What are the indefinite articles in Italian?

There are four: un and uno for masculine nouns, and una and un' for feminine nouns. All of them mean a or an. Uno is used before s plus a consonant, z, gn, ps, x, and y, and un' is used before a feminine word that starts with a vowel.

When do you use uno instead of un?

Use uno before masculine words that start with s plus a consonant (uno studente), z (uno zaino), gn (uno gnomo), ps (uno psicologo), x, or y (uno yogurt). It is the same group of words that takes lo. Before a vowel and before most consonants, use un.

When does un take an apostrophe?

Only when it stands for feminine una before a vowel: un'amica, un'ora, un'idea. Masculine un never takes an apostrophe: un amico, un uomo, un albero.

What is the plural of un and una in Italian?

Italian has no plural indefinite article. To say some, use dei, degli, or delle (dei libri, degli amici, delle case), or alcuni and alcune (alcuni libri, alcune case). You can also leave the article out: ho comprato mele e pere.

Do you use a or an before professions in Italian?

Usually not. Sono medico, è ingegnere, and faccio l'insegnante all give a job with no indefinite article. If you add an adjective, the article returns: è un medico bravissimo.

Italian grammar · Beginner

Italian Indefinite Articles

Written by Parrot Italian Team, Italian Curriculum Editors · Reviewed October 2026

Italian indefinite articles are the words for a and an: un, uno, una, and un'. Masculine nouns take un, or uno before s plus a consonant, z, gn, ps, x, and y; feminine nouns take una, or un' before a vowel. There is no plural indefinite article: for some, Italian uses dei, degli, delle, or alcuni.

Ho un fratello, una sorella e uno zio a Roma.

I have a brother, a sister, and an uncle in Rome.

What it is

Like English a and an, the Italian indefinite article changes with the next sound, and it also agrees with the gender of the noun. The apostrophe is the part that confuses learners: un' appears only before feminine words, because only una loses a vowel. Masculine un never takes an apostrophe, so you write un amico but un'amica.

un libro, uno studente, un amico (masculine); una casa, una studentessa, un'amica (feminine).

How to spot it

Find the gender first, then look at the first letter of the next word. A masculine word starting with s plus a consonant or z takes uno; a feminine word starting with a vowel takes un'.

un ragazzo e una ragazza (a boy and a girl)
uno zaino e uno specchio (a backpack and a mirror)
un albero e un'isola (a tree and an island)
un'ora e un orologio (an hour and a watch)

Un and uno are also the number one before a noun, so un libro can mean a book or one book. Context tells you which.

Indefinite Articles Quick Reference

The indefinite articles, by gender and the first sound of the next word

Next word starts with	Masculine	Masculine example	Feminine	Feminine example
Most consonants	un	un libro (a book)	una	una casa (a house)
s + consonant	uno	uno studente (a student)	una	una studentessa (a student)
z	uno	uno zio (an uncle)	una	una zia (an aunt)
gn, ps, x, y	uno	uno psicologo (a psychologist), uno yogurt (a yogurt)	una	una psicologa (a psychologist)
A vowel	un	un amico (a friend)	un'	un'amica (a friend)
Plural (some)	dei, degli	dei libri, degli amici (some books, some friends)	delle	delle case (some houses)

Common Indefinite Articles Examples in Italian

The indefinite article in everyday sentences:

Masculine: Un and Uno

Vorrei un caffè, per favore.: I'd like a coffee, please.
Cerco uno zaino nuovo.: I'm looking for a new backpack.
Ho un appuntamento alle tre.: I have an appointment at three.

Un stays un before a vowel: un appuntamento, un amico, un uomo.

Feminine: Una and Un'

Abito in una piccola città.: I live in a small town.
Aspetto un'amica.: I'm waiting for a friend.
Ci vediamo tra un'ora.: See you in an hour.

Un'amica and un amico sound the same. The apostrophe is how writing shows the gender.

Where English and Italian Differ

Che bella giornata!: What a beautiful day!
Mio padre è ingegnere.: My father is an engineer.

Exclamations with che and professions after essere usually take no article in Italian.

Plural: Some

Ho comprato delle mele.: I bought some apples.

Italian has no plural of un. Dei, degli, and delle (di plus the article) do the job.

How to Choose the Right Indefinite Article

The same sound rules as the definite article, with one twist: the apostrophe is feminine only.

Un Never Takes an Apostrophe

Un is a complete word, not a shortened one, so it needs no apostrophe before a vowel. Una is the form that shortens, which gives un'. If you can see an apostrophe, the noun is feminine.

Ho un amico a Napoli e un'amica a Bari.

I have a male friend in Naples and a female friend in Bari.

un amico, un'amica.

Uno Follows the Same Rule as Lo

Wherever the definite article is lo, the indefinite article is uno: before s plus a consonant, z, gn, ps, x, and y. If you know lo studente, you know uno studente.

C'è uno sconto del venti per cento.

There's a twenty percent discount.

lo sconto → uno sconto.

The Next Word Decides

As with il and lo, the article depends on the word directly after it. If an adjective comes first, the adjective decides: uno zio, but un bravo zio; un'amica, but una vecchia amica.

È una vecchia amica di famiglia.

She's an old family friend.

un'amica, una vecchia amica.

No Article for Professions After Essere

English says she is a doctor. Italian usually says è medico, with no article. When an adjective describes the person, the article comes back: è un medico molto bravo.

Luca è medico. È un medico molto bravo.

Luca is a doctor. He's a very good doctor.

è medico, but è un bravo medico.

Che Exclamations Drop the Article

English says what a shame or what a day. Italian uses che plus the noun, with no article.

Che peccato!

What a shame!

che + noun, no article.

Common Mistakes with Indefinite Articles

Incorrect: un'amico (a friend (male))

Correct: un amico (a friend (male))

Masculine un never takes an apostrophe. Only feminine una shortens to un'.

Incorrect: una amica (a friend (female))

Correct: un'amica (a friend (female))

Before a vowel, una normally shortens to un'. The apostrophe shows that a letter was dropped.

Incorrect: un studente (a student)

Correct: uno studente (a student)

Studente starts with s + consonant, so it takes uno. This is the same rule that gives lo studente.

Incorrect: Che una bella giornata! (What a beautiful day!)

Correct: Che bella giornata! (What a beautiful day!)

English needs a after what. Italian exclamations with che take no article.

Plurals and Special Cases

What to use when there is no plural of un, and the places where Italian leaves the article out or uses a different one.

Plural: dei, degli, delle, alcuni

For the plural of a or an, use the partitive (dei, degli, delle) or alcuni and alcune, which mean some or a few. You can also use no article at all, especially in lists.

Ho visto degli amici al bar.: I saw some friends at the bar.
Ho letto alcuni libri interessanti.: I've read a few interesting books.
Ci sono delle novità.: There's some news.

Degli follows the same sound rules as gli: degli studenti, degli amici.

Professions with fare

Another common way to give a job is fare plus the definite article. It means the same as essere plus the bare noun.

Faccio l'infermiera.: I'm a nurse.
Mio padre fa il cuoco.: My father is a chef.

Faccio l'insegnante and sono insegnante both mean I'm a teacher.

Exclamations

In exclamations, che comes directly before the noun or the adjective, with no article at all.

Che sorpresa!: What a surprise!
Che bella casa!: What a beautiful house!

Che + adjective + noun, or che + noun + adjective: che casa bella! is also correct.

Quick Check: Indefinite Articles

Write the correct indefinite article, or the plural form in the last item.

1. ___ zio

Answer: uno

z takes uno

2. ___ amica

Answer: un'

feminine before a vowel

3. ___ amico

Answer: un

masculine un never takes an apostrophe

4. ___ psicologa

Answer: una

feminine has no uno form, so una

5. ___ studente