La mela è dolce.

The apple is sweet.

Breakdown of La mela è dolce.

• essere: to be
• la mela: the apple
• dolce: sweet

Questions & Answers about La mela è dolce.

What is the literal translation of La mela è dolce?

It translates to "The apple is sweet." In this sentence, La is the feminine singular definite article meaning "the", mela is a feminine noun meaning "apple", è is the third person singular form of the verb essere meaning "is", and dolce is an adjective meaning "sweet."

What part of speech is each word in the sentence?

• La: A definite article.
• mela: A noun; specifically, a feminine singular noun.
• è: A verb; it is the third person singular present tense form of essere (to be).
• dolce: An adjective describing the noun mela.

Why does the adjective dolce come after the noun mela?

In Italian, adjectives that describe inherent qualities typically follow the noun. While adjectives can sometimes precede the noun for emphasis or stylistic reasons, the standard order in descriptive sentences is noun + adjective. In this sentence, placing dolce after mela follows that common pattern.

How is the verb è conjugated, and what is its role in the sentence?