Questions & Answers about Ho comprato quattro cosce di pollo.
Why is the plural spelled cosce instead of coscie?
This follows the rule for feminine nouns ending in unstressed -cia or -gia. If the ending is preceded by a consonant (like the s in coscia), the i is dropped in the plural. Therefore, coscia becomes cosce. If it were preceded by a vowel instead, it would keep the i (for example, camicia becomes camicie).
Does dropping the i in cosce change how the word is pronounced?
No, the pronunciation rule remains consistent! In the singular coscia, the i is silent; it only exists to tell you to pronounce the sc as a soft "sh" sound rather than a hard "sk" sound. In the plural, the vowel e automatically makes the sc soft. Spelling it as coscie would be completely redundant because the e already does the job of softening the consonant.
Why do we use di pollo instead of del pollo here?
We use the simple preposition di (of) because pollo is acting as a category or material here, simply describing the type of thigh. If you used the articulated preposition del (of the), it would sound like you are talking about the thighs belonging to one specific, live chicken that you were already talking about.