"Il vostro coltello non taglia."
Translation:Your knife does not cut.
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I am native speaker. By the way you can check it at the following links:
https://www.pimsleurapproach.com/resources/italian/grammar-guides/formal-informal/
http://www.orbilat.com/Languages/Italian/Grammar/Italian-Verb-Forms_of_address.html
Rae.F I disagree. When a past participle changes to reflect the gender of the subject : Lei e' venutA or with a direct object pronoun: L'ho comprata (< ho comprato la casa), it has not become an adjective. It's still a verbal form, namely a past participle. The language simply provides for the verb form to reflect gender.
TU
- the singular "you"
The following are declensions of the possessive form ("your"):
il tuo - your singular masculine thing
i tuoi - your plural masculine things
la tua - your singular feminine thing
le tue - your plural feminine things
VOI
- the plural "you"
The following are declensions of the possessive form ("your"):
il vostro - your singular masculine thing
i vostri - your plural masculine things
la vostra - your singular feminine thing
le vostre - your plural feminine things
When it's the possessive adjective (your thing), the article is mandatory.
When it's the possessive pronoun (yours), the article is optional.
http://www.italianlanguageguide.com/grammar/possessive-adjective.asp
Gotti...I think 'il coltello' is clearly the knife, that is, the whole utensil, implement, etc. while 'la lama' (assuming you're not referring to one at your local zoo or atop a mountain somewhere in Nepal), is the "business end" of a knife, i.e., the actual blade.. Examples of its use are: lama di rasoio (razor blade) and lama di spada (blade of a sword).
Jordyn...In English you need the auxiliary verb 'does' which you don't need in Italian. You can say: "The knife cuts." Or to be emphatic: "The knife does cut". In a negative sentence however, you can only say: "The knife does not cut." "The knife cuts not" is only seen/heard in poetic, archaic, or satirical writing.
English only has one "you" that pulls double duty as singular and plural. Many other languages have separate pronouns that make that distinction.
TU (singular "you", addressing exactly one person)
il tuo
(your singular masculine thing)
i tuoi
(your plural masculine things)
la tua
(your singular feminine thing)
le tue
(your plural feminine things)
VOI (plural "you/y'all", addressing two or more people)
il vostro
(y'all's singular masculine thing)
i vostri
(y'all's plural masculine things)
la vostra
(y'all's singular feminine thing)
le vostre
(y'all's plural feminine things)
115
Hi can anyone tell me why this is Il vostro not il tuo when it is singular and masculine?
Without any context, it could be either il tuo (addressing a singular person about his/her singular masculine thing) or il vostro (addressing multiple people about their singular masculine thing).
https://forum.duolingo.com/comment/264256?comment_id=4415969
https://forum.duolingo.com/comment/264256?comment_id=35158821
https://forum.duolingo.com/comment/646842?comment_id=31662782