The article is a PoS which combines and agrees
with the noun, qualifying it in
determinative (value def) and inderterminative way
(value indf).
The determinative article
combines with prepositions, giving rise to the so called ``preposizioni
articolate" (see below, under Prepositions).
Morphosyntactic criteria:
- The article has the gender and number marks and undergoes
the agrement mechanism with the noun.
An apparent conflicting case in the number of the
noun and its article is in crystalled expressions:
un due pezzi, la due ruote
(where the nouns costume is
omitted in the first expression and moto in the second one).
Graphical criteria:
- una and la are elided before words beginning with
vowel: l'erba, un'amica.
- uno and lo are elided before words beginning with vowel:
l'amico, un ambasciatore.
- the graphical form l' is homograph for the feminine and
the masculine (and can create problems in the recognition of the
gender, when tagging: l'insegnante masc. or femm.?).
- il, i and un are used before words beginning with
- simple consonant, i capi, il papa', un siluro,
or
- consonant other than s followed
by l or r, i.e. liquid:
il cloro, un trono, i Greci.
- lo, gli and uno are used:
a) before words beginning with
vowel (where lo and uno appear in the elided form
l' and un): l'oro, un eroe, gli Italiani.
b) before semi-consonant,