Learn Italian: Quanti caffè prendete? - How many coffees are you having?

Quanti caffè prendete?

How many coffees are you having?

Breakdown of Quanti caffè prendete?

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Questions & Answers about Quanti caffè prendete?

Why is it Quanti and not Quanto?

Quanto means "how much" or "how many," and it changes its ending to match the noun it describes. Because caffè is masculine and we are asking about more than one (how many coffees), quanto changes to its masculine plural form, quanti.

If Quanti is plural, why doesn't the word caffè change its ending?

Caffè is plural here! In Italian, nouns that end with an accented vowel (like caffè, città, or tè) do not change their endings in the plural. You have to look at the words around them, like quanti, to know if they are singular or plural.

Why use prendete (you take) instead of a word for "drinking" or "having"?

In Italian, it is very common to use the verb prendere (to take) when talking about ordering or consuming food and drinks. It is the natural way to translate "having a coffee" or "getting a coffee."

Where is the word for "you" in this sentence?

In Italian, the ending of the verb tells you who is doing the action, so the subject pronoun is usually dropped. The -ete ending on prendete lets us know the subject is voi (you all / you plural).