Ho due libri e tre penne.I have two books and three pens.

Italian nouns form the plural by changing the last vowel, not by adding an ending like English -s. Which vowel you get depends on the singular ending: -o becomes -i, -a becomes -e, and -e becomes -i.

Quick shortcut: -o → -i (libro → libri), -a → -e (penna → penne), -e → -i (nome → nomi, notte → notti).

The three basic patterns

Singular ending Plural ending Examples
-o -i il libro → i libri (books), il gatto → i gatti (cats)
-a -e la casa → le case (houses), la penna → le penne (pens)
-e -i il padre → i padri (fathers), la notte → le notti (nights)

Nouns in -e use -i in the plural whether they are masculine or feminine, so for these the article is what shows the gender: il nome → i nomi, la madre → le madri. (Gender is in Noun gender.)

The article changes too

The plural has its own articles: il becomes i and la becomes le: il libro → i libri, la casa → le case. The full set is in Definite articles.

Spelling changes: -co / -go and -ca / -ga

To keep the hard k and g sounds, nouns in -ca and -ga add an h, and many nouns in -co and -go do too:

  • -ca → -che, -ga → -ghe: l'amica → le amiche (friends, female), la riga → le righe (lines)
  • -co → -chi, -go → -ghi in many words: il fuoco → i fuochi (fires), il lago → i laghi (lakes)
  • -co → -ci in many longer words: il medico → i medici (doctors), l'amico → gli amici (friends)

For -co and -go nouns there is no single simple rule, so learn the plural with the word.

Nouns in -cia / -gia and -io

  • -cia and -gia usually keep the i when a vowel comes before them and drop it when a consonant does: la camicia → le camicie (shirts), la valigia → le valigie (suitcases), but l'arancia → le arance (oranges), la pioggia → le piogge (rains). If the i is stressed, it stays: la farmacia → le farmacie (pharmacies).
  • Nouns in -io usually have a single -i in the plural: il figlio → i figli (sons / children), il negozio → i negozi (shops).

Nouns that don't change

Some nouns have the same form in the singular and the plural. The article shows which one it is:

  • nouns ending in an accented vowel: la città → le città, il caffè → i caffè, l'università → le università
  • nouns that end in a consonant (usually from other languages): il film → i film, il bar → i bar, lo sport → gli sport
  • short forms of longer words: la foto → le foto, l'auto → le auto, la moto → le moto

Common irregular plurals

Singular Plural Meaning
l'uomo gli uomini man, men
il dito le dita finger
l'uovo le uova egg
il problema i problemi problem (masculine, so -i, not -e)

Nouns for people that end in -ista have two plurals: -isti for men and -iste for women (il turista → i turisti, la turista → le turiste).

Common mistakes

  • ❌ due libro → ✅ due libri (after a number other than uno, use the plural)
  • ❌ le casi → ✅ le case (-a becomes -e, not -i)
  • ❌ i città → ✅ le città (it doesn't change, but the article is plural and feminine)
  • ❌ gli amichi → ✅ gli amici (amico is one of the -co → -ci words)
  • ❌ le problemi → ✅ i problemi (problema is masculine even though it ends in -a)

Quick check

Give the plural, with its article.

  1. il libro
  2. la penna
  3. il padre
  4. la città
  5. l'amica
  6. l'uomo
Show answers
  1. i libri   2. le penne   3. i padri   4. le città   5. le amiche   6. gli uomini

Key takeaways

  • The plural changes the last vowel: -o → -i, -a → -e, -e → -i.
  • Articles change too: il → i, la → le.
  • Nouns in -ca / -ga add an h (amiche, righe); -co / -go nouns vary, so learn each plural.
  • Nouns ending in an accented vowel or a consonant, and short forms like foto, stay the same.
  • Common irregular plurals: uomo → uomini, dito → dita, uovo → uova.