“Qualche” vs “Alcuni”
These two Italian indefinite adjectives can both be translated in English as “some”. However, they have different grammatical uses and, today, I will explain to you their main differences.
Let me start by saying that there are different ways to say “some” In Italian, but some of them are interchangeable while others are not. As a matter of fact, qualche and alcuni are used differently and are not interchangeable.
- Qualche: This is always followed by a singular noun and is considered singular in construction. It implies an indefinite, small number of items and never varies according to the gender of the noun it refers to. For example:
Qualche giorno fa.
A few days ago.
Qualche volta.
Sometimes.
- Alcuni: This is used with plural nouns and is plural itself. It indicates a small number, but usually more than what is suggested by “qualche”, and changes according to the gender of the noun it refers to. For example:
Alcune amiche.
Some friends.
Alcuni giorni.
Some days.
So, the choice between “qualche” and “alcuni” mainly depends on the grammatical information of the noun that follows.
“Qualche” in Italian
Qualche never varies, which means it is always singular and has no masculine or feminine form.
Passami qualche bicchiere.
Pass me a few glasses.
As you might have notice, the words qualcheand bicchiere are in their singular forms, although we are talking about a small quantity of bicchieri (glasses).
Let’s see some more examples:
Non lo vedo da qualche anno.
I haven’t seen him in a few years.
Hai avuto qualche problema in banca?
Did you have any problems at the bank?
Another thing you can notice is that “qualche” is used in affirmative, negative, and interrogative sentences. Therefore, unlike English, it does not vary depending on the communicative act of the sentence.
“Alcuni” in Italian
While qualche is always singular, alcuni (masculine) and alcune (feminine) are always plural, therefore followed by a plural noun. These forms also change in gender to agree with the noun they precede.
Alcune cose sono in saldo.
Some things are on sale.
Ci sono stati alcuni problemi.
There were some problems.
Alcuni alberi sono caduti a causa del temporale.
Some trees fell due to the storm.
The word alcuno, alcun, alcuna does exist in the singular form, but it is only used in negative sentences to replace nessuno, nessun, nessuna (nothing or no).
Non c’è alcun – Non c’è nessun problema.
There is no problem.
Non è di alcuna utilità. – Non è di nessuna utilità.
It is of no use.
Other Ways to say “Some” in Italian
There are many ways to say some in Italian:
- Un po’ di
Ho un po’ di libri.
I have some books.
- Del, dello, della, dei, degli, delle
Ho dei libri.
I have some books.
- Qualche
Ho qualche libro.
I have some books.
- Alcuni, alcune
Ho alcuni libri.
I have some books.
The first one, un po’ (some or a few) is the most informal and it is mainly used in spoken Italian. It never changes its form and can be used both with countable and uncountable nouns.
The second ones are partitive articles, and can also be used with both countable and uncountable nouns. These are formed by the preposition di combined with the definite articles which, of course, vary depending the gender and number of the noun.
The other two, now you know them! However, as a rule of thumb, if you are referring to countable nouns you can use all possible forms, while if you are referring to uncountable nouns you can use either a partitive article or the structure “un po’ di”.
You can use it exactly as you would use some in English.
Giovanna ha comprato un po’ di pane.
Giovanna bought some bread.
Giulio ha piantato un po’ di alberi.
Giulio planted some trees.
Remember, when the word that follows starts with a vowel, un po’ di can sometimes become un po’ d’ especially when it is followed by an uncountable noun.
Vuoi un po’ d’acqua?
Would you like some water?
