La giustizia richiede tempo.

the time

Breakdown of La giustizia richiede tempo.

• richiedere: to require
• la giustizia: justice

Questions & Answers about La giustizia richiede tempo.

Why is there la before giustizia?

La is the singular feminine definite article, meaning the.

In Italian, abstract nouns are often used with the definite article more often than in English. So la giustizia is a very natural way to say justice in a general sense.

Compare:

• La pazienza è importante. = Patience is important.
• La giustizia richiede tempo. = Justice requires time.

English often drops the with abstract nouns, but Italian frequently keeps it.

Is giustizia feminine? How can I tell?

Yes, giustizia is a feminine noun.

You can tell here because it uses la:

• la giustizia

Also, many Italian nouns ending in -a are feminine, though that is not a perfect rule. In this sentence, the article makes the gender clear.

This is grammatical gender, so it does not mean justice is biologically female. It just means the noun belongs to the feminine class and must match feminine articles and adjectives.

What form of the verb is richiede?