Learn Italian: Di chi è questo libro?

Di chi è questo libro?

Whose book is this?

Breakdown of Di chi è questo libro?

Questions & Answers about Di chi è questo libro?

Why does the sentence start with Di instead of a word for 'whose'?

Italian does not have a single exact word for 'whose'. Instead, it uses the preposition di (of) combined with chi (who) to literally ask 'Of whom?'. This is the standard way to ask about possession in Italian.

Why is the word order so different from English?

In English, we keep 'whose' and the noun together: 'Whose book is this?'. Italian follows a different logic, asking 'Of whom is this book?'. You always put Di chi first, followed by the verb è (is), and then the object being asked about, like questo libro.

If chi means 'who', can I just leave out di?

No, if you leave out di, you are asking Chi è questo libro? which literally translates to 'Who is this book?'. You need the preposition di to indicate possession and change 'who' into 'whose'.

Why do we use questo here instead of questa?

In Italian, pointing words like 'this' must match the gender and number of the noun they describe. Because libro is a masculine singular noun, you use the masculine singular questo. If it were a feminine noun like penna (pen), you would say questa penna.