Modern Italian Grammar: A Practical Guide, Third Edition (2013)

Part A. Structures

7. Numbers

7.1 What is a number?

Grammatically, numbers can be considered as belonging to several categories, depending on their different functions.

A number can be used as:

(a)A noun:

Il cinque è un numero dispari.

Five is an odd number.

Ci vediamo alle nove.

See you at nine o'clock.

(b)An adjective (used with a noun):

Mi servono tre fogli di carta.

I need three sheets of paper.

(c)A pronoun (used on its own):

Quanti fogli di carta ti servono? Me ne servono tre.

How many sheets do you need? I need three.

7.2 Cardinal numbers

Cardinals are the basic numbers. A list of cardinal numbers is shown at the end of this chapter. Note in particular the elision of the vowel in ventuno, trentotto, and the acute accent in trentatré.

All cardinal numbers are invariable except uno/una, which is used also as indefinite article, and whose forms vary according to the word that follows (see 1.3.2). With numbers ending in -uno, the final vowel is often dropped:

trentun giorni

thirty-one days

Ha compiuto ventun anni.

She's turned twenty-one.

Numbers with more than one element are joined together, for example:

When the first element is cento or mille, these can remain separate, but joined by e:

Un milione ‘one million’ and plural form milioni ‘millions’ can also remain separate from the figure which follows, and not joined by e:

Note how mille ‘one thousand’ becomes -mila in the plural, creating compound forms: duemila ‘two thousand’, tremila ‘three thousand’, centomila ‘one hundred thousand’.

In Italian usage, the decimal point is actually a comma (virgola), while the full stop (punto) is used to separate figures above a thousand:

When describing how people or objects are arranged or distributed, use the prepositions a (a due a due) or per, as shown below:

Ragazzi, mettetevi in fila due per due.

Kids, get in line (line up) two by two.

Signori, entrate uno per volta, per favore.

Ladies and gentlemen, come in one at a time, please.

7.3 Ordinal numbers

Ordinal numbers (except the first ten, whose special forms can be seen in 7.11) are formed by adding the suffix -esimo. The final vowel of the cardinal number is dropped before the suffix: undic-esimo, dodic-esimo, quarant-esimo, cent-esimo.

These numbers are basically used as adjectives and can be masculine or feminine, singular or plural, changing their ending (with the pattern -o/-a/-i/-e) to agree with the noun to which they are attached:

Sto scrivendo il sesto capitolo.

I am writing the sixth chapter.

la dodicesima notte

the twelfth night

They come after the noun when used with the names of rulers, always written as a Roman number:

Enrico VIII (Enrico ottavo)

Henry the eighth

In some cases, however, they are used on their own, for example referring to something which is understood from the context, shown in brackets in the examples below:

•The gears of a car:

la prima, la quarta (marcia)

first, fourth gear

•The classes, grades or years in a school:

Mio figlio frequenta la prima (classe) media, e mia figlia la terza.

My son is in the first year of middle school, and my daughter is in the third.

•Units of time:

(minuti) primi, secondi

minutes, seconds

Ci vogliono due ore, quattro primi e trenta secondi.

It takes two hours, four minutes and thirty seconds.

decimi, centesimi (di secondo)

tenths, hundredths of a second

•Fractions:

► See also 17.5.5 (numbers and ranking).

Note also:

la metà, il mezzo

half (as a noun)

mezzo, mezza

half (as an adjective)

La metà degli studenti è stata bocciata.

Half the students failed.

una mezza porzione di pasta al pomodoro

a half portion of pasta with tomato sauce

un mezzo litro di vino rosso

half a litre of red wine

7.4 Calculations

Here is what the basic arithmetic symbols are called in Italian:

In informal speech, fa ‘makes’ is also used in place of uguale:

7.5 Percentages

Percentages are always preceded by an article:

Il 15% del nostro fatturato consiste in prodotti alimentari.

15% of our turnover is in foodstuffs.

L'euro si è svalutato del 20% (venti percento).

The euro has been devalued by 20%.

Il mio reddito si è ridotto del 50%.

My income has been reduced by 50%.

The article l' is used with an initial vowel sound:

l'ottanta percento (80%)

eighty per cent

► See also 42.6 for use of percentages in written reports.

7.6 Collective and approximate numbers

Note the use of suffixes in the following:

una decina

about ten

una dozzina

about a dozen

un'oretta

just under an hour

The suffix -ina is used with numbers to express approximation:

C'era una ventina di spettatori.

There were about twenty spectators.

Passo una quindicina di giorni in montagna.

I'm spending a fortnight in the mountains.

The suffix -aio also expresses approximation:

un centinaio di persone

about a hundred people

un migliaio

about a thousand

These nouns are masculine in the singular but have an irregular feminine plural form:

Ho visto centinaia di incidenti stradali.

I have seen hundreds of road accidents.

La ditta ha varie migliaia di client.

The company has several thousand customers.

An approximate age is usually expressed in one of two ways:

Era una donna sui quaranta.

She was a woman of around forty.

Aveva una quarantina di anni.

She was around forty.

Other collective numbers are:

7.7 Dates

The dates of the month are referred to with cardinal numbers, except the first:

il primo gennaio

the first of January

il due aprile

the second of April

Partiamo il dieci marzo.

We'll leave on the tenth of March.

Note how the article l' is used before an initial vowel:

l'uno settembre

the first of September

l'otto giugno

the eighth of June

l'undici agosto

the eleventh of August

Years are usually written in figures but spoken in full:

Sono nato nel 1951 (millenovecentocinquantuno).

I was born in 1951.

Mia figlia è nata il 29 luglio 1987 (millenovecentottantasette).

My daughter was born on the 29th of July 1987.

Viviamo in Gran Bretagna dall'89 (ottantanove).

We have lived in Britain since '89.

All dates expressed in numbers are always preceded by the definite article, as in the examples above.

Note the two different ways in which to describe centuries:

il ventesimo secolo / il Novecento

the twentieth century (the 1900s)

il quindicesimo secolo / il Quattrocento

the fifteenth century (the 1400s)

il quinto secolo

the fifth century (the 400s)

And note the following phrases:

i primi anni trenta

in the early Thirties

agli inizi degli anni '80

at the beginning of the '80s

7.8 Time

Time is expressed using the definite article, normally in the feminine plural form since it refers to le ore:

Sono le otto di sera.

It's eight o'clock in the evening.

Sono le otto di mattina.

It's eight o'clock in the morning.

But in the case of midday, midnight or one o'clock, the singular is used:

È mezzogiorno.

It's midday.

È mezzanotte.

It's midnight.

È l'una.

It's one o'clock.

Time ‘at which’ is expressed using a or more frequently the combined preposition and article forms:

Sono andata a letto a mezzanotte.

I went to bed at midnight.

Ci vediamo all'una.

We'll see each other at one o'clock.

Passo a prenderti alle sette.

I'll come by and get you at seven o'clock.

7.9 Weights and measures

Units of weight include:

Units of distance/length include:

Cost per unit and speed per hour are expressed as follows:

I DVD costano €15 (quindici euro) l'uno.

The DVDs cost €15 (fifteen euros) each.

Le pere costano €4 (quattro euro) al chilo.

Pears cost €4 (four euros) per kilo.

Il limite di velocità su autostrada è di 130 chilometri all'ora.

The speed limit on motorways is 130 kilometres per hour.

7.10 Currency

Like other countries of the European Union, Italy currently uses the euro as the unit of currency. Previously the unit of currency was the Italian lira and you may very occasionally still hear prices quoted in lire.

Here is an article about ‘il caro-spiaggia’ — the increased cost of going to the private beach establishments that are popular all over Italy:

Il bel tempo è ormai arrivato e le famiglie si preparano a godersi qualche giorno di vacanza. Ma per trascorrere una giornata al mare sulle spiagge italiane, una famiglia di quattro persone spende in media 97 euro tra ingresso allo stabilimento, ombrellone, lettini o sedie a sdraio, parcheggio, cibi e bevande. A Portofino (Liguria) un ingresso singolo giornaliero può costare da un minimo di 5 euro a un massimo di 9 euro, il costo di un ombrellone e due sdraio per due persone varia tra 25 e 50 euro mentre per una cabina, con ombrellone e due sdraio si possono arrivare a spendere, al mese, ben 950 euro. A Varazze, invece, il costo varia da 22 a 30 euro per due persone con un ombrellone e due sdraio.

(Adapted from La Repubblica online, www.repubblica.it, retrieved 18 February 2012)

The fine weather has arrived and families are getting ready to enjoy a few days of holiday. But to spend a day at the seaside on an Italian beach, a family of four people spends on average 97 euros, between entrance to the beach establishment, umbrella, sun loungers or deckchairs, parking, food and drinks. In Portofino (Liguria), the daily entrance fee for one person can cost from a minimum of 5 euros to a maximum of 9 euros, the cost of an umbrella and two deckchairs for two people varies between 25 and 50 euros, while for a cabin, with umbrella and two deckchairs, you can spend as much as 950 euros a month. In Varazze, on the other hand, the cost varies from 22 to 30 euros for two people, with an umbrella and two deckchairs.

7.11 Table of numbers

Note that we have only shown all the possible endings (-o/-a/-i/-e) for the first two ordinal numbers, but all the others follow this pattern: