Question 1

Why is there an apostrophe in un'amica?

Accepted Answer

The word amica (female friend) is feminine and starts with a vowel. The normal word for "a" or "an" before feminine words is una. When a feminine word starts with a vowel, we drop the a from una and replace it with an apostrophe to make it flow better: un'amica.

Question 2

Would we use an apostrophe if it were a male friend (un amico)?

Accepted Answer

No, and this is a very common trap! The basic masculine word for "a" or "an" is just un. Since no letters are being dropped from un, there is no apostrophe. A male friend is simply un amico, while a female friend is un'amica.

Question 3

Amica is feminine, so why does importante end in an "e" instead of an "a"?

Accepted Answer

While many Italian adjectives end in -o for masculine and -a for feminine, there is a second group of adjectives that naturally end in -e in the singular. Words like importante or intelligente use the exact same form for both masculine and feminine words.

Question 4

The word order here is just "She is...". How does Italian show that this is a question?

Accepted Answer

In Italian, you don't need to flip the word order or add helper words like "is" or "does" to make a question. You just use the normal statement order (Lei è...) and raise the pitch of your voice at the end when speaking, or simply add a question mark when writing.

Lei è un'amica importante?

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