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→Language Characteristics
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In Italian, the endings of most words vary according to the way the words are used in a sentence. Who— whose—whom or marry—marries—married are examples of words in English with variant forms. This word list gives the most commonly seen form of each Italian word. As you read Italian records, be aware that almost all words vary with usage. Only some variations are explained in this guide. | In Italian, the endings of most words vary according to the way the words are used in a sentence. Who— whose—whom or marry—marries—married are examples of words in English with variant forms. This word list gives the most commonly seen form of each Italian word. As you read Italian records, be aware that almost all words vary with usage. Only some variations are explained in this guide. | ||
====Gender==== | |||
Italian nouns are designated as masculine or feminine. For example, vicinanza (neighborhood) is a feminine word, and villaggio (village) is a masculine word. Generally, nouns ending in -a are feminine, nouns ending -e may be either masculine or feminine, and nouns ending in -o are masculine. | |||
Adjectives and articles (a, an, the) will have either masculine or feminine endings for the noun they modify: -a for feminine singular nouns, -o for masculine singular nouns. For example, in Italian you write ava paterna (paternal grandmother) or avo paterno (paternal grandfather). | Adjectives and articles (a, an, the) will have either masculine or feminine endings for the noun they modify: -a for feminine singular nouns, -o for masculine singular nouns. For example, in Italian you write ava paterna (paternal grandmother) or avo paterno (paternal grandfather). | ||
====Plurals==== | |||
For nouns ending with -a, the plural is formed by replacing the last letter with -e; for nouns ending in -o or -e, replace the last letter with -i to form the plural. For example, figlia (daughter) becomes figlie (daughters), and padrino (godfather) becomes padrini (godparents). | |||
Articles and adjectives take -e as the feminine plural ending, and -i as the masculine plural ending. Buona figlia becomes buone figlie (good daughters) and buono padrino becomes buoni padrini (good godparents). | Articles and adjectives take -e as the feminine plural ending, and -i as the masculine plural ending. Buona figlia becomes buone figlie (good daughters) and buono padrino becomes buoni padrini (good godparents). | ||
====Verb tense==== | |||
Verbs also vary depending on mood, who is acting, and whether the action is in the past, present, or future. For example, the Italian verb sposare (to marry) could appear with various endings: | |||
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| '''Present''' | | '''Present''' | ||