vostro
The Italian phrase for 'your plural' is vostro.
vostro is a possessive pronoun used when referring to something belonging to two or more people.
Which one should you use?
Use vostro when addressing a group of people, whereas tuo is used when addressing a single person informally.
How does it change in a sentence?
The form of the possessive pronoun changes to match the gender of the noun being possessed. Use vostro for masculine singular, vostra for feminine singular, vostri for masculine plural and vostre for feminine plural. Additionally, possessive adjectives are typically preceded by a definite article (il, la, i, le), as seen in the form il vostro.
Did you know?
- In many parts of Southern Italy, the plural 'you' form voi and its related possessive vostro are used as the standard formal way to address a single person. This creates a situation where you use a plural pronoun to show respect to one individual.
- The word vostro descends from the Latin vostrum, which comes from an even older Proto-Italic form *westeros.
- When talking about immediate family members like 'your mother' or 'your father', the article before vostro is often dropped. Instead of saying il vostro padre, an Italian will simply say vostro padre.
Examples in context
- Ecco i vostri documenti.Here are your documents.
- Sto cercando la vostra azienda.I am looking for your company.
- Il vostro cane è molto dolce.Your dog is very sweet.
- Ho visto il vostro ufficio ieri.I saw your office yesterday.
Example conversation
Francesco and Chiara are talking to a couple at a restaurant.
- FrancescoAvete già scelto il vostro piatto?Have you already chosen your dish?
- ChiaraSì, abbiamo preso la pizza.Yes, we had the pizza.
- FrancescoOttima scelta, è molto buona.Great choice, it is very good.
- ChiaraGrazie, Francesco.Thank you, Francesco.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries vostro, CC BY-SA 4.0.
