In Italian, indefinite adjectives and pronouns (aggettivi e pronomi indefiniti) refer to people, animals, or things without identifying them exactly or giving a precise number. They express ideas such as some, many, few, all, someone, and nothing. The main difference is that indefinite adjectives are used with a noun, while indefinite pronouns stand on their own and take the place of a noun. These words are common in everyday Italian, especially when talking about quantities, groups of people, or things we do not know or cannot identify.
Indefinite Adjectives
The most useful indefinite adjectives for beginners include molto (much, many), poco (little, few), troppo (too much, too many), tutto (all), and qualche (some, a few). Most of these change their endings to agree with the noun in gender and number, following the usual pattern of adjectives ending in -o. For example, molto becomes molta, molti, or molte, depending on the noun. The word qualche is different: it never changes and is always followed by a singular noun, even though it often refers to more than one person or thing. For example, Italian uses the singular libro in qualche libro, while English uses the plural books in a few books. Another important pattern is that tutto normally comes before the definite article when referring to an entire group or quantity, as in tutti i giorni (every day) or tutte le persone (all the people).
Ho molti amici. — I have many friends.
Bevo poca acqua. — I drink little water.
Ci sono troppe persone. — There are too many people.
Ho qualche libro. — I have a few books.
Studio tutti i giorni. — I study every day.
Indefinite Pronouns
Indefinite pronouns refer to people or things without naming them directly. Some of the most common are qualcuno (someone), qualcosa (something), nessuno (no one), niente (nothing), and tutti (everyone, all). Unlike indefinite adjectives, these pronouns do not need a noun after them. Qualcuno and nessuno refer to people, while qualcosa and niente refer to things. The pronoun tutti can refer to people or things already clear from the context, and its feminine form tutte is used when referring to a feminine plural group. An important rule concerns negative sentences: when nessuno or niente comes after the verb, Italian normally uses non before the verb. When nessuno or niente comes before the verb, non is normally omitted.
Qualcuno è alla porta. — Someone is at the door.
Voglio qualcosa da mangiare. — I want something to eat.
Tutti sono pronti. — Everyone is ready.
Non vedo nessuno. — I don't see anyone.
Nessuno è qui. — No one is here.
Non ho niente. — I don't have anything.
Niente funziona. — Nothing works.
Summary of Italian Indefinite Adjectives and Pronouns
| Meaning | Indefinite adjective | Example with a noun | Indefinite pronoun |
| Many | molto, molta, molti, molte | molti amici | molti |
| Few / Little | poco, poca, pochi, poche | poche persone | pochi |
| Too many / Too much | troppo, troppa, troppi, troppe | troppe persone | troppi |
| All / Everyone | tutto, tutta, tutti, tutte | tutti i giorni | tutti |
| Some / A few | qualche (invariable) | qualche libro | — |
| Someone | — | — | qualcuno |
| Something | — | — | qualcosa |
| No one | — | — | nessuno |
| Nothing | — | — | niente |