Italian Grammar

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This volume is the result of an attempt to put into convenient form and the smallest possible compass all the grammar needed by ordinary students of Italian. Short as the book is, it contains some paragraphs which beginners will probably skip: the longer lists of words and endings and a great part of the chapters on sufl xes and irregular verbs will be useful mainly for reference. While endeavoring to make my work represent primarily the language as it is spoken and written at the present day, I have tried to give also as many obsolete forms as readers of the poets will require. It has been my aim throughout to make the rules clear for all classes of pupils, even for those ignorant of other foreign languages, provided they understand the technical words commonly used in grammars. With this object in view, I have ascribed to the Italian vowels the pronunciation of the English ones that are nearest to them; an accurate description of the Italian sounds would, I fear, prove confusing to beginners who have had no training in phonetics. It will be easy for the instructor to explain not only the vowels, but some of the consonants, and the division of words into syllables, much better than can be done in a book like this. The authorities I have consulted most are the dictionaries of Fanfani, Rigutini and Fanfani, Fomari (Nuovo Bazzarini), and Tommaseo and Bellini. I have made but little use of other grammars; I am, however, indebted to Toscani for some ideas and a few of my examples.

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Tags: non italian verb past form translate pres english pronoun lesson plural exercise person speak grammar future noun subjunctive adjective sentence