When to put the adjective before the noun, and when to put it after
As I've been working through my elementary esercizi, I've been noticing that adjectives sometimes go after the noun and sometimes they go before.
This came as a bit of a surprise.
I had assumed that Romance languages always stuck the adjective after a noun. However, that's not the case. Italian frequently puts adjectives before nouns.
What are the rules?
When to put the adjective behind the noun (most common)
This happens in the case of most descriptive adjectives. Most adjectives that describe the qualities of a noun (like color, shape, nationality, etc.) come after the noun.
Examples:
- Una casa grande (A big house),
- Un libro interessante (An interesting book).
Cases where the adjective goes before the noun
Subjective or Emphatic Adjectives
When an adjective is used subjectively or for emphasis, it can precede the noun. This can also slightly change the meaning.
Examples:
- Una grande casa (A great house, emphasizing the grandeur rather than just size),
- Un caro amico (A dear friend).
Common Adjectives
Adjectives that indicate quantity or order usually come before the noun.
As well, some common adjectives like bello (beautiful), bravo (good), buono (good), vecchio (old), giovane (young), and nuovo (new) often precede the noun.
Examples:
- Un bel libro (A beautiful book),
- Una buona idea (A good idea),
- Molti libri (Many books),
- Primo giorno (First day).
How to remember the adjectives that precede nouns
Of course, repetition is the best way to get these down. It'll become muscle memory, and you'll do it automatically when you speak and write.
However, until it becomes automatic, I really love mnemonics.
One way to remember the adjectives that precede nouns in Italian is with the acronym BANGS. It stands for Beauty, Age, Numbers, Goodness and Size:
- Beauty: bello, brutto (beautiful, ugly)
- Age: giovane, vecchio (young, old)
- Numbers: primo, secondo (first, second)
- Goodness: buono, cattivo (good, bad)
- Size: grande, piccolo (big, small)
Changing the position for a different meaning
Lastly,, putting the adjective before or after the noun can change the meaning.
Examples:
- Un uomo povero (A poor man, lacking money).
- Un povero uomo (A poor man, to evoke pity, like "poor guy").
Wrapping it up - while the default position for most adjectives is after the noun, certain adjectives and contexts can shift the adjective before the noun to change the emphasis, meaning or tone.
Joke of the day
Perché il libro di matematica era triste?
Perché aveva troppi problemi!