Present tense: A verb form for now, usual activities, and plans with a future time expression.

Adjective: A describing word agreeing with the noun: piccolo, piccola, piccoli, piccole.

Singular: One person or thing.

Feminine: A grammatical class with forms such as una vicina.

Masculine: A grammatical class with forms such as un vicino.

Gender: Italian nouns and related adjectives are masculine or feminine.

Pronoun: A word for a person or thing: io, tu, lui, lei.

to be and pronouns

In Italian, essere means “to be”. In this module, you mainly need the singular forms: sono, sei and è. They help you say who you are and ask who someone is.

Use io for “I”, tu for “you” with a child or a friend, and Lei for polite “you” with an adult you do not know well. In Valbosco, the learner speaks to Sofia with tu, but to the landlady and café staff with Lei.

Italian often changes words for the learner’s sex. So an adult can say Lei è il nuovo vicino? to a man, or Lei è la nuova vicina? to a woman. In the same way, you can say sono nuovo or sono nuova when needed.

Remember that è has an accent. It means “is”. Without the accent, e means “and”.

• Io sono Lukas Becker.I am Lukas Becker.

• Lei è la signora Rossi?Are you Mrs Rossi?

• Tu sei Sofia?Are you Sofia?

• Lei è il nuovo vicino?Are you the new neighbour?

  Lei è la nuova vicina?Are you the new neighbour?

• Questo è Milo.This is Milo.

• Io non sono di Roma.I am not from Rome.

• Sono il nuovo vicino.I am the new neighbour.

  Sono la nuova vicina.I am the new neighbour.

• Chi è questo?Who is this?

The complete expression Tenga means “here you are” or “take it” when addressing one person politely. Learn it as a courtesy chunk here; productive requests are practised later. Familiar Tieni is the corresponding expression to a friend or child.