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MFLE Italian Reference Grammar
Introduction
‘Grammar is the way that words make sense. It is a code or set of rules accepted by any community who share a language.’ (Language into Languages Teaching, SEED, University of Glasgow, 2001)
What follows is an attempt to set out the rules of grammar for the structures which are recommended in the accompanying outline of work for the teaching of Italian for P6 and P7.
It is not intended for use by pupils, unless perhaps as a spell-check for the months of the year, for example.
Why use this resource?
It is appreciated that a number of teachers who have completed their MLPS training may feel a little insecure in their knowledge of basic Italian grammar. This is understandable, and this booklet attempts to be a resource to help. It is by definition very restricted, but closely tied to the requirements of teachers offering Italian in the primary school.
The fact that it has been produced does not mean that primary school teachers will now be expected to teach grammar formally as it is laid out in this booklet. There is no expectation that pupils should work through this grammar booklet. It is a reference resource for teachers, to try to make them more comfortable with the rules behind the communicative language which they are offering in class.
It is felt that a degree of security about the rules of grammar will make teachers more comfortable in their use of Italian.
How should I use this resource?
As will be seen in the course notes, we do not shy away from explaining simple rules of grammar to the pupils. However, such explanations should be done in a sensitive way. There is nothing to be gained in foreign language teaching from leaving pupils unsure and insecure when a simple explanation, where possible drawing analogies with English, would remove doubts and make the picture clearer. Once again, any explanation of grammar given to pupils should not be taken directly from this booklet and written on the board, for example. The teacher will be expected to use this booklet to inform himself or herself about the correctness of form before going on to explain, in his or her words, the basic rules of grammar, according to the needs of the pupils, some of whom will benefit from a sharper exposure to grammar than has been the case heretofore.
Verb forms
Introduction
‘Verbs are used to assert or state what is happening, or what is the case. They are sometimes called ‘doing words’ or ‘action words’, but they do not always show action: if we say ‘he is bone idle’ or ‘he has stopped’ there is not much action going on.
Verbs also show the time when things are happening: this is called the tense of the verb.’ (Language into Languages Teaching: SEED: University of Glasgow: 2001)
The subject pronouns are
Io – I Noi – we Tu – you Voi – you Lui/lei/ - he/she Loro – they Esso/essa - it Essi/esse - they
‘Lo’, ‘tu’ and ‘lui/ lei’, ‘esso/essa’ are first, second and third singular persons respectively.
‘Noi’, ‘voi’ and ‘loro’, ‘essi/esse’ are first, second and third plural persons respectively.
Notes on the subject pronouns
x ‘Tu’ is traditionally used to address close friends, members of the immediate family, close relatives, children and animals and pets. Otherwise its use can be considered condescending. x ‘Lei’, strictly speaking is the third singular person, but is also the polite form to address to another person when the speakers are not closely acquainted. It is the formal mode to address a single person.
In school, teachers would address individual pupils by ‘tu’, and groups of pupils by ‘voi’.
Pupils should address the teacher by ‘lei’.
x ‘Esso’ singular masculine/’essa’ singular feminine – ‘essi’ plural masculine /’esse’ plural feminine are used to address animals and objects. Note: usually the subject pronoun is not expressed in sentences.
These endings are:
- are -ere -ire -are -ere -ire
io - o - o - o/isco noi - iamo -iamo -iamo
tu - i - i - i/isci voi - ate -ete ite
lui/lei - a - e - e/isce loro - ano -ono ono/iscono esso/essa
So, the simple present tense of the verb guardare is:
io guardo noi guardiamo
tu guardi voi guardate
lui/lei guarda loro guardano esso/essa essi/esse
the simple present tense of the verb to fear, temere is:
io temo noi temiamo
tu temi voi temete
lui/lei teme loro temono esso/essa essi/esse
the simple present tense of the verb to understand, capire is:
io capisco noi capiamo
tu capisci voi capite
lui/lei capisce loro capiscono esso/essa essi/esse
the simple present tense of the verb to understand, dormire is:
io dormo noi dormiamo
tu dormi voi dormite
lui/lei dorme loro dormono esso/essa essi/esse
Irregular verbs
Unfortunately, many verbs are irregular, and, equally unfortunately, they tend to be the ones most commonly used. This is not a case of Italian being awkward, it’s the same in all languages – think of the present tense of the verb to be in English, for example.
This section gives the full present tense of the irregular verbs which appear in the course outline. In all cases, teachers will not be actually using the full present tense, but they are included for reference – and for security!
andare: to go
io vado noi andiamo
tu vai voi andate
lui/lei va loro vanno esso/essa essi/esse
avere: to have
io ho noi abbiamo
tu hai voi avete
lui/lei ha loro hanno esso/essa essi/esse
bere: to drink
io bevo noi beviamo
tu bevi voi bevete
lui/lei beve loro bevono esso/essa essi/esse
dare: to give
io do noi diamo
tu dai voi date
lui/lei da loro danno
tenere : to keep
io tengo noi teniamo
tu tieni voi tenete
lui/lei tiene loro tengono esso/essa essi esse
tradurre : to translate
io traduco noi traduciamo
tu traduci voi traducete
lui/lei traduce loro traducono esso/essa essi esse
uscire: to go out
io esco noi usciamo
tu esci voi uscite
lui/lei esce loro escono esso/essa essi/esse
vedere: to see
io vedo noi vediamo
tu vedi voi vedete
lui/lei vede loro vedono esso/essa essi/esse
venire: to come
io vengo noi veniamo
tu vieni voi venite
lui/lei viene loro vengono esso/essa essi/esse
The interrogative (question form)
In spoken form, the only way for asking a question is to use the correct intonation. A normal statement is simply turned into a question by raising the voice at the end. Note: that raising the voice does not mean increasing the volume; it is an upturn in the stress pattern of the sentence which turns the statement into a question.
In written form, a question mark must be put at the end of the sentence.
(Tu) guardi la televisione? Do you watch television?
The negative
To make a verb negative, the particles non is placed before the verb. For example,
(Io) non vado in città’ ‘I’m not going into town’
The immediate future
When something is going to be done or is going to happen in the near future, rather than will be done or will happen at some indeterminate point sometime in the future, the Italian infinitive form is stare per.
‘(Io) sto per guardare la televisione’ - ‘ I’m going to watch television’ Tu stai per Lui/Lei sta per Noi stiamo per Voi state per Loro stanno per
‘Lui sta per lavare i piatti’ – ‘He’s going to wash the dishes’ is more immediate than ‘He will wash the dishes’.
In this construction, the infinitive never changes.
Note that the present tense can be used to express futurity if it is accompanied by an appropriate adverb or adverbial expression. If, for example, you are travelling by train, it is five pm, and you say (Noi) arriviamo alle sei, you are expressing futurity though strictly speaking you are using the present tense.
Reflexive verbs
In Italian verbs such as get up, sit down, stand up and combinations with get (get cold/hot, dressed) are usually reflexive (meaning to do something to oneself).
The verb takes a reflexive form when the subject acts on itself, therefore subject and object are the same.
The reflexive form can be made only with transitive verbs (verbs which take an object).
In the reflexive form the verb is always used with the personal pronouns mi, ti, si,ci,vi. The personal pronouns are placed usually before the verb.
So, the simple present tense of the verb lavarsi (to wash oneself/ to get washed) is:
io mi lavo noi ci laviamo
tu ti lavi voi vi lavate
lui/lei si lava loro si lavano esso/essa essi/esse
Other commonly used reflexive verbs include alzarsi (to get/ stand up), sedersi (to sit down), vestirsi (to dress oneself/ get dressed).
The personal pronouns are placed after the verb with the infinitive, (io) devo lavarmi – I must wash myself/ I must get washed, the present continuous form, (io) sto lavandomi – I’m washing myself/ I’m getting washed and the imperative forms (see below), laviamoci! – let’s wash ourselves!/ let’s get washed!, lavati! – wash yourself!/ get washed!
The imperative mood (commands)
The imperative exists basically in three forms, second person singular and plural, and first person plural, though the latter might be considered more an exhortation rather than a command.
To form the imperative, take the second or third person singular and the second plural forms of the present tense and omit the tu and the voi. Do likewise with the first person plural form, omitting the noi.
Voi andate: you go andate!: go!
Voi guardate: you look guardate!: look!
Noi guardiamo: we look guardiamo!: let’s look!
The imperative forms suggested in the course outline are:
Singular form Plural form
ascolta : listen ascoltate: listen
alzati: stand up alzatevi: stand up
apri: open aprite: open
cammina: walk camminate: walk
chiudi: close, shut chiudete: close, shut
colora: colour (in) colorate: colour (in)
disegna: draw disegnate: draw
esci: go out uscite: go out
guarda: look guardate: look
scrivi : write scrivete: write
siediti: sit down sedetevi: sit down
studia: study studiate: study
sveglia: wake up svegliatevi: wake up
Masculine singular Masculine plural
-a il problema the problem -i i problemi the problems -e il cane the dog -i i cani the dogs -o il libro the book -i i libri the books
Feminine singular Feminine plural
-a la casa the house -e le case the houses -e la madre the mother -i le madri the mothers
There are, however, particular cases and exceptions.
The names ending in -ca, -ga , e –cia, -gia
Singular Plural
-ca, -ga -chi, -ghi (masculine) –che, -ghe (feminine) la pesca the peach, le pesche the peaches il collega the colleague I colleghi the colleagues
The names ending in -co e -go Singular Plural
-co, -go -chi, -ghi (of names with the accent on the last syllable but one) il cuoco the cook i cuochi the cooks l’albergo the hotel gli alberghi the hotels
There are exceptions like: l’amico/gli amici the friend/the friends Il greco/i greci the Greek/the Greeks
-co, -go -ci, -gi (of names with the accent on the last syllable but two) il medico the doctor i medici the doctors
The names ending in –io Singular Plural
-io -i/-ii
il figlio the son i figli the sons lo zio the uncle gli zii the uncles
Indeclinable nouns
Like in English in Italian there are several names that have the same endings for the singular and plural forms. It’s possible to recognize if they are singular or plural by the article, the adjective, the verb used in the sentence.
Some indeclinable names are: Il re/i re the king/ the kings La città/le città the town/the towns La foto/le foto the picture/the pictures Il caffè/ I caffè the coffee/the coffees La radio/le radio the radio/ the radio Il film/i film the film/the film
The article
‘The’ and ‘a’ are …called the definite article (the) and the indefinite article (a, an). In modern grammar, both are called determiners. (LILT 2001) There are two types of article, the definite and the indefinite.
The definite article is the word the in English.
In Italian, the singular definite article is lo/il/l’ if the noun is masculine and la/l’ if the noun is feminine. Both lo/la are shortened to l’ if the noun begins with a vowel, to make the pronunciation easier.
If the noun is masculine plural lo becomes gli, il becomes i and l’ becomes gli.
If the noun is feminine plural both la and l’ become le.
Masculine singular Masculine plural
Lo - the gli - the (before words that start with s+consonant / z, ps,gn: lo studente - the student gli scherzi - the jokes) il i - the (before words that start with the other consonants: il sole – the sun, i libri- the books) l’ gli - the (before words that start with vowels: l’uomo - the man, gli aereoplani - the aeroplanes).
Feminine singular Feminine plural
la the le - the (before words that start with consonants: la scuola - the school, le scuole- the schools).
The contracted forms
‘To the’ - In Italian, you cannot use a together with the definite article lo/il/l’ or la/l’. Instead, the two words contract into allo ( a + lo ), al ( a + il ), all’ ( a + l’ ) and alla ( a + la ), all’ ( a + l’ ) both meaning ‘to the’.
Masculine Singular (a+lo) Allo stadio – At the Stadium (a+il) Al parco – At the park (a + l’) All’ aeroporto – At the airport
Feminine Singular (a+la) Alla stazione – At the Sation (a+l) All’ ombra – In the shadow
Masculine Plural (a+gli) Agli estremi – To the extremes (a+i) Ai confini – At the borders
Feminine Plural (a+le) Alle piscine – At the swimming-pools
“Of the” - Similarly, you cannot use di/de together with the definite article lo/il/l’ or la/l’. Instead, the two words contract to form dello ( de + lo ), del ( de + il ), dell’ ( de + l’ ) and della ( de + la ), dell’ ( de + l’) , both meaning of the.
Masculine Singular ( di+lo ) Dello stesso – Of the same ( di+il ) Del cane – Of the dog (di+l’) Dell’ uomo – Of the man
Feminine Singular (di+la) Della ragazza – Of the girl (di+l’) Dell’ amica – Of the friend
Masculine Plural (di+gli ) Degli amici – Of the friends (di+i) Dei bambini – Of the children
Feminine Plural (di+le) Delle piscine – Of the swimming-pools
Adjectives
'Adjectives qualify nouns, that is give us more detail about them. A noun such as ‘man’ is nondescript, but if we add words (to) the noun, a transformation occurs.' (Language into Languages Teaching, University of Glasgow, Scottish Executive Education Department, 2001)
Adjectives are used to describe, or in grammatical terms to qualify, nouns and other expressions.
In English, adjectives precede the noun unless for special effects.
In Italian, the general rule is that most adjectives follow the noun.
However, the adjectives used to express general qualities often precede the nouns.
bello/bella nice, lovely, beautiful buono/buona good grazioso/graziosa pretty piccolo/piccola little or small
In addition, all of the possessive adjectives like ‘mio/mia/tuo/tua- miei/tuoi’ naturally precede the noun.
Adjectives are in accordance with the noun which they qualify. That is, if a noun is feminine singular, the adjective which qualifies it must be feminine singular. If a noun is masculine plural, any adjective in accordance with it must also be masculine plural.
To make the adjective feminine, change the masculine singular ending o in a. If the masculine singular ends in e , do not change anything. Adorabile (adorable) is both the masculine singular and the feminine singular form.
To make the adjective masculine plural, add i to the masculine singular. (Note the comments on forming plurals earlier!):
Il mio cane è bell o - my dog is nice I miei amici sono bell i – my friends are nice
To make the adjective feminine plural, add e to the masculine singular.
La mia casa è bell a - my house is nice Le mie amiche sono bell e – my (female) friends are nice
Date, numbers and weather
Days of the week
The days of the week are all masculine except for Sunday.
They are:
domenica Sunday lunedì Monday martedì Tuesday mercoledì Wednesday giovedì Thursday venerdì Friday sabato Saturday
Note that they are written without capital letters and printed without upper case letters unless they appear at the beginning of a sentence.
On Sunday is in Italian di domenica.
Every Sunday is tutte le domeniche.
Months of the year
The months of the year are all masculine.
They are:
gennaio January febbraio February marzo March aprile April maggio May giugno June luglio July agosto August settembre September ottobre October novembre November dicembre December
Note that they are written without capital letters and printed without upper case letters unless they appear at the beginning of a sentence.
To say I’n’ that month, you use the expression nel mese di, literally in the month of. Therefore, in January is nel mese di gennaio. You can also use di/a/in, and so you can say in gennaio, a gennaio, di gennaio.
The date
Apart from ‘the first’, which is ‘il primo’, cardinal numbers are used with dates. The word for ‘of’ when giving the date in Italian is optional. Thus:
il primo marzo
il due (di) marzo
il dieci (di) marzo
il trenta (di) marzo etc
To say on with a date, simply use the forms il dieci marzo del 1978. Nel is used when giving the year only: Anna è nata nel 1978- Anna was born in
Numbers
Numbers are of two kinds:
x cardinal - giving the number of articles in question (one, two, three, etc) x ordinal - giving the place of each article in numerical order (first, second, third, etc)
Cardinal numbers
zero 0 dieci 10
uno/una 1 undici 11
due 2 dodici 12
tre 3 tredici 13
quattro 4 quattordici 14
cinque 5 quindici 15
sei 6 sedici 16
