Breakdown of Le diagnosi dei pazienti non sono sempre esatte.
essere
to be
non
not
di
of, from
sempre
always
il paziente
the patient
esatto
exact
la diagnosi
the diagnosis
Questions & Answers about Le diagnosi dei pazienti non sono sempre esatte.
Why doesn't the ending of diagnosi change in the plural?
Diagnosi is a feminine noun of Greek origin that ends in -i. In Italian, these nouns are invariable, meaning their spelling stays exactly the same in the singular and the plural. We can tell it is plural here because of the plural article Le and the plural verb sono. The singular would be la diagnosi.
Since diagnosi ends in -i, how do we know to use the feminine plural adjective esatte?
Even though diagnosi does not change its ending, it is still grammatically a feminine plural noun in this sentence. Adjectives must always agree in gender and number with the noun they describe. Since diagnosi is feminine and plural, the adjective esatto (exact) changes to its feminine plural form, esatte.
Why is it dei pazienti instead of just di pazienti?
In English, we say "the patients' diagnoses" or "the diagnoses of the patients." Italian requires combining the preposition di (of) with the definite article i (the plural masculine article for pazienti). Di + i combines to form the articulated preposition dei.
Is pazienti masculine or feminine in this sentence?
It is masculine plural here. The singular noun paziente is the same for both men (il paziente) and women (la paziente). In the plural, a group of male or mixed-gender patients is masculine (i pazienti), while a group of exclusively female patients would be le pazienti. The article hidden inside dei (di + i) shows us this is the mixed or masculine group.
Learn Le diagnosi dei pazienti non sono sempre esatte 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