Italian Language Lessons
Grammar, spelling, and usage
Italian Job Titles
Printer–Friendly Version
You probably know that for every professore there is a professoressa, and for every studente there is a studentessa. But how about other nouns of profession, status, or relation that have a male and a female version?
Most masculine nouns ending in -tore become feminine by changing -tore to -trice (see table below).
| GENDERED NOUNS: FROM -TORE TO -TRICE |
|---|
| MASCULINE | FEMININE | ENGLISH |
|---|
| attore | attrice | actor |
| autore | autrice | author |
| direttore | direttrice | director |
| imperatore | imperatrice | emperor/empress |
| lavoratore | lavoratrice | worker |
| pittore | pittrice | painter |
| scrittore | scrittrice | writer |
| stiratore | stiratrice | presser |
| traditore | traditrice | traitor |
| traduttore | traduttrice | translator |
Some masculine nouns become feminine by changing their final vowel to -a (see table below).
| GENDERED NOUNS THAT GAIN AN -A IN THE FEMININE |
|---|
| MASCULINE | FEMININE | ENGLISH |
|---|
| cameriere | cameriera | waiter/waitress |
| cassiere | cassiera | bank teller |
| figlio | figlia | son/daughter |
| giardiniere | giardiniera | gardener |
| infermiere | infermiera | nurse |
| marchese | marchesa | marquis/marchioness |
| padrone | padrona | boss, owner |
| portiere | portiera | doorman/doorwoman |
| sarto | sarta | tailor/dressmaker |
| signore | signora | Mr./Mrs. |
Take note that there are certain names of professions that end in -a regardless of whether the term refers to a male or a female. In such case, the gender distinction is made by the definite article: il giornalista/la giornalista, il dentista/la dentista. The plurals of these professions follow the same general rule as with any other noun: Plural masculine nouns end in -i (i giornalisti, i dentisi), plural feminine nouns end in -e (le giornaliste, le dentiste).
Finally, certain masculine nouns become feminine by replacing their final vowel with -essa (see the following table).
| GENDERED NOUNS THAT GAIN AN -ESSA IN THE FEMININE |
|---|
| MASCULINE | FEMININE | ENGLISH |
|---|
| avvocato | avvocatessa | lawyer |
| campione | campionessa | champion |
| conte | contessa | count/countess |
| dottore | dottoressa | doctor |
| oste | ostessa | host/hostess |
| poeta | poetessa | poet |
| principe | principessa | prince/princess |
| profeta | profetessa | prophet |
| sacerdote | sacerdotessa | high priest/priestess |
| studente | studentessa | student |
| Italian Language Study Resources |
| Language Lessons: Italian grammar, spelling, and usage. |
| Audio Phrasebook: Improve your pronunciation and build your vocabulary. |
| Workbook Exercises: Worksheets, drills, activities, and review. |
| Buon Divertimento: Italian jokes, riddles, and puns. |
| Italian Verbs: Formation, moods, tenses, and table of conjugations. |
| Study Guides: Challenge your skills and test your knowledge of various topics. |
| Audio Lab: Word of the day, survival phrases, ABC's, numbers, and conversation. |
Newsletter
