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Il nome (femminile) / The noun (feminine).

In Italian nouns can be masculine or feminine. Feminine nouns can be determined by ending or meaning.

A). By Ending

1. Nouns ending in -o are almost all feminine.

  • La stanza (The room).
  • La finestra (The window).
  • La donna (The woman).
  • La sera (The evening).
  • La lucertola (The lizard).

2. Feminine nouns can end in (-e/ -sione/-zione).

  • La collezione (The collection).
  • La luce (The light).
  • L’emozione (The Emotion).
  • La pace (The peace).
  • L’attenzione (The Attention).
  • La madre (The mother).

3. Some feminine nouns can end in (-o).

  • La mano (The hand).
  • La foto (The picture).
  • La radio (The Radio).
  • L’auto (The car).

4. Feminine nouns can end in -i or -u.

  • L’ipotesi (The hypothesis).
  • La crisi (The crisis).
  • La gru (The crane).
  • L’oasi (The oasis).
  • La virtù (The virtue).

B). By meaning

They are usually feminine the names of:

1. People or animals that refer to females.

  • La donna (The woman).
  • L’attrice (The actress).
  • La ragna (The spider).
  • La gatta (The cat).
  • La pecora (The sheep).
  • La lucertola (The lizard).

2. Sciences and school subjects except (il diritto).

  • La filosofia (The philosophy).
  • La matematica (The Mathematics).
  • La chimica (The Chemistry).
  • La storia (The History).

3. Cities, regions, nations, continents, and islands.

  • Milano (Milan).
  • Firenze (Florence).
  • Pisa (Pisa).
  • Liguria (Liguria).
  • Sicilia (Sicily).
  • Spagna (Spain).
  • Inghilterra (Englan).
  • Australia (Australia).
  • Europa (Europe).