Breakdown of Mio cugino è al dodicesimo posto in classifica.
essere
to be
il cugino
the cousin
in
in / made of (material)
mio
my
il posto
the place/the seat
al
to the / at the
dodicesimo
twelfth
la classifica
the standings / the ranking
Questions & Answers about Mio cugino è al dodicesimo posto in classifica.
How do we form dodicesimo from the number twelve (dodici)?
To form ordinal numbers from 11th onwards, you take the regular number, drop its final vowel, and add the suffix -esimo. For twelve (dodici), you drop the final i and add -esimo to get dodicesimo.
Does dodicesimo change its ending depending on the noun it describes?
Yes. Ordinal numbers ending in -esimo act just like regular adjectives ending in -o. Since posto (place) is masculine singular, it stays dodicesimo. If it were describing a feminine singular noun, it would become dodicesima, and so on.
Why doesn't the sentence say il mio cugino? I thought possessives usually need a definite article.
You usually need a definite article with possessives in Italian, but there is an important exception: singular, unmodified family members. Because cugino (cousin) is a singular family member, it just takes mio, not il mio.
Why do we use the preposition combination al before dodicesimo posto?
Learn Mio cugino è al dodicesimo posto in classifica and more in Italian
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free