indefinite article

The Italian indefinite article (L'articolo indeterminativo)

In Italian, the indefinite article (equivalent to "a" or "an" in English) is used to refer to non-specific people or things. It must agree in gender with the noun and varies depending on the initial sound of the following word. It only exists in the singular.

1. Masculine forms

There are two forms for singular masculine nouns:

• Un: Used before most consonants and all vowels.
  • un uomo (a man)
  • un bar (a bar)
  • un ristorante (a restaurant)
• Uno: Used before words starting with "complex" sounds: z, gn, ps, s + consonant, x, y, or i + vowel (semivowel).
  • uno zio (an uncle)
  • uno psicologo (a psychologist)
  • uno studente (a student)
  • uno iugoslavo (a Yugoslav)
  • uno yuppie (a yuppie)

2. Feminine forms

There are two forms for singular feminine nouns:

• Una: Used before all consonants.
  • una casa (a house)
  • una ragazza (a girl)
• Un’: Used before vowels or a silent h. The use of the apostrophe is mandatory.
  • un’auto (a car)
  • un’esperienza (an experience)

3. Gender distinction in invariable nouns

For nouns that have the same form for both masculine and feminine, the article is the only gender indicator. In words starting with a vowel, the apostrophe is the key visual difference.

• un cantante (a male singer) / una cantante (a female singer)
• un collega (a male colleague) / una collega (a female colleague)
• un insegnante (a male teacher) / un’insegnante (a female teacher)
• un atleta (a male athlete) / un’atleta (a female athlete)

4. How to express the plural

Since there is no plural indefinite article, Italian uses partitive forms (formed by di + definite article) to indicate an undetermined quantity ("some" or "a few").

• Dei: Masculine plural (general). dei ragazzi (some boys)
• Degli: Masculine plural (where uno would be used). degli studenti (some students)
• Delle: Feminine plural. delle ragazze (some girls)

Example: Fuori ci sono delle ragazze (There are some girls outside).