In this section, you will find easy-to-understand explanations of each grammar table to help you get the most out of your Italian Study Card.
You will find explanations of the layout, the content, and the grammar points with examples.
If you come across an English Grammar Term you are not familiar with, check the Glossary on this website. Remember that you can use your Italian Study Card with any textbook you may be using.
The Italian card displays 35 independent tables with essential grammar elements.
COLOURS EXPLAINED
LOS PRONOMI PERSONALI SOGGETTO (Subject Personal Pronouns), io, tu, lui, lei, noi, voi, and loro. determine the three main colours used in the card.
There are three main colours used in the grammar charts, yellow, purple and green.
As you can see, the table has three colours with two shades, light and dark. The light column shows you the persons in the singular, and the dark column shows you the persons in the plural form.
Always think of the Subject Personal Pronouns as the persons who do the action. In English, they are the words I, you, he, she, it, we, you, and they.
They are divided into first, second and third persons, in singular and plural.
To easily identify the pronouns, think of terms of priorities. The first person is the most important for you. This pronoun includes you on your own, I, or with someone else, we. These are represented in light and dark yellow.
The second level of priority is the person you are talking to, you, in singular or in the plural. These persons are represented in light and dark purple.
The third most important person is whoever is not in the room. he, she, it, they. These persons are represented in light and dark green.
Singular Pronouns
1st person: I – io
2nd person: you – tu
3rd persons: he, she and it – lui/lei
Plural Pronouns
1st person: we – noi
2nd person: you – voi
3rd person: they – loro
*2nd person singular: you (formal) – Lei
*2nd person plural: you (formal) – Loro
*2nd person singular: Lei means you in English, but it’s the formal way to address someone. It is in the group of green colours because it’s conjugated like the third person lui and lei.
*2nd person plural: Loro means you (plural) in English. It’s the formal way to address someone. It’s in the group of green dark colour because it’s conjugated like the third person plural loro.
Get familiar with the colour pattern to quickly identify the word or ending you need according to the subject personal pronoun you’re using.
With your card in hand, go through this section to find the explanations on the content of your Italian Study Card. Or you can also skip to the name of the table you wish to expand your information on.
The section below is intended to be a general explanation of grammar created for you to understand the layout of your card, in order to take full advantage of it. By no means should this section be considered a course on its own.
This is a very important verb which you will be using all the time.
Example:
(Io) sono alto. I’m tall.
(Noi) siamo francesi. We are French.
(Tu) sei molto intelligente. You are very intelligent.
Carlos è un avvocato. Carlos is a lawyer.
The use of the pronouns in Italian is optional, this is because every person has a specific verb, that gives you a hint of which person you are talking about.
Example:
Il tuo telefono è sotto il cuscino. Your phone is under the pillow.
I miei fratelli sono a scuola. My brothers are in school.
Example:
La festa è sabato.The party is on Saturday.
Il concerto è alle 20:00. The concert is at 8:00 pm.
Example:
(Io) sono malatto. I’m sick.
Example:
(Io) sono arrabbiato. I’m angry.
NOTE: In Southern Italy, sometimes stare is used instead of essere on some occasions.
The verb stare means to be.
Example:
Sto con mia sorella. I’m staying with my sister.
Example:
Mio nonno sta male. My grandad isn’t well.
Example:
(Lei) sta studiando. She’s studying.
Example:
La casa stasulla collina. The house is on the hill.
Example:
Stai zitto! Shut up!
Stai tranquillo! Stay calm!
If you speak Spanish and know the difference between ser and estar, don’t assume it’s the same in Italian. They share some similarities, but it’s best if you learn to see them with different eyes.
Example:
Tu hai molti vestiti. You have many clothes.
(Loro) hanno un buon lavoro. They have a good job.
Example:
Noi abbiamo paura. We are afraid, we have fear on us.
Tu hai fame. You are hungry.
Example:
Ho dodici anni. I’m 12 years old.
Quanti anni hai? How old are you?
Your table shows you the four indefinite articles in Italian in masculine and feminine in the singular. In Italian, there aren’t plural indefinite articles.
Example:
un quaderno – a notebook
un libro – a book
un albero – a tree
Example:
uno zaino – a backpack
uno psicologo – a psycologist
uno scoiattolo – a squirrel
Example:
una macchina – a car
una penna – a pen
una palla- a ball
Example:
un’automobile – a car
un’amica – a friend
il libro – the book
il gatto – the cat
il tavolo – a table
Example:
l’albero – the tree (masculine)
l’insalata – the salad (feminine)
Example:
i libri – the books
i gatti – the cats
Example:
lo yogurt – the yougurts
gli – orologi – the watches
Example:
la casa – the house
la penna – the pen
la sedia- the chair
Example:
le case – the houses
le penne – the pens
le sedie- the chairs
Example:
C’è una bottiglia sul tavolo. – There is a bottle on the table.
Ci sono molti negozi a Milano. – There are many shops in Milan.
Hay unos libros sobe la mesa. There are some books on the table.
Example:
Non c’è fretta. – There is no hurry.
This table displays the pronouns you need to use to express I like, I’m interested, and I miss.
These verbs need to follow the pronouns which are represented in the same colour coded system as the pronomi personali soggeto.
Example:
Mi piace la música. I like music.
Ti piace la música. You like music.
Gli piace la música. He likes music.
Example:
Mi piacciono i biscotti. – I like biscuits.
Ti piacciono i biscotti. – You like biscuits.
Example:
Mi interesa molto l’arte. – I’m very interested in arts.
Ti interesa molto l’arte. – You are very interested in arts.
Example:
Non mi piace la música. I don’t like music.
Non gli piace la música. He doesn’t like music.
This table displays the Possessive Adjectives in Italian in singular and plural form.
mio / a, miei / mie
Example:
Il mio libro. – My book. (Book is masculine.)
La sua pianta – His or her plant. (Plant is feminine.)
I nostri amici. – Our friends. (The friends are male)
Le nostre amice. – Our friends. (The friends are female.)
Le tue scarpe e le mie. – Your shoes are mine. (Shoes are feminine.)
This table displays 40 common Adjectives. They are in the singular masculine form.
Example:
Un nuovo libro. – A new book. (Book is masculine.)
Due nuovi libri. – Two new books.
Una nuova macchina. – A new car. (Car is feminine.)
Due nuove macchine. – Two new cars.
Example:
La casa è grande. – The house is big. (House is feminine.)
Il tavolo è grande. – The table is big. (Table is masculine.)
Le case sono grandi. – The houses are big.
I tavoli sono grandi. – The tables are big.
The centre pages have plenty of information on verbs. To take full advantage of the Italian Study Card, it’s important to understand the layout and colour-coded system.
On the centre of the page, you will find the regular endings for the are, ere and ire verbs for each person in the colour-coded system:
Example:
L’acqua bolle a 100 gradi. Water boils at 100 degrees. (Fact.)
Paolo lavora a casa oggi. Paolo is working from home today. (Happening now.)
Leggo ogni giorno. – I read every day. (Habit or routine.)
Lei torna a casa domani. She’s going back home tomorrow.
To form the Present tense is quite easy:
Example:
parlare – to speak
leggere – to read
dormire – to sleep
=
parlo – I speak
parli – you speak
parla – he / she / (you formal) speaks
parliamo –we speak
parlate – you speak (plural informal )
parlano – they speak
Use the table called FRECUENZA on your table, to form complete personal sentences.
Remember to practise them out loud.
IRREGULAR VERBS
ANDARE, FARE, DARE, VENIRE, DIRE, SAPERE, VOLERE and DOVERE.
This table on your card displays the six Reflexive Pronouns, each in its own colour to identify each person.
mi – myself
ti – yourself
si – himself
si – herself
ci – ourselves
vi – yourselves
si – themselves
Example:
Alzarsi
alzar + ending
(Io) mi alzo. – I get up.
(Tu) ti alzi.– You get up.
Your card gives you nine common reflexive verbs as well.
Example:
Arrivano. They’re coming.
Stanno arrivando! They’re coming now!
Example:
cantare – cant + –ando = cantando (singing)
Example:
fare – facendo (doing)
Que cosa stai facendo? (What are you doing?)
The main topic on this page is the passato prossimo (past tense).
Example:
Ho parlato con Marco. I spoke to Marco.
Ho (avere) parlato (past participle) con Marco.
Paty è venuta alle sei. Paty came at six.
Patyè (essere) venuta (past participle with agreement) alle sei.
Io ti ho vista. I saw you. (You refers to a woman.)
In the centre of the page, you will find the verbs avere and essere conjugated in the present for easy reference using the colour-coded system as shown below.
There is also a small table below with past participle endings that help you conjugate the past participle of regular verbs.
You will find more information about how to form it further down.
Example:
Ho parlato con Marco. I spoke to Marco.
Paty è venuta alle sei. Paty came at six.
Forming the passato prossimo.
To form it, you need to know how to form the participio passato or the regular past participle of the verb.
Let’s use the verb parlare as an example. This is an intransitive verb, so it needs to use the auxiliary verb avere.
Parlere ends in –are. Your table shows you that the ending you need is -ato .
Remove the –are ending and add the ending –ato.
Example:
parlare – to speak – parl- + -ato – parlato
You need to conjugate the verb in the present according to the person performing the action, and then add the past participle of the verb.
Example:
Io sono parlato. – I spoke.
You will see that there are more endings in brackets in the table of participio passato. These are the endings you may need to use if you use a verb that needs essere as the auxiliary because the past participle needs to agree with the person. (Masculine, feminine, singular or plural.)
Example:
Io sono andato. (The person speaking is a man.) I went.
Io sono andata. (The person speaking is a woman.) I went.
Noi siamo andati. (The group of people is male) We went.
Noi siamo andate. (The group of people is female.) We went.
Example:
Ho comprato dei fiori. – I bought flowers. – What did he buy?
Invito i ragazzi. – I invite the boys. – Whom do I invite?
The direct pronouns are the words that substitute the direct object:
I bought them.
I invite them.
Example:
Compra la fruta. – He buys the fruit. (Fruit is feminine.)
La compra. – He buys it.
Non la compra. – He doesn’t buy it.
Perchè non li inviti? – Why don’t you invite them? (Male or mixed group.)
Example:
Gli regalo un libro. – I’ll give them a book. (To a group of men.)
Spiego loro come funziona. – I explain to them how it works. (To a group of women.)
Cioffrono una fetta di torta. – They are offering us a slice of cake.
Example:
È importante mangiarla ogni giorno. It’s important to eat it every day.
Ho tempo di parlargli. I have time to talk to him.
This table in your card shows you eight phrases to express negation or lack of something.
Example:
Non è venuta. She didn’t come.
Non sono francese. I’m not French.
Example:
Non succede mai. It never happens.
Non ha detto niente. She didn’t say anything.
No ho più fame. I’m not hungry. anymore.
Example:
Nessuno è venuto. Nobody came.
Niente è cambiato. Nothing has changed.
Example:
The cat is on the table.
Example:
a + il = al(to the) Jaime è andato al cinema. Jaime went to the cinema.
da + la = dalla (from the) Vengo dalla banca. I’m coming from the bank.
Example:
parlare, vedere, partire
parla +
vede +
parti +
parlavo –I spoke, I used to speak, I was speaking (when…)
vedevo – I saw, I used to see, I was seeing (when…)
partivo – I left, I used to leave, I was leaving (when…)
This table displays the endings needed to conjugate the verbs in condizionale.
parlare – parl-, leggere – legg-, partire – part–
+
Io parlerei. – I would talk.
Tu leggereresti.– You would read.
Noi partiremmo. – We would leave.
avere – avr– + ei = avrei (I would have.)
volere – vorr– + ebbe = vorrebe (He would want.)
andare – andr– + ebbero = andrebbero (They would go.)
Example:
parlare – parl-, leggere – legg-, partire – part–
+
Io parlerò. – I will talk.
Tu leggerai. – You will read.
Noi parteremo. – We will leave.
Example:
Dove sarà? Where could she be?
Studieranno tutto il pomeriggio. They will study all afternoon.
La chiamerò. I will call her.
avere – avr– + ò = avrò (I will have.)
volere – vorr– + à = vorrà (He will want.)
andare – andr– + anno = andranno (They will go.)
You can use the SPRESSIONI DI TEMPO DEL FUTURO from the table in your card.
g
Giocare a – To play. (A game or sport.)
Io gioco a golf. I play golf.
Assistere a – To attend.
Assisterò a una conferenza. I will attend a conference.
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