Postby johnnywayfarer » May 21st, 2008 4:21 pm
Dear Lisa,
Thanks for the suggestion. We will add the gender of nouns in the prospective lessons.
This is a piece of advice you could find useful when learning the gender of Italian nouns. Check out the final vowel of the noun in its singular form to figure out its gender; nouns ending with -a- are feminine and nouns ending with -o- are masculine 95% of time. This also means that you’ll be right 95% of time.
The real difficulty regards nouns ending with -e-. In this case it is often necessary to memorize their gender.
However, the best way keep in mind the gender of a noun is to study its singular form associated with the definite article. For example, try to memorize “la casa” (the house) instead of just “casa, feminine noun”. It’s a lot easier.
Finally, when you study new names, try to connect them to your real life. For example, what color is the house you live in? Let’s say white. Yeah, my house is white: la mia casa è bianca.
Use simple structures, even just the verb “to be”.
It is really important that you relate what you study to your real life. Italian is a real language; use it in your real life!
I hope these learning tips will be useful .
Ciao,
Johnny
