L’aglio cresce nell’orto.

in

Breakdown of L’aglio cresce nell’orto.

• crescere: to grow
• l’aglio: the garlic
• l’orto: the vegetable patch

Questions & Answers about L’aglio cresce nell’orto.

Why is the article l’ used before aglio instead of il or lo?

In Italian, when a singular masculine noun starts with a vowel, the definite articles il and lo undergo elision: the final vowel is dropped and replaced with an apostrophe, giving l’. You never say il aglio or lo aglio; the correct form is l’aglio.

What is nell’orto? Why not just in orto?

nell’orto is a contraction of the preposition in + the definite article l’ before orto (which also starts with a vowel). So
• in + l’orto → nell’orto
Using the article is standard when naming enclosed spaces (like gardens), so nell’orto (“in the vegetable garden”) is natural. Saying in orto without any article is uncommon in standard Italian.

Why is there an apostrophe in both l’aglio and nell’orto?

The apostrophe marks elision—dropping a vowel:

• l’ instead of il before a vowel-starting noun
• nell’ instead of in l’ when in
  • l’ come together
    It makes pronunciation smoother and follows Italian orthographic rules.