La madre allatta il neonato.

the mother

Breakdown of La madre allatta il neonato.

• il neonato: the newborn
• allattare: to breastfeed

Questions & Answers about La madre allatta il neonato.

Why are la and il used here?

They are the definite articles the:

• la madre = the mother
• il neonato = the newborn

Italian uses articles more often than English, so a sentence that sounds natural in Italian may include la / il even where English might sometimes be less explicit.

Also note the gender:

• madre is feminine singular → la
• neonato is masculine singular → il

What does allatta mean exactly?

Allatta is the third-person singular present of allattare.

So:

• allattare = to breastfeed / to nurse / to feed milk to
• allatta = she breastfeeds / nurses

In this sentence, the subject is la madre, so allatta means the mother breastfeeds.

Very often, allattare implies breastfeeding, especially in normal usage.

Is allattare followed directly by the object, or does it need a preposition?