Free Italian Articles Quiz: Il, Lo, La or L'
This Italian articles quiz asks for the article of 2,281 everyday nouns, one at a time: il, lo, la or l' in the singular, i, gli or le in the plural, or un, uno, una or un'. Tap a button or press a number key, and the answer appears with the reason in one line, such as "lo: it starts with s + a consonant (st)." When a noun breaks its ending's rule, as la mano does, the quiz says so and shows how often the rule holds. A running score stays on screen, and at the end you can practice only the nouns you missed. It's free and needs no signup.
How the Italian articles quiz works
Start by choosing what to practice. The singular mode asks for il, lo, la or l', as in il libro, lo zio, l'amico and la casa. The plural mode asks for i, gli or le: i libri, gli zii, le case. A third mode asks for un, uno, una or un': un libro, uno zio, un'amica. A fourth mixes all three.
Each answer has its own button, and each button shows a model noun under it, such as lo zio under lo and l'amico under l', so you can compare the sound. On a keyboard, press 1 to 4 for il, lo, la and l', 1 to 3 for i, gli and le, or 1 to 4 for un, uno, una and un'. Enter takes you to the next noun.
A running score stays on screen. To see the Italian on its own, hide the English meaning. At the end of a set, you can practice only the nouns you missed.
2,281 everyday Italian nouns
We built the list from the nouns that come up most often in Italian film and TV subtitles. Rare words, verb and adjective forms, slang and names came out. The rest was reviewed for everyday Italian, and every noun that stayed got an English meaning. That left 2,281 nouns, 1,305 masculine and 976 feminine.
You don't have to take all 2,281 at once. Choose a set of 100, 300 or 1,000 nouns, or all of them.
Tricky starts and exceptions
Two sets pick out the nouns that trip learners up. Tricky starts holds 553 nouns that begin with s plus a consonant, z, ps, y, a vowel, h, j, w or a French ch, such as studente, zio, psicologo, yoga, amico and hotel. For these nouns the gender isn't enough, because the first sound decides the article.
Exceptions holds 55 nouns. Some have a gender that goes against their ending, such as la mano and il problema. Others have an irregular plural, such as le uova, gli uomini and gli dei.
What you see after each answer
Every answer comes back with the noun and its article, plus its other forms. For studente, that's the plural gli studenti and uno studente. A one-line reason follows, such as "le: uovo is masculine, but its plural uova is feminine."
Where a noun breaks its ending's rule, the quiz says so and gives the count. For la mano, it reads: "An exception: nouns ending in -o are masculine (16,678 of the 16,753 in our dictionary), but this one is feminine."
Nouns that take either gender
Some nouns take either gender, and either answer counts. The quiz has 84 of them: 82 person nouns, such as il or la cantante, collega, artista, giornalista, turista, cliente and presidente, and two nouns used both ways, internet and email.
Another 43 nouns are spelled like an everyday noun of the other gender, such as il fine and la fine, la radio and il tema. These always show their meaning, even with the English hidden, because the meaning decides the answer. Plural questions skip the 19 nouns with no plural in use, such as the months, la salute and il jazz.
A quiz for practice, a checker for lookups
The quiz is for practice, one noun at a time. To look up the nouns from your own textbook, paste up to 100 at once into the Italian article checker and copy them back with their articles. For the chart and the rules behind each answer, read the Italian articles guide. For the verbs in the same lesson, print the Italian verb conjugation worksheets or look a verb up in the Italian verb conjugation tables.
Frequently asked questions
Is this Italian articles quiz free?
Yes. There's no account to make and nothing to install.
Which nouns are in the quiz?
The quiz has 2,281 everyday nouns, chosen from the nouns most frequent in Italian film and TV subtitles, with rare words, verb and adjective forms, slang and names taken out. Of those, 1,305 are masculine and 976 feminine, and each has an English meaning. You can take a set of 100, 300 or 1,000, or all 2,281.
Does it test the plural and indefinite articles too?
Yes. The singular mode asks for il, lo, la or l', the plural mode for i, gli or le, and a third mode for un, uno, una or un'. A fourth mode mixes all three.
Can I answer with the keyboard?
Yes. Press 1 to 4 for il, lo, la and l', 1 to 3 for i, gli and le, or 1 to 4 for un, uno, una and un'. Enter takes you to the next noun.
What does the quiz show after each answer?
It shows the noun with its article and its other forms, such as gli studenti and uno studente, and the reason in one line. If the noun breaks its ending's rule, it says so: "An exception: nouns ending in -o are masculine (16,678 of the 16,753 in our dictionary), but this one is feminine."
What about nouns with two genders?
For 84 nouns, either answer counts. Most are person nouns, such as il or la cantante and il or la collega, and two, internet and email, are used both ways. A noun such as fine, which is il fine for an aim and la fine for the end, always shows its meaning, even if you hide the English, because the meaning decides the answer.
Can I use it as an Italian articles test?
Yes. Pick a set, hide the English if you like, and the running score shows how you're doing as you go.
Can I practice only the nouns I got wrong?
Yes. At the end of a set, you can go through only the nouns you missed.
Licenses and credits
Italian nouns, genders, plurals and pronunciations come from English Wiktionary through kaikki.org (CC BY-SA 4.0). Which article Italian books print before nouns whose first sound the spelling leaves open, such as pneumatico and hall, is counted from the Google Books Ngram data (CC BY 3.0). The quiz's nouns are chosen by their frequency in FrequencyWords (Hermit Dave, from OpenSubtitles 2018, CC BY-SA 4.0), and their English meanings are written for NexaProva.