Learn Hardcore Italian: L’impiegato chiude la porta dell’ufficio ogni sera. - The employee closes the office door every evening.

In Italian, the masculine singular definite article il contracts to l’ and takes an apostrophe when it precedes a noun that starts with a vowel. Since impiegato begins with i, il impiegato becomes l’impiegato. This contraction (elision) smooths pronunciation.

What does dell’ in dell’ufficio stand for?

Dell’ is a contraction of the preposition di + the definite article l’. It literally means “of the” before a singular noun starting with a vowel. So dell’ufficio = di + l’ufficio = “of the office.”

How do I know which form of di + article to use (del, dello, dell’, dei, degli)?

Choose based on gender, number, and initial sound of the noun:

Masculine singular + consonant (not s+consonant, z, gn, ps, x): del (di + il).
Masculine singular + vowel: dell’ (di + l’).
Masculine singular + s+consonant, z, gn, ps, x: dello (di + lo).
Masculine plural + vowel or special clusters: degli (di + gli).
Masculine plural + other consonants: dei (di + i).
Feminine singular + consonant: della (di + la).
Feminine singular + vowel: dell’ (di + l’).
Feminine plural: delle (di + le).

In English we say "close the office door" without articles sometimes. Why does Italian need la porta and l’ufficio?

Italian normally requires the definite article before singular, countable nouns—even when English omits it. So chiude la porta (“he closes the door”) and dell’ufficio (“of the office”) are grammatically mandatory. Omitting the article would sound ungrammatical.

What tense is chiude, and why is it used for a recurring action?

Chiude is the third person singular present indicative of chiudere (“to close”). In Italian the simple present tense frequently expresses habitual or repeated actions, so chiude la porta… ogni sera means “he closes the door… every evening.”

Can ogni sera appear elsewhere in the sentence?

Yes. Adverbs of frequency and time can go in several positions:

After the verb (neutral): Chiude la porta ogni sera.
Before the verb: Ogni sera chiude la porta.
Between auxiliary and participle in compound tenses, etc. But placing it at the end is most common for clarity.

Is ogni sera the only way to say “every evening”?

No. You can also say tutte le sere, which literally means “all the evenings.” Both are interchangeable in most contexts:

Chiude la porta ogni sera.
Chiude la porta tutte le sere.

What’s the difference between sera and serata?

Sera refers to the period from late afternoon to night in a neutral, general sense.
Serata emphasizes the evening as an event or experience (e.g., Abbiamo passato una bella serata = “We had a lovely evening”).

How would the sentence change if the employee is a woman?

You’d use the feminine form impiegata, but the article still elides:
L’impiegata chiude la porta dell’ufficio ogni sera.

How do I pluralize ufficio and adjust the sentence if there are multiple offices?

Ufficio → uffici (plural).
The article + preposition becomes degli (di + gli).
Porta would typically become plural porte if she closes all doors.
Example:
L’impiegato chiude le porte degli uffici ogni sera.