Italian Prepositions
Prepositions are short words used to complement an adjective, adverb, noun, or pronoun. The basic Italian prepositions are di, a, da, in, con, su, per, tra/fra. Di, a, da, in, su, and per can be simple, when they are used alone, without article; or articulated, when they are tense with the article, forming a whole word.
The other prepositions don't have a tense form, even when matched with the article. In the past the preposition "con" had tense forms, which are no more in use except for the col form.
Resources for further reading:
Italian Prepositions in and a : forms and examples
The Italian preposition in usually means in. It is used to indicate:
- direction (to) when linked to countries, regions, continents, big islands, bank, mountain, library or church
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Vai in Francia?
Are you going to France?
- periods of the year, like seasons, months, years (in, during)
In estate
in Summer
- means of transporting
Vado in treno
I go by train
The Italian preposition a means "at." It is used to indicate:
- direction (to) when linked to cities or little islands
Tornate a Parigi?
Do you come back to Paris?
- destination (to)
Ho scritto una lettera a Maria
I wrote a letter to Maria
- time (at)
Alle 7
At 7.00 a.m
- to give a substantive an adverbial or adjectival meaning
Il maglione a righe
The striped pullover
- before the infinitive
Andiamo a ballare
We go to dance
In front of the definitive articles, in and a take the following forms:
IN:
nel (in + il)
nello (in + lo)
nell' (in + l')
nella (in + lin)
nei (in + i)
negli (in + gli)
nelle (in + le)
A:
al (a + il)
allo (a + lo)
all' (a + l')
alla (a + la)
ai (a + i)
agli (a + gli)
alle (a + le)
The Italian prepositions di and da : forms and examples
(Luigi guarda in + la bottiglia) Luigi guarda nella bottiglia
Luigi looks in the bottle
(Io vado a + il cinema) io vado al cinema
I am going to the cinema
The preposition di usually means of. It is also used to indicate:
- direction (from) when following essere
Io sono di Milano
I am from Milan
- time with words indicating parts of the day or days of the week
Di notte
At night
- materials
La maglietta di cotone
The cotton shirt
- arguments (about) with verbs as parlare (to talk), trattare (to treat), discutere (to discuss)
Giorgio discute sempre di politica
Giorgio always discusses politics
The preposition da means from, since, or by. It is also used to indicate: - direction (to) when linked to people or worker
Vado dal macellaio
I go to the butcher
ma vado in macelleria
but I go to the butchery
- the aim of an object:
Occhiali da sole
Sunglasses
In front of definitive articles, di and da take the following forms:
DI:
del (di + il)
dello (di + lo)
dell' (di + l')
della (di + la)
dei (di + i)
degli (di + gli)
delle (di + le)
DA:
dal (da + il)
dallo (da + lo)
dall' (da + l')
dalla (da + la)
dai (da + i)
dagli (da + gli)
dalle (da + le)
(Io sono il figlio di + il signor Rossi) Io sono il figlio del signor Rossi
I am Mr. Rossi's son
(Io vengo da + la campagna) Io vengo dalla campagna
I am coming from the country
The prepositions con, per and tra/fra : forms and examples
The preposition con means with.
Esco con Paola
I go out with Paola
Pago con la carta di credito
I pay with the credit card
The preposition per means for
Questo regalo è per te
This present is for you
La camera è per due notti
The room is for two nights
It can also indicate direction linked to the verb partire (to leave) or with means of transportation.
Parto per Roma
I leave for Rome
Il bus per Milano
The bus for Milan
The preposition tra/fra means between (place) or within/in (time).
La banca è tra la scuola e il bar
The bank is between the school and the bar
Mi sposo tra due anni
I get married in two years
There are no differences between tra and fra; it is just a stylistic choice depending on the speaker.
The Italian preposition su
The preposition su means on or about
La bottiglia è sul tavolo
The bottle is on the table
Il libro su Macchiavelli è molto interessante
The book about Macchiavelli is very interesting
As we said before, the preposition di can also mean about. Take care about the context:
Il libro di Macchiavelli è sulla politica
Macchiavelli's book is about politics
Il libro di Macchiavelli parla di politica
Macchiavelli's book talks about politics
In front of definitive articles, su takes the following forms:
sul (su + il)
sullo (su + lo)
sull' (su + l')
sulla (su + la)
sui (su + i)
sugli (su + gli)
sulle (su + le)
(Il rifugio si trova su + la montagna) Il rifugio si trova sulla montagna
The shelter is on the mountain
Italian preposition summary
- The main Italian prepositions are di, a, da, in, con, su, per, and tra/fra
- The prepositions di, a, da, in, su can be simple (not tense) or articulated (tense with the corresponding article). Per, tra/fra have just the simple form, while con can only become col.
- Tra and fra have exactly the same meaning; it is just a stylistic choice for the speaker/writer.
- Usually Italian articles can be translated in English as follows:
di
of
a
at, to
da
from, by
in
in
con
with
su
on, about
per
for
tra/fra
between
For more on Italian grammar check out these lessons!
- Italian pronouns are a must-know. Get started here.
- How scary is Italian verb conjugation? Not too scary after this lesson!
- Know your action words with this lesson on Italian verbs.
A presto!
Maria Di Lorenzi: Rocket Italian
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