Log inSign up

Il mio nome è italiano, ma il mio cognome è inglese.

Il mio nome è italiano, ma il mio cognome è inglese.
My first name is Italian, but my last name is English.
From Lesson 20:Singular possessives (il mio, la mia)·Italian

Questions & Answers about Il mio nome è italiano, ma il mio cognome è inglese.

Why do we say il mio instead of just mio?
In Italian, you almost always need to use a definite article (like il or la) before a possessive adjective. So instead of just saying 'my name', you literally say 'the my name' (il mio nome).
Nome and cognome both end in -e. How do we know to use the masculine il mio instead of the feminine la mia?
Nouns that end in -e can be either masculine or feminine. You just have to memorize their gender when you learn them! Both nome and cognome happen to be masculine, which is why we use il mio for both of them.
Does nome mean 'name' or 'first name'?
It can mean both! When used by itself, nome usually refers to your full name or just your general name. But when it is paired with cognome (last name) like in this sentence, nome specifically means your first name.
Why does italiano end in -o while inglese ends in -e?
Italiano is a regular adjective that changes its ending to match the noun (-o for masculine, -a for feminine). Inglese belongs to a different group of adjectives that end in -e for both masculine and feminine singular nouns. Because cognome is masculine, we use inglese without changing its ending.

Learn Il mio nome è italiano, ma il mio cognome è inglese 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
Start learning Italian →