L’ufficio postale ha un impiegato molto gentile.

The post office has a very kind employee.

Breakdown of L’ufficio postale ha un impiegato molto gentile.

• avere: to have
• molto: very
• gentile: kind
• l'ufficio postale: the post office

Questions & Answers about L’ufficio postale ha un impiegato molto gentile.

What does the apostrophe in L’ufficio indicate?

It shows the elision of the vowel in the definite article il before a word starting with a vowel: il ufficio → l’ufficio. The meaning stays the same, but Italian drops the “i” to avoid two vowels meeting.

Why is postale after ufficio instead of before, like “post office”?

In Italian, descriptive adjectives typically follow the noun they modify. So ufficio postale literally is “office postal,” whereas in English we say “post office.”

Why is un used before impiegato rather than uno?

The masculine indefinite article uno appears only before words beginning with z, s + consonant, gn, ps, x, y. Since impiegato begins with a vowel, you use un.

What role does ha play in this sentence?

Ha is the 3rd person singular of the verb avere, used here to express possession: “the post office has a very kind clerk.” You could also say C’è un impiegato molto gentile (“There is a very kind clerk”) to convey a similar idea.

Why does molto gentile follow impiegato, and does molto change form?