue Avalanche). The Italian women’s national teams are similarly referred to as Le Azzurre.

VOCABULARY
(from Duolingo)
neroblack
azzurroazure blue
marronebrown
coloraticolored
colorecolor
grigiogrey
verdegreen
arancioneorange
rosapink
violapurple
rossored
biancawhite
gialloyellow
blublue
coloricolors
celestelight blue

 

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