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Italian Practice

Masculine and Feminine Nouns by Ronald Glenn Wrigley, M.A.

In Italian, a gender (masculine or feminine) is attributed to every noun. As a general rule, all nouns that end in -o are masculine.

Some Masculine Nouns:

ufficio	office
negozio	store
telefono	telephone
fratello	brother
cugino	(male) cousin
amico	(male) friend

As a general rule, nouns ending in -a are feminine.

Some Feminine Nouns:

amica	(female) friend
sorella	sister
casa	house
macchina	car
strada	street
chiesa	church

Exercise 2: Listening Comprehension

Listen to Track 1 and repeat aloud the nouns as read. Then listen again, writing down what you hear. Finally, go back and assign a gender — masculine or feminine — to each one.

<tgroup cols="2"> <colspec colname="col1" colnum="1" colwidth="50%" colsep="0" rowsep="0" align="center"/> <colspec colname="col2" colnum="2" colwidth="50%" colsep="0" rowsep="0" align="center"/> <thead> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>Noun</emphasis></p></td> <td><p><emphasis>Gender</emphasis></p></td> </tr> </thead> <tbody> <tr> <td><p>1. </p></td> <td><p></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>2. </p></td> <td><p></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>3. </p></td> <td><p></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>4. </p></td> <td><p></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>5. </p></td> <td><p></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>6. </p></td> <td><p></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>7. </p></td> <td><p></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>8. </p></td> <td><p></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>9. </p></td> <td><p></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>10. </p></td> <td><p></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>11. </p></td> <td><p></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>12. </p></td> <td><p></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>13. </p></td> <td><p></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>14. </p></td> <td><p></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>15.</p></td> <td><p></p></td> </tr> </tbody> </tgroup> </table> <h2>Nouns Ending in -e</h2> <p>As you probably have noticed, many nouns do not end in <emphasis>-o</emphasis> or <emphasis>-a</emphasis> in their singular form; rather, they end in <emphasis>-e</emphasis>. Nouns that end in <emphasis>-e</emphasis> can be either masculine or feminine. There are a few cues to look for in determining the gender of nouns ending in <emphasis>-e</emphasis>.</p> <table frame="all" width="100%"> <h2>Nouns ending in -ore are masculine:</h2> <tgroup cols="2"> <colspec colname="col1" colnum="1" colwidth="50%" colsep="0" rowsep="0" align="center"/> <colspec colname="col2" colnum="2" colwidth="50%" colsep="0" rowsep="0" align="center"/> <tbody> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>dottore</emphasis></p></td> <td><p>doctor</p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>professore</emphasis></p></td> <td><p>professor</p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>favore</emphasis></p></td> <td><p>favor</p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>fiore</emphasis></p></td> <td><p>flower</p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>odore</emphasis></p></td> <td><p>odor</p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>autore</emphasis></p></td> <td><p>author</p></td> </tr> </tbody> </tgroup> </table> <table frame="all" width="100%"> <h2>Nouns ending in -ione are feminine:</h2> <tgroup cols="2"> <colspec colname="col1" colnum="1" colwidth="50%" colsep="0" rowsep="0" align="center"/> <colspec colname="col2" colnum="2" colwidth="50%" colsep="0" rowsep="0" align="center"/> <tbody> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>stazione</emphasis></p></td> <td><p>station</p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>ragione</emphasis></p></td> <td><p>reason</p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>lezione</emphasis></p></td> <td><p>lesson</p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>conversazione</emphasis></p></td> <td><p>conversation</p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>televisione</emphasis></p></td> <td><p>television</p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>situazione</emphasis></p></td> <td><p>situation</p></td> </tr> </tbody> </tgroup> </table> <h2>Nouns Ending in a Consonant</h2> <p>Nouns ending in a consonant are masculine and are almost always borrowed from another language:</p> <itemizedlist spacing="compact" mark="bullet"> <li><p><emphasis>film</emphasis></p></li> <li><p><emphasis>bar</emphasis></p></li> <li><p><emphasis>sport</emphasis></p></li> <li><p><emphasis>hobby</emphasis></p></li> <li><p><emphasis>tram</emphasis></p></li> <li><p><emphasis>autobus</emphasis></p></li> </ul> <h2>Nouns Ending in an Accented Vowel</h2> <p>There are several common words that end in an accented vowel. Correct pronunciation of these words can be tricky. Make sure to stress the last syllable.</p> <bridgehead>Nouns ending in an (accented) -è, -ì, or -ò are masculine:</bridgehead> <table frame="all" width="100%"> <title/> <tgroup cols="2"> <colspec colname="col1" colnum="1" colwidth="50%" colsep="0" rowsep="0" align="center"/> <colspec colname="col2" colnum="2" colwidth="50%" colsep="0" rowsep="0" align="center"/> <tbody> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>caffè</emphasis></p></td> <td><p>coffee</p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>tassì</emphasis></p></td> <td><p>taxi</p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>casinò</emphasis></p></td> <td><p>casino</p></td> </tr> </tbody> </tgroup> </table> <bridgehead>Nouns ending in an (accented) -à or -ù are feminine:</bridgehead> <table frame="all" width="100%"> <title/> <tgroup cols="2"> <colspec colname="col1" colnum="1" colwidth="50%" colsep="0" rowsep="0" align="center"/> <colspec colname="col2" colnum="2" colwidth="50%" colsep="0" rowsep="0" align="center"/> <tbody> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>città</emphasis></p></td> <td><p>city</p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>gioventù</emphasis></p></td> <td><p>youth</p></td> </tr> </tbody> </tgroup> </table>  <div id="pagination"><ul><li class="prev"><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/italian-practice/nouns-articles-and-adjectives/common-nouns-versus-proper-nouns.htm" title="Common Nouns Versus Proper Nouns">Common Nouns Versus Proper Nouns</a></li><li class="next"><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/italian-practice/nouns-articles-and-adjectives/nouns-in-the-plural.htm" title="Nouns in the Plural">Nouns in the Plural</a> </li></ul></div></div> <div id="coda"> <div id="rel"><div class="n5">Related Articles</div><ul> <li><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/italian-practice/nouns-articles-and-adjectives/masculine-and-feminine-nouns.htm" zT="18/1YL/Zn"> Masculine and Feminine Nouns - Italian Practice </a></li> <li><a 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