Breakdown of Le frange del tappeto sono molto lunghe.
essere
to be
molto
very
di
of, from
il tappeto
rug, carpet
lungo
long
la
her/it (direct object)
la frangia
the fringe
Questions & Answers about Le frange del tappeto sono molto lunghe.
Why is the plural of frangia spelled frange without an 'i'?
This follows the spelling rule for feminine nouns ending in unstressed -cia and -gia. Because the -gia in frangia is preceded by a consonant (the letter 'n'), the 'i' is dropped in the plural. Therefore, frangia becomes frange. If the ending were preceded by a vowel (like in valigia), it would keep the 'i' in the plural (valigie).
Why does lunghe have an 'h' added to it?
The singular feminine form is lunga (long). When making adjectives and nouns ending in -ca or -ga plural, an 'h' is added before the 'e' to preserve the hard 'g' or 'c' sound. Without the 'h', lunge would be pronounced with a soft 'j' sound, exactly like the 'g' in frange.
Why doesn't molto change to molte to agree with the feminine plural noun frange?
In this sentence, molto is acting as an adverb meaning 'very' because it describes the adjective lunghe. Adverbs are invariable, meaning they never change their endings. If molto were acting as an adjective meaning 'many' describing a noun (for example, molte frange meaning 'many fringes'), then it would have to match the noun in gender and number.
Is tappeto a false friend? It looks a bit like 'tapestry' or 'tape'.
It is a false friend! Tappeto is the standard word for 'rug' or 'carpet'. If you want to talk about a tapestry, you would use the word arazzo, and tape is usually nastro or scotch.
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