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La finestra quadrata è pulita.

La finestra quadrata è pulita.
The square window is clean.
FromLesson 36inHardcore Italian

Breakdown of La finestra quadrata è pulita.

essere
to be
la finestra
the window
pulito
clean
quadrato
square

Questions & Answers about La finestra quadrata è pulita.

Why is la used before finestra?
La is the Italian definite article for feminine singular nouns. Since finestra is feminine and singular, you say la finestra to mean the window.
Why does quadrata come after the noun, when in English we say “square window”?
In Italian, most adjectives follow the noun they modify. So finestra quadrata literally reads “window square.” A few very common adjectives (like bello, grande) can precede the noun for stylistic reasons, but shape adjectives normally go after.
Why does quadrata end in –a instead of –o?

Italian adjectives agree in gender and number with the noun.

  • Finestra is feminine singular.
  • The masculine singular form is quadrato.
  • To match a feminine noun, you change –o to –a, giving quadrata.
What exactly is pulita here—is it an adjective or a verb form?
Pulita is the past participle of pulire (“to clean”) used as an adjective meaning clean. In this sentence it describes the window’s current condition.
Why do we need è before pulita? Couldn’t we just say la finestra pulita?

When you describe a state or condition as part of a full sentence in Italian, you use the copula essere (“to be”).

  • La finestra è pulita = “The window is clean.”
    Without è, la finestra pulita becomes a noun phrase (“the clean window”) rather than a complete statement.
Could you also say La finestra è quadrata e pulita instead of La finestra quadrata è pulita?
Yes. La finestra è quadrata e pulita explicitly links both adjectives with e (“and”) and is perfectly correct. La finestra quadrata è pulita is simply a more concise way to attach quadrata directly to finestra.
How would you make this sentence plural—as in “The square windows are clean”?

You must pluralize the article, noun, verb, and both adjectives:
Le finestre quadrate sono pulite.

  • Le (definite article, feminine plural)
  • finestre (noun, feminine plural)
  • sono (3rd-person plural of essere)
  • quadrate, pulite (adjectives, feminine plural)
Can you ever place pulita before the noun, like pulita finestra?
Generally, Italian places adjectives after nouns. Saying pulita finestra sounds marked or poetic. To use an adjective before the noun, you’d typically choose one of those “special” adjectives (e.g. bella finestra), but for pulito you should say finestra pulita.
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