Italian noun plurals: -o to -i, -a to -e, -e to -i

The plural is the form of a noun for more than one: “one book, two books”. English usually adds -s. Italian does something different: it changes the last vowel of the noun. «Libro» becomes «libri», and «casa» becomes «case».

The new vowel depends on the noun’s ending and its gender (masculine or feminine). Three patterns cover most nouns: -o becomes -i, -a becomes -e for feminine nouns, and -e becomes -i. The article changes too: «il libro, i libri», «la casa, le case», «lo zaino, gli zaini».

Some groups need a small spelling change to keep their sound, a few nouns never change at all, and a handful are irregular. All of them are common, so they are worth learning early.

The three basic patterns

Masculine nouns in -o take -i: «il tavolo, i tavoli», «il ragazzo, i ragazzi». Feminine nouns in -a take -e: «la sedia, le sedie», «la finestra, le finestre». Nouns in -e take -i, whether they are masculine or feminine: «il ristorante, i ristoranti», «la notte, le notti».

The few masculine nouns in -a follow the masculine pattern and take -i: «il problema, i problemi», «il programma, i programmi». The feminine noun «la mano» (hand) also takes -i: «le mani».

A masculine plural also covers mixed groups of men and women. «I figli» can mean “the sons” or “the children” (sons and daughters), «i ragazzi» “the boys” or “the kids”, and «gli zii» “the uncles” or “uncle and aunt”. «I genitori» are “the parents”.

• In cucina ci sono quattro sedie e due tavoli. · In the kitchen there are four chairs and two tables.
• I miei zii abitano a Bari. · My aunt and uncle live in Bari.

Spelling changes: amiche, parchi, figli

Nouns ending in -ca and -ga add an h in the plural, so that c and g stay hard, like the k in “kit” and the g in “get”: «l’amica, le amiche», «la banca, le banche», «la collega, le colleghe». Without the h, «amice» would be said with a “ch” sound.

Nouns in -co and -go are less regular. Many add h: «il parco, i parchi», «il tedesco, i tedeschi», «il lago, i laghi», «l’albergo, gli alberghi». Others soften to -ci or -gi: «il medico, i medici», and the very common «l’amico, gli amici». As a tendency, words stressed on the second-to-last syllable (PAR-co) add h, and words stressed earlier (ME-di-co) soften. It is not a fixed rule, so learn each plural as you meet it.

Nouns in -io usually keep only one i: «il figlio, i figli», «l’ufficio, gli uffici», «lo specchio, gli specchi». When the i itself is stressed, the plural has two: «lo zio, gli zii». Nouns in -cia and -gia usually keep the i after a vowel and drop it after a consonant: «la camicia, le camicie», but «l’arancia, le arance».

Nouns that never change

Some nouns have the same form in the singular and the plural, so only the article, and any adjective, shows that there is more than one. The biggest group is nouns that end in an accented vowel: «la città, le città», «il caffè, i caffè», «l’università, le università». The second is words from other languages that end in a consonant: «il film, i film», «il bar, i bar», «lo sport, gli sport». Never add an English -s: say «due film», not «due films».

Short forms of longer words also stay the same: «la foto, le foto», «la moto, le moto», «la bici, le bici», «il cinema, i cinema». So do one-syllable nouns, such as «il tè, i tè», and nouns ending in -i, such as «la crisi, le crisi».

• Bevo due caffè al giorno. · I drink two coffees a day.
• In questa via ci sono tre bar. · There are three cafés in this street.
• Le foto delle vacanze sono bellissime. · The holiday photos are beautiful.

Irregular plurals to learn by heart

A few common nouns have an irregular plural. The most important is «l’uomo» (man), which becomes «gli uomini». «La moglie» (wife) becomes «le mogli».

Some masculine nouns become feminine in the plural and end in -a. These are mostly parts of the body and a few everyday words: «il braccio, le braccia» (arm), «il dito, le dita» (finger), «l’uovo, le uova» (egg), «il paio, le paia» (pair). An adjective follows the new gender: «le uova fresche».

Finally, a few nouns exist only in the plural, such as «gli occhiali» (glasses) and «le forbici» (scissors). And «la gente» (people) is singular in Italian: «La gente è simpatica».