A quick guide to Italian adjectives

Adjectives add depth, detail, and personality to speech and writing. In Italian, adjectives not only describe or modify nouns but play a crucial role in sentence structure, too.

In this article, we’ll cover the essential rules for using adjectives in Italian, including their agreement with nouns and position within a sentence. We’ll review irregular adjective forms, learn some of the most common adjectives in everyday speech, and share some tips on stylistic nuances.

person sitting on the couch, with a tablet in their hand while they note down the adjectives in Italian

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What are adjectives in Italian and how do they work?

Let’s start with the basics. What are adjectives, and what’s their role in an Italian sentence?

Definition and role of adjectives in Italian

Adjectives are words used to describe or modify nouns. They’re used to provide additional information about the quality or quantity of a noun. For example, in Italian we might say:

  • Un gatto nero dorme. (A black cat is sleeping.)

Here, nero (black) is an adjective modifying the noun gatto (cat).

Italian vs. English adjectives: Key differences

In Italian, adjectives generally come after the noun they describe. In this way, Italian adjectives differ from English adjectives, which typically precede the noun. 

As Italian is a Romance language, it should come as no surprise that gender plays a role in adjectival grammar. As a general rule, all adjectives in Italian must agree with the gender (masculine or feminine) and number (singular or plural) of the noun they modify.

Gender and number agreement for Italian adjectives

Gender agreement rules for Italian adjectives

Adjectives describing masculine nouns usually end in -o, whereas the -a ending is used for adjectives describing feminine nouns.

  • un ragazzo alto (a tall boy)
  • una ragazza alta (a tall girl)

But this isn’t always the case. Some adjectives use the ending -e when modifying both masculine and feminine nouns.

  • un libro interessante (an interesting book)
  • una storia interessante (an interesting story)

Plural forms of Italian adjectives

RuleMasculine, singularMasculine, pluralFeminine, singularFeminine, plural
-o changes to -i 

-a changes to -e
il ragazzo alto
(the tall boy)
i ragazzi alti
(the tall boys)
la ragazza alta (the tall girl)le ragazze alte  (the tall girls)
-e changes to -i, regardless of the genderil libro interessante (the interesting book)i libri interessanti (the interesting books)la storia interessante
(the interesting story)
le storie interessanti
(the interesting stories)
-ista (both masc. and sing.) changes to  -isti (masc.) and to -iste (fem.)un uomo ottimista (an optimistic man)uomini ottimisti (optimistic men)una donna ottimista
(an optimistic woman)
donne ottimiste
(optimistic women)

Irregular Italian adjectives

Italian has several irregular adjectives that don’t follow the standard rules. The most common are:

ComparativeSuperlative
buono (good)migliore (better)ottimo (best)
cattivo (bad)peggiore (worse)pessimo (worst)
grande (big)maggiore (bigger)massimo (biggest)
piccolo (small)minore (smaller)minimo (smallest)

Types of adjectives in Italian

Possessive adjectives

            Masculine singular  Feminine singular
myil mioil mio cane
(my dog)
la miala mia casa
(my house)
youril tuoil tuo canela tuala tua casa 
his/heril suoil suo cane la suala sua casa 
ouril nostroil nostro cane la nostrala nostra casa 
your (pl.)il vostroil vostro canela vostrala vostra casa 
theiril loroil loro cane la lorola loro casa 
            Masculine plural  Feminine plural
myi mieii miei amici
(my friends)
le miele mie sorelle
(my sisters)
youri tuoii tuoi amici le tuele tue sorelle 
his/heri suoii suoi amici le suele sue sorelle 
ouri nostrii nostri amici le nostrele nostre sorelle 
your (pl.)i vostrii vostri amici le vostrele vostre sorelle 
theiri loroi loro amici le lorole loro sorelle 

Note: Similarly to English, possessive adjectives in Italian can sometimes replace nouns to avoid redundancy. In these cases, the article precedes the adjective, agreeing with its gender and number. For example:

  • Mio fratello suona la chitarra. Il suo suona la batteria. (My brother plays guitar. Hers plays the drums.)

In the above example, il (determinate article) + suo (possessive adjective) replaces suo fratello (her brother) in the second sentence. It’s apparent from the context that we are referring to “her brother.”

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Demonstrative adjectives 

Demonstrative adjectives indicate the proximity of a noun relative to the speaker.

Adjective variantMasculine, singularMasculine, pluralFeminine, singularFeminine, plural
questo/aquesto libro
(this book)
questi libr
(these books)
questa penna
(this pen)
queste penne
(these pens)
quello + s + consonant, x, y, z, gn, ps, pnquello students
(that student)
quegli student
(those students)
n/an/a
quel + consonantquel libro
(that book)
quei libri
(those books)
n/an/a
quell’ + vowelquell’ amico
(that friend)
quegli amici
(those friends)
quell’ amica
(that friend)
quelle amiche
(those friends)
quella + consonantn/an/aquella tavola
(that table)
quelle tavole
(those tables)

Indefinite and quantitative adjectives

Indefinite and quantitative adjectives describe nouns in a nonspecific way. They 

provide general information about quantity or type, without exact numbers or characteristics.

TypeMeaningMasculine, sing.Masculine, plur.Feminine, sing.Feminine, plur
Indefinitesome, a fewqualchequalche
alcunialcuni
each, everyogniogni
any, whicheverqualunquequalunque
Quantitative much, manymolto*molti*molta*molte*
tanto*tanti*tanta*tante*
few, littlepocopochipocapoche
too much/manytroppotroppitroppatroppe
all, everytuttotuttituttatutte

* Molto and tanto are generally interchangeable, but: 

  • When they precede nouns, they must agree in number and gender
  • Before adjectives and adverbs, molto is preferred. So you would say molto veloce (very fast) instead of tanto veloce.
  • Before meglio (better), peggio (worse), più (more), meno (less), prima (before) and dopo (after), molto is preferred.
  • You can’t use them together! 

Descriptive adjectives

Descriptive adjectives provide specific details about a noun's qualities or characteristics, such as its color, size, shape or personality.

  • La casa grande è vicino al lago. (The big house is near the lake.)
  • Il gatto nero dorme sul divano. (The black cat is sleeping on the couch.)
  • Abbiamo trovato un fiore bellissimo. (We found a beautiful flower.)

Placement of adjectives in Italian sentences

Descriptive adjectives typically come after the noun, and they describe qualities like color, shape or mood:

  • Un libro interessante → an interesting book
  • Una macchina veloce → a fast car

Quantifiers and possessives, however, usually come before the noun:

  • La mia casa → my house
  • Troppo zucchero (fa male) → too much sugar (is bad for you)

Some adjectives can also subtly change the meaning or emphasis, depending on their position:

  • Un grande uomo → a great man (in terms of character)
  • Un uomo grande → a big man (in terms of size)

Lists of essential Italian adjectives by category

The following lists of adjectives aren’t exhaustive, but they’ll give you a solid base to start building your vocabulary.

Adjectives for physical descriptions 

tallalto/aal-tohLei è alta.
(She is tall.)
shortbasso/abah-sohMia sorella è bassa.
(My sister is short.)
thinmagro/amah-grohLui è sempre stato magro.
(He has always been thin.)
fatgrasso/agrah-sohIl gatto è un po' grasso. (The cat is a bit fat.)
beautifulbello/abeh-lohRoma è bellissima. (Rome is beautiful.)
uglybrutto/abroo-tohOggi è una giornata brutta.
(Today is an ugly day.)
younggiovanejioh-vah-nehMio cugino è giovane. (My cousin is young.)
oldvecchio/ave-kiohLui ha un cane vecchio. (He has an old dog.)

Adjectives for common situations

importantimportanteeem-por-tan-tehQuesta riunione è importante.
(This meeting is important)
easyfacilefah-chee-lehIl compito è facile.
(The homework is easy.)
difficultdifficiledee-fee-chee-lehQuesto esame è difficile. (This exam is difficult.)
fundivertentedee-ver-ten-tehLa festa è stata divertente.
(The party was fun.)
boringnoioso/anoh-ee-oh-sohIl film era noioso.
(The movie was boring.)
simplesemplicesem-plee-chehLa ricetta è semplice. (The recipe is simple.)
complicatedcomplicato/acom-plee-kah-tohIl progetto è complicato. (The project is complicated.)
convenientconvenientecon-veh-nee-en-tehQuesti prezzi sono convenient.
(These  prices are convenient.)

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Adjectives for personality and mood 

happyfelicefeh-lee-chehOggi sono felice!
(Today I am happy!)
sadtristetris-tehLui è triste.
(He is sad.)
kindgentilejen-tee-lehLa mia collega è gentile. (My colleague is kind.)
patientpazientepah-tsee-en-tehIl professore è molto paziente.
(The teacher is very patient.)
energeticenergico/aeh-ner-jee-cohMia madre è energica. (My mother is energetic.)
calmcalmo/akal-mohLui è sempre calmo.
(He is always calm.)
optimisticottimistaoh-tee-mees-tahLoro sono ottimisti. (They are optimistic.)
pessimisticpessimistapeh-see-mees-tahNon essere pessimista. (Don’t be pessimistic.)

Adjectives for food and flavor

deliciousdelizioso/adeh-lee-tseeoh-sohQuesto dessert è delizioso!
(This dessert is delicious!)
flavorfulsaporito/asah-poh-ree-tohIl sugo è molto saporito. (The sauce is very flavorful.)
spicypiccantepeek-kan-tehQuesta salsa è piccante. (This sauce is spicy.)
sweetdolcedohl-chehLa torta è dolce.
(The cake is sweet.)
bitteramaro/aah-mah-rohIl caffè è amaro.
(The coffee is bitter.)
saltysalato/asah-lah-tohIl formaggio è salato. (The cheese is salty.)
souracido/aah-chee-dohIl limone è acido.
(The lemon is sour.)
freshfresco/afres-cohQuesto pesce è fresco. (This fish is fresh.)
juicysuccoso/asoo-coh-sohQuesto pomodoro è succoso.
(This tomato is juicy.)
tastygustoso/agoos-toh-sohIl risotto è gustoso.
(The risotto is tasty.)

FAQs

Do adjectives have gender in Italian?

Yes, they change to match the gender and the number of the noun they describe.

What are the four possible endings for adjectives in Italian?

While there are several possible endings in Italian (-ista, -ante), the ending vowel usually gives you an idea of what gender they match with: -o (masculine singular), -a (feminine singular), -i (masculine plural), and -e (feminine plural).

What are the most frequently used adjectives in Italian?

Among the most frequently used adjectives in Italian, you find: bello (beautiful), buono (good), grande (big, great), piccolo (small), nuovo (new), vecchio (old), giovane (young), alto (tall, high), basso (short, low), bravo (talented, good)

Ultima nota (one last note, before you go) 

Learning Italian adjectives is an essential step on your path to fluency. They take many shapes and forms, but these words will enrich your conversations and descriptions. With practice, you’ll not only expand on the pool of adjectives you have available, but you’ll feel more confident when using them. If you choose to learn Italian with Lingoda, rest assured that you’ll be propelled toward that confidence in an interactive and immersive setting. 

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Imanol Rodríguez Guridi

Imanol Rodríguez Guridi

Imanol Rodríguez Guridi is a Uruguayan polyglot writer with a moderate obsession for world music research. As a former Literature student who realized he should’ve aimed for Ethnography instead, he has spent serious amounts of time thoroughly traveling through over 40 countries, engaging with locals to a maximum degree with the hopes of understanding their traditions, habits, languages, religions, virtues and vices directly from the source. Writing and traveling aside, he’s an Abhyanga massage therapist and loves mixing music.