L'ingresso al mercato è affollato.

to be

Breakdown of L'ingresso al mercato è affollato.

• il mercato: the market
• affollato: crowded
• al: to

Questions & Answers about L'ingresso al mercato è affollato.

Why is l’ used before ingresso?

This is the elision of the masculine singular definite article lo before a vowel. Lo + ingresso becomes l’ingresso to avoid two vowels in a row.

Why is the preposition a used with ingresso, and why is it contracted as al here?

To express “entrance to” a place, Italian uses a. Since mercato is masculine singular, a + il contracts to al, giving ingresso al mercato (“entrance to the market”).

Why is the adjective affollato placed after the noun instead of before it, like in English?

Most descriptive adjectives in Italian follow the noun they modify. So ingresso affollato is the natural order. Placing the adjective before (e.g. affollato ingresso) is possible for emphasis but sounds marked.

Why does affollato end in -o, and would it change if the noun changes in gender or number?

Adjectives agree with the noun’s gender and number. Ingresso is masculine singular, so affollato is masculine singular. If the noun were feminine you’d use affollata; plural masculine affollati; plural feminine affollate.