Italian flag

Why Italian says 'un binocolo' and 'una bilancia'

In English, a lot of tools and everyday objects are grammatically plural even when you mean just one: binoculars, scales, pliers, braces, dentures, pyjamas. You say these binoculars are light, and if you want to count them you need a pair of or a set of. Italian usually names one of these objects with an ordinary singular noun: un binocolo, una bilancia, un pigiama.

English speakers trip over this because the English plural feels built into the object. The result is sentences like i binocoli sono leggeri when you are holding only one pair. To an Italian ear, that sounds like you own several.

Word list
bilanciafB1 balance una bilancia = a set of scales costume da bagnomB1 swimming trunks il costume da bagno = swimming trunks pigiamamB1 pajamas il pigiama = the pyjamas apparecchiomB2 braces l'apparecchio = braces binocolomB2 binoculars un binocolo = a pair of binoculars compassomB2 compass un compasso = a pair of compasses dentierafC1 dentures una dentiera = a set of dentures protesifC1 dentures la protesi = dentures protesi dentariafC1 dentures una protesi dentaria = a set of dentures pinzafC2 pliers una pinza = a pair of pliers
How it works

These Italian words are normal countable nouns. One object takes a singular article, a singular adjective and a singular verb. Two or more objects take the regular plural. There is no need for anything like a pair of: un binocolo is already the whole thing.

Questo binocolo è molto leggero.
(These binoculars are very light.)

The plural exists and works just as you would expect. It simply means more than one object:

In laboratorio abbiamo due bilance nuove.
(We have two new sets of scales in the lab.)

Rule of thumb: count the objects, not the English grammar. If there is one thing on the table, use the singular in Italian.

The words
Tools and devices

A bilancia is any weighing device, from kitchen scales to bathroom scales. A binocolo is a pair of binoculars. A compasso is the drawing tool, a pair of compasses. A pinza is a pair of pliers.

La bilancia del bagno non funziona.
(The bathroom scales aren't working.)
Per il compito di geometria ti serve un compasso.
(You need a pair of compasses for the geometry homework.)
Mi passi la pinza? È nella cassetta degli attrezzi.
(Can you pass me the pliers? They're in the toolbox.)
Things for your teeth

Braces are l'apparecchio, literally the device. Dentures are la dentiera, or more formally la protesi dentaria, often shortened to la protesi.

Mia figlia porta l'apparecchio da due anni.
(My daughter has had braces for two years.)
La dentiera del nonno è sul comodino.
(Grandad's dentures are on the bedside table.)
La nuova protesi dentaria è molto comoda.
(The new dentures are very comfortable.)
Il dentista mi ha detto che la protesi è pronta.
(The dentist told me my dentures are ready.)
Clothes

Pyjamas are il pigiama, and men's swimming trunks are il costume da bagno, or just il costume.

Il tuo pigiama è sotto il cuscino.
(Your pyjamas are under the pillow.)
Il costume da bagno è ancora bagnato.
(My swimming trunks are still wet.)
Watch out

The typical mistake is carrying the English plural across: i binocoli, le bilance or i pigiami for a single object. These forms are correct Italian, but they mean several binoculars, several scales or several pairs of pyjamas.

English is not always plural either. Americans often say a scale, a balance is singular, and in American English a compass can be the drawing tool. For these words the contrast is weaker, but the Italian singular stays the same.

A few words need extra care:

  • protesi has the same ending in the singular and the plural, so the article shows the number: la protesi is one, le protesi are several.
  • pinza is the standard singular, but in everyday speech many Italians also say le pinze for one tool. You will hear both.
  • Not every English plural object turns singular. Gli occhiali (glasses), le forbici (scissors), i pantaloni (trousers), le mutande (underpants) and i collant (tights) stay plural, just as in English. For these, a single item is un paio di: un paio di forbici.
Summary

When English uses a built-in plural for one object, such as binoculars, scales, pliers, braces, dentures, pyjamas or trunks, Italian often uses a plain singular noun: il binocolo, la bilancia, la pinza, l'apparecchio, la dentiera, il pigiama, il costume. Count the real objects: one thing takes a singular article and verb, and the plural means more than one. Just remember the handful that stay plural, like occhiali, forbici and pantaloni.