Learn Italian: Il problema stesso non è complicato. - The problem itself is not complicated.

Il problema stesso non è complicato.

The problem itself is not complicated.

Breakdown of Il problema stesso non è complicato.

Questions & Answers about Il problema stesso non è complicato.

Why is stesso placed after the noun problema here instead of before it?

When stesso is placed immediately after a noun, it adds emphasis and means "itself" (or "himself/herself"). If you place it before the noun, as in lo stesso problema, it changes the meaning to "the same problem".

Since problema ends in -a, shouldn't the adjective be the feminine stessa?

No, problema is a masculine noun. It belongs to a group of words of Greek origin ending in -ma (like il sistema and il programma) that are masculine in Italian. That is why it uses the masculine article il and why the adjectives stesso and complicato take the masculine -o ending.

Could I use medesimo in this sentence instead?

Yes, you can say Il problema medesimo. Just like stesso, placing medesimo after the noun translates to "itself". It means exactly the same thing, though medesimo sounds a bit more formal or literary in everyday speech.