Learn Hardcore Italian: La scritta rossa sul muro è grande.

“Scritta” is the feminine noun derived from the past participle of scrivere (“to write”). It refers to an inscription, writing, slogan or graffiti on a surface (in this case, a wall), not the act of writing itself.

Why do we have la before scritta, and can we omit it?

Italian generally requires definite articles before nouns. La marks “scritta” as a specific inscription you’re talking about. Omitting it (e.g., scritta rossa sul muro) sounds unnatural in normal speech; only in headlines or very informal lists might you drop it.

Why is rossa placed after the noun and why does it end in -a?

In Italian, most adjectives follow the noun they modify:
• La scritta = the inscription (noun)
• rossa = red (adjective)
The ending -a shows agreement in gender (feminine) and number (singular) with scritta.

What does sul mean and how is it formed?

Sul is a contraction of the preposition su (“on”) + the definite article il (“the”, masculine singular):
su + il → sul
So sul muro literally means “on the wall.”

Why does grande end in -e and not -o or -a?

“Grande” is a two-ending adjective in Italian:
• Singular (masc. & fem.) → -e (grande)
• Plural (masc. & fem.) → -i (grandi)
Since “la scritta rossa” is feminine singular, you use grande.

Could I place grande before the noun, for example la grande scritta rossa sul muro?

Yes, you can put some adjectives before the noun in Italian, but it often adds emphasis or changes the style:
• “La scritta rossa sul muro è grande” – neutral statement (“The red inscription on the wall is big.”)
• “La grande scritta rossa sul muro” – more emphatic or stylistic (“The big red inscription on the wall…”), often used in titles or headlines.