Learn Hardcore Italian: Una ragazza prende l’ombrello dalla borsa.

In Italian, singular nouns normally require a definite article. Before a masculine noun starting with a vowel, the article il undergoes elision and becomes l’, so l’ombrello = “the umbrella.”

What does dalla stand for, and why can’t we just say da la?

Dalla is the contracted form of the preposition da (“from”) + the feminine singular definite article la. In Italian, da + la always merges into dalla, not da la.

Why is una used before ragazza rather than il or no article at all?

Una is the feminine singular indefinite article (“a” or “an”). Since ragazza is a feminine noun, we use una to mean “a girl.” You can’t use il (masculine) or omit the article if you intend “a girl.”

What person and tense is prende?

Prende is the third-person singular present indicative of the verb prendere (“to take”). In this sentence it means “she takes.”

Why isn’t there an explicit subject pronoun like lei?

Italian verbs carry enough information in their endings to show the subject. The –e ending of prende already signals “he/she/it takes,” so lei is optional and usually omitted.

Can you drop the article in dalla borsa and just say da borsa?

No. When referring to a specific container like la borsa (“the bag”), the preposition da must combine with the definite article, yielding dalla borsa (“from the bag”).

Is the word order fixed, or can you rearrange elements (e.g., Dalla borsa prende una ragazza l’ombrello)?

The neutral order is Subject–Verb–Object–Prepositional Phrase: Una ragazza (S) prende (V) l’ombrello (O) dalla borsa (PP). You can front dalla borsa for emphasis or style, but it sounds marked or poetic.

How do I know borsa is feminine?

Most Italian nouns ending in –a are feminine. Since borsa ends in –a, it’s feminine, which is why it takes la (becoming dalla after contraction).