Final Exam Review Italian I
CAPITOLO PRELIMINARE
-in classe
-alfabeto e suoni
-numeri da uno a cento
-calendario
-greetings and salutations
CAPITOLO UNO – Una città italiano
Nomi – genere e numeri (nouns – gender and number)
Indefinite ARTICLES that mean “a” or 1:
Remember that “a” is another way of saying one (1) so it never goes with a plural word.
Masculine / Masculine (begins with vowel) /Masculine (s+cons or z)
Singular / un / un / uno
Feminine / Feminine (begins with vowel) /
Singular / una / un’ /
Buono/a/i/e = Good
- unlike most adjectives, buon comes before the noun.
Masculine / Masculine (begins with vowel) /Masculine (s+cons or z)
Singular / buon / buon / buono
Feminine / Feminine (begins with vowel) /
Singular / buona / buon’ /
CAPITOLO DUE – Come siamo (What are we like?)
Most adjectives, including colors, come after the noun (except for good and beautiful, which come before)
ESSERE = to be
I am = sonowe are = siamo
you are= seiyou plural are= siete
you formal are= èyou plural formal are= sono
he/she/it is= èthey are= sono
Definite ARTICLES that mean “the”:
Masculine / Masculine (begins with vowel) / Masculine (s+cons or z)Singular / il / l’ /
lo
Plural / i / gli / gli
Feminine / Feminine (begins with vowel) /
Singular / la / l’ /
Plural / le / le /
The word “beautiful” in Italian is one of the few adjectives that comes BEFORE the noun.
Just like other adjectives, you must change the ending of “beautiful” to agree with the gender and number of the noun it is describing.
Fill-in the following chart for the adjective that means “beautiful”:
Masculine / Masculine (begins with vowel) /Masculine (s+cons or z)
Singular / bel / bell’ / bello
Plural / bei / begli / begli
Feminine / Feminine (begins with vowel) /
Singular / bella / bell’ /
Plural / belle / belle /
When it comes at the end of the sentence (such as: The cat is beautiful), there are only 4 choices:
Masculine / FeminineSingular / bello / bella
Plural / belli /
belle
Examples: What (a) beautiful young woman! = Che bella ragazza! Maria is a beautiful young woman. = Maria è una bella ragazza. Maria is beautiful. = Maria è bella.
CAPITOLO TRE - Studiare in Italia (Studying in Italy)
Cultura
In Italy, high school is five years, that is one extra year than it is in the United States.
University in Italy has different testing methods than in the United States. A student must pass a final oral interrogation by a professor before passing each course; he/she must pass an overall final exam by a committee of professors before graduating. Students do not graduate together but instead individually. After completing these oral exams, a student walks around the town with a laurel crown, like was done in Greek and Roman times.
The first university in Europe was founded in 1088 as a free, independent association of students who chose and paid their own teachers. The university was called The Stadium and it is what today is called l’Università di Bologna. In Italy today there are 60 università. Almost all are funded by the Italian government.
Subject Pronouns
Io= Inoi= we
Tu= you
Lei= you(formal)voi= you(plural)
lei= she
lui= heLoro= they
Conjugations:
ARE verbsEXAMPLE: studiare
Io= studionoi= studiamo
Tu= studi
Lei= studiavoi= studiate
lei= studia
lui= studiaLoro= studiano
THIS and THESE – have only 4 possibilities:
Masculine singularMasculine plural
Questo libroQuesti libri
Feminine singularFeminine plural
Questa borsaQueste borse
That / Those – functions like the definite articles.
Maschile
il --- Quel libro
i ---Quei libri
lo --- Quello zaino
gli --- Quegli zaini
l’ --- Quell’orologio
gli --- Quegli orologi
Femminile
la---Quella penna
le ---Quelle penne
l’ --- Quell’ aula
le ---Quelle aule
Masculine
Regularz or s+consonant vowel
il libro= quel libro / lo zaino= quello zaino / l’amico= quell’ amicoi libri= quei libri / gli zaini= quegli zaini / gli amici= quegli amici
Feminine
Regularvowel
La borsa=quella borsa / L’ aula= quell’ aulaLe borse= quelle borse / Le aule= quelle aule
Possession – possessive pns come after the definite article and before the noun.
Singular family members do not need an article.
SingularPlural
Maschile / Femminile / Maschile / FemminileMy / il mio / la mia / i miei / le mie
Your(tu) / il tuo / la tua / i tuoi / le tue
Your(Lei) / il Suo / la Sua / i Suoi / le Sue
His,her,its / il suo / la sua / i suoi / le sue
Our / il nostro / la nostra / i nostri / le nostre
Your(voi) / il vostro / la vostra / i vostri / le vostre
Your(loro)* / il Loro / la Loro / i Loro / le Loro
Their / il loro / la loro / i loro / le loro
Esampi: `E il mio libro. It is my book. È mio fratello. He is my brother. (no article)
La Regione: Umbria
L’Umbria a small region in central Italy, is rich in forests, lakes, and natural parks, like il Parco Nazionale dei Monti Sibillini. For this reason, it is known as il cuore verde d’Italia (the green heart of Italy). The fertile soil of its high plains and hills produces truffles, grapes, and olives. The region is also famous for its chocolate. The Perugina factory is in Perugia, the capital, and in the fall the town is home to Eurochocolate, a festival of chocolate! Perugia is also home to the oldest university for foreign students, I’Università per Stranieri, which offers excellent classes for foreign students of Italian Language and culture.
L’Umbria has strong, deep-rooted religious traditions. Some of the most popular Catholic saints lived and preached in this region from the sixth century on. The many abbeys, monasteries, and churches dedicated to these saints welcome pilgrims from around the world. Italy’s most renowned saint is St. Francis (San Francesco). San Francesco is from the hillside town of Assisi and it has been well visited since his death. The famouns Umbrian painter Giotto’s frescoes portraying the life of Saint Francis, are found in il Catedrale di San Francesco, in which is also found his tomb. Before his death, San Francesco requested to be buried on that particular hill where formerly executions took place in order to change the hill of hell (la collina dell’inferno) to the hill of paradise (la collina di paradise). SEE VIDEO FOR MORE ON St. Francis of Assisi.
Umbria Jazz is a festival that takes place every summer in Perugia. The festival, which began in 1973, attracts Italian and international artists to play and sing for ten days. Besides concerts, the festival also offers music classes, with teaches from the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston. Perugia is also famous for the EURO CHOCOLATE festival which takes place every October; giant statues are created out of chocolate for the festival by local sculptors.
Lago Trasimeno: there are three island in the middle of this lake, the first two of which are visitable: l’isola polvere, l’isola maggiore andl’isole minore.
Le Cascade delle Marmore: these waterfalls were manmade in Roman times and still function today.
CAPITOLO QUATTRO – Sports and Passtimes
ERE verbsEXAMPLE: scrivere
Io= scrivonoi= scrivamo
Tu= scrivi
Lei= scrivevoi= scrivete
lei= scrive
lui= scriveLoro= scrivono
IRE verbs – TYPE 1EXAMPLE: dormire
Io= dormonoi= dormiamo
Tu= dormi
Lei= dormevoi= dormite
lei= dorme
lui= dormeLoro= dormono
IRE verbs – TYPE 2EXAMPLE: capireType 2 IRE verbs:
Io= capisconoi= capiamocapire
Tu= capsicifinire
Lei= capiscevoi= capitepreferire
lei= capiscepulire
lui= capisceLoro= capsicono
Irregular Ire and Ere Verbs
Dovere / Potere / Volere / Dire / Uscire / Veniredevo / posso / voglio / dico / esco / vengovieni
devi / puoi / vuoi / dici / esci / vieni
deve / puo / vuole / dice / esce / viene
dobbiamo / possiamo / vogliamo / diciamo / usciamo / veniamo
dovete / potete / volete / dite / uscite / venite
devono / possono / vogliono / dicono / escono / vengono
Irregular Are Verbs
Dare / Stare / Fare / Andaredo / sto / faccio / vado
dai / stai / fai / vai
da / sta / fa / va
diamo / stiamo / facciamo / andiamo
date / state / fate / andate
danno / stanno / fanno / vanno
Direct Object Pronouns
Direct objects and/or D.O. pronouns answer the questions Who or What.
D.O. pronouns REPLACE the direct object when responding.
Me= mi / Us= ciYou= ti / You(plural)= vi
You(form)= La / You(pl. form)=Le
Her= la / Them(f)= le
Him= lo / Them(m)= li
Mangi la bistecca?Leggi il giornale?
Sì, la mangio.No, non lo leggo.
Avete comprato i regali per Natale?
Sì, li abbiamo comprati.
Hai preso la penna?
Sì, l’ho presa.
Note that when using the Passato Prossimo, the last letter of the past participle must match the gender and number of the Direct Object referred (regardless of whether or not the verb is a coming going staying).
L’ora (Time)
Just like dates always have a masculine singular article (il 18 novembre), time almost always has a feminine plural article; except for singular time, such as one o’oclock which has a feminine singular article.
For written time, such as schedules or any official time, a 24 hour clock is used.
What time is it? Che ore sono? Che ora è?
Sono le cinque di sera. OR Sono le dicassette.
Sono l’una di pomerriggio. OR Sono le tredici.
La Regione: Valle D’Aosta
La Vale d’Aosta is a mountainous region located in the northwest corner of Italy, on the borders of France and Switzerland. It is the smallest and least populated region of Italy, with an economy based primarily on winter tourism and on the beauty of its natural parks. Historically and culturally, the region reflects its proximity to France, and many people who live there still speak a dialect of French origin. The capital is Aosta, founded by the Romans as a strategic gateway to northwestern Europe.
La Regione: Trentino-Alto Adige
Il Trentino-Alto Adige is also a small, mountainous region. It is located in the northwestern Italy on the border with Austria and its landscape and architecture are central Eurpoean in appearance , as in the town of Vipiteno above. In the north, l’Alto Adige, people are bilingual, speaking German and Italian. Trento, the regional capital, located in the south, has a more Italian look and feel.
Giovani Segantini was a prominent painter (un pittore), born in the Trentino region in 1858. After a difficult childhood, he moved to Milano where he attended l’Accademia delle Belle Arti di Brera. The Alpine scenery of his youth greatly influenced his art, and many of his paintings, such as Mezzogiorno Sulle Alpi, convey his love of nature. While Segantini’s earliest work is realistic in style, in his mature paintings he turned to symbolism as a means of expression.
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