The partitive article (it. articolo partitivo) in the plural is used to express an indefinite quantity. Learn the partitive article in Italian!
The partitive article in Italian
| Al parco ci sono dei cani | In the park there are – dogs |
The partitive article is formed by the preposition di, which merges with the definite article. The plural definite articles are i, gli, and le.
| di + | i | dei cani |
| gli | degli amici | |
| le | delle case |
Function: indefinite quantity
It denotes an indefinite quantity and thus represents the plural of the indefinite article. The indefinite article (un, una, …) does not have a plural. In English, it is usually not translated.
| SINGULAR | PLURAL | |
| un cane | dei cani | a dog > dogs |
| uno stivale | degli stivali | a boot > boots |
| un albero | degli alberi | a tree > trees |
| una stella | delle stelle | a star > stars |
| un’isola | delle isole | an island > islands |
The partitive article in the plural has the same meaning as alcuni/e some and can be replaced by it.
| Al parco ci sono dei cani = | Al parco ci sono alcuni cani |
Esempi:
| Sul tavolo ci sono dei libri. | There are books on the table. |
| Al supermercato compro delle mele. | I buy apples at the supermarket. |
| Dei bambini giocano al parco. | Children plays in the park. |
| All’agriturismo ci sono delle mucche. | There are cows on the farm. |
Overview of the articles
| Singular | Plural | |
| definite | il cavallo | i cavalli |
| indefinite | un cavallo | dei cavalli |
Esercizio
Impara di più!
Italian prepositions – simple overview
Simple overview of Italian prepositions for beginners
Indefinite article
Indefinite articles in Italian vary according to gender and the first letter of the following word.
Definite articles
Defined articles in Italian vary according to the gender, number and initial letter of the following word.
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2 thoughts on “The partitive article in plural”
Ciao,
I may be wrong but shouldn’t it be “de” instead of “di”?
Ciao Jacob, thank you for your comment. Actually it is the preposition “di,” which, combined with the article, first turns the “i” into “e,” and then adds the article: di + i > de-i > dei.
The preposition “de” in fact does not exist in Italian.