Breakdown of Questa è l'undicesima partita che abbiamo perso.
essere
to be
questa
this (feminine)
avere
to have
la partita
match
Questions & Answers about Questa è l'undicesima partita che abbiamo perso.
How is the word for "eleventh" (undicesima) formed from the number eleven (undici)?
For numbers 11 and up, you form the ordinal number by dropping the final vowel of the regular number and adding the suffix -esimo. So, undici loses its final i to become undic-, and then we add the suffix. Because it describes the feminine noun partita (match), the ending changes to -a, giving us undicesima.
Why does the article have an apostrophe in l'undicesima partita?
Ordinal numbers act like adjectives and usually come before the noun they describe. Because partita is feminine singular, it requires the definite article la. However, since undicesima starts with a vowel, la drops its a and becomes l' for a smoother sound.
Is perso an irregular verb form?
Yes, perso is the irregular past participle of perdere (to lose). Many common Italian verbs ending in -ere have irregular past participles. You might also occasionally hear perduto, which is a regular version of the same past participle, but perso is much more common in everyday spoken Italian.
Since we are talking about a feminine noun (partita), shouldn't the past participle be persa?