Il libro rosso è utile.

to be

Breakdown of Il libro rosso è utile.

• il libro: the book
• rosso: red
• utile: useful

Questions & Answers about Il libro rosso è utile.

Why is il used here instead of lo?

In Italian, il is the standard masculine singular article for words beginning with most consonants (like libro). Lo is used before masculine words that start with specific letters (such as s + consonant, z, x, and a few others). Since libro starts with l, we use il.

Why does the adjective rosso come after the noun libro?

In Italian, many adjectives typically follow the noun rather than precede it (as is common in English). For example: il libro rosso (literally "the book red"). While some adjectives can come before or after the noun, in the case of colors, they usually follow the noun.

Why is the adjective rosso ending in -o here?

Because libro is a masculine singular noun, the adjective must agree with it in gender and number. The masculine singular form of the adjective "red" is rosso (ending in -o). If the noun were feminine singular (like la penna), the color would become rossa.

What is the function of è in this sentence?

È is the third-person singular form of the verb essere (to be), meaning "is." In the sentence, it links the subject (il libro rosso) to its description (utile: useful). Essentially, "Il libro rosso è utile" translates to "The red book is useful."