Adjectives That Precede the Noun
Almost all adjectives follow the noun that they modify, but there are exceptions to that rule. The following is a group of commonly used adjectives that precede the noun they modify.
Italian adjective |
English equivalent |
|
altro |
AHL-troh |
other |
bello |
BEHL-loh |
beautiful |
bravo |
BRAH-voh |
good, able |
brutto |
BROOT-toh |
ugly |
buono |
bwoo-OH-noh |
good |
caro |
KAH-roh |
dear; expensive |
cattivo |
kaht-TEE-voh |
bad |
giovane |
JOH-vah-nay |
young |
grande |
GRAHN-day |
large; great |
lungo |
LOON-goh |
long |
nuovo |
NWOH-voh |
new |
piccolo |
PEEK-koh-loh |
small, little |
stesso |
stehss-soh |
same |
vecchio |
VEHK-kee-yo |
old |
vero |
VEH-roh |
true |
When the adjective ends in –e, there is no difference between the masculine and feminine forms: un ragazzo intelligente, una ragazza intelligente.
FACT
In some cases, an adjective can come either before or after the noun it modifies. In these cases the meaning of the adjective carries a subtle change in meaning. For example, un vecchio amico = an old friend (a friend I've known for a while), but un amico vecchio = an old friend (a friend who is elderly).
