La folla aspetta l'autobus.

Because folla is a collective singular noun in Italian, just like crowd in English.

• la folla = the crowd
• Grammatically, it is singular
• So the verb also stays singular: aspetta

Even though a crowd is made up of many people, Italian treats folla as one group.

So:

• La folla aspetta = The crowd is waiting

not

• La folla aspettano

Because the subject is la folla, which is third person singular.

The verb aspettare means to wait or to wait for, and its present tense forms include:

• io aspetto = I wait
• tu aspetti = you wait
• lui/lei aspetta = he/she waits
• noi aspettiamo = we wait
• voi aspettate = you all wait
• loro aspettano = they wait

Since la folla is singular, you use:

• La folla aspetta

If the subject were plural, then you would use aspettano:

• Le persone aspettano l'autobus = The people are waiting for the bus

This is a very common question. In Italian, aspettare is normally a direct transitive verb, so it takes a direct object without a preposition.

English:

• to wait for the bus

Italian:

• aspettare l'autobus

So Italian does not usually say:

• aspettare per l'autobus ❌

That would sound unnatural here.

More examples:

• Aspetto Maria = I’m waiting for Maria
• Aspettiamo il treno = We’re waiting for the train
• Sta aspettando il suo amico = He/She is waiting for his/her friend

This is one of those places where Italian and English structure the sentence differently.

Because l' is the shortened form of the definite article lo or la before a word beginning with a vowel.

Here, autobus begins with a-, so the article is shortened:

• lo autobus ❌
• l'autobus ✅

The apostrophe shows that a vowel was dropped.

This is called elision.

Examples:

• l'amico = the friend
• l'idea = the idea
• l'uomo = the man

In this sentence, autobus is masculine, so the full article would historically be lo, but before a vowel it becomes l'.

In standard Italian, autobus is masculine.

So you say:

• l'autobus = the bus
• un autobus = a bus

Not:

• la autobus ❌

Even though some Italian nouns ending in -s may feel unusual to English speakers, you just need to learn the gender with the noun. For autobus, the normal gender is masculine.

Because autobus is one of the nouns in Italian that are invariable in the plural.

So:

• l'autobus = the bus
• gli autobus = the buses

The noun itself does not change form.

You understand singular or plural from:

• the article
• the verb
• the context

Examples:

• L'autobus arriva = The bus arrives
• Gli autobus arrivano = The buses arrive

Italian uses definite articles more often than English does.

In this sentence:

• la folla = the crowd
• l'autobus = the bus

Using the article makes the sentence sound natural and complete in Italian.

In many everyday situations, Italian prefers the article where English might sometimes omit it or be more flexible. Here, the definite article is the most natural choice if you mean a specific crowd and a specific bus, or simply the bus relevant in the situation.

You could change the article if the meaning changes:

• Una folla aspetta l'autobus = A crowd is waiting for the bus
• La folla aspetta un autobus = The crowd is waiting for a bus

Yes. That is also correct, but it emphasizes the action as in progress a bit more.

Compare:

• La folla aspetta l'autobus = The crowd waits / is waiting for the bus
• La folla sta aspettando l'autobus = The crowd is waiting for the bus

In modern Italian, the simple present often covers both:

• habitual action
• present action, depending on context

So in many situations, aspetta is enough and very natural.

The word order is the normal Italian pattern:

• Subject + Verb + Object

So:

• La folla = subject
• aspetta = verb
• l'autobus = direct object

Italian word order is often flexible, but this is the most neutral and straightforward order.

You might also hear other orders for emphasis, but this sentence is the standard form.

Folla is pronounced approximately FOL-la.

A few points:

• the o is short and clear
• the ll is pronounced like a normal Italian l, but doubled consonants are held a little longer than in English
• the stress is on the first syllable: FOL-la

So it is not like English follow or fuller. Keep it crisp: FOL-la.

Aspetta is pronounced approximately a-SPET-ta.

Important details:

• stress is on SPET
• the double tt is pronounced more strongly than a single t
• the initial a is a clear vowel, not reduced like an English schwa

So it sounds roughly like:

• ah-SPET-tah

The doubled consonant matters in Italian, so aspetta should sound firmer than if it had a single t.

It is pronounced approximately LOW-toh-boos, though with pure Italian vowels.

A better breakdown is:

• l'au-to-bus

Notes:

• l' links directly to the next word
• au sounds like ow in English cow
• the stress is usually on to: au-TO-bus

So the whole phrase flows as:

• La folla aspetta l'autobus

with l' attached smoothly to autobus.

Yes. Its main meaning is crowd, but it can also refer more generally to a large number of people or a throng depending on context.

For a learner, the safest basic meaning is:

• folla = crowd

Examples:

• C'è una folla in piazza = There is a crowd in the square
• Una folla di turisti = A crowd of tourists

So in your sentence, la folla is simply the crowd.

Yes, in modern Italian many speakers also use bus, especially in casual speech. But autobus is a standard and fully correct word.

So both can exist:

• l'autobus
• il bus

Notice the article changes:

• l'autobus because it begins with a vowel
• il bus because bus begins with a consonant sound

Both are understood, but autobus is a very standard textbook form.

It can be either, depending on context.

La folla aspetta l'autobus may mean:

• The crowd is waiting for the bus
  or
• The crowd waits for the bus

In real life, context usually makes it clear. If you want to be extra explicit about an action happening right now, Italian often uses:

• La folla sta aspettando l'autobus

But the simple present is very common and natural for current actions too.