2.10 Prepositions, Directions, Asking Favors (Part 1)

2.10 Prepositions, Directions, Asking Favors
(Part 1)
Language & Culture Lessons
In this lesson, you'll learn more about prepositions in Italian, plus lots more ways to ask and answer questions. We'll
round out your grammar material with how to politely ask someone to do something for you, and also how to politely ask
for permission to do something.
We'll finish with some cultural notes on Italian accommodations.
Language Lesson
Prepositions, Directions, Asking Favors
Combined Prepositions - preposizioni articolate
When one of the simple prepositions meets a definite article, in Italian they become one word and they vary
according to the word that comes after them.
They vary because the word could be masculine, feminine, singular, plural, and as you know the article has to agree
with the noun that it refers to.
Let's have a look at the chart below where we see two prepositions: di (OF) and a (AT/TO) meeting the articles:
il
lo
la
l'
i
gli
le
di
del
dello
della
dell'
dei
degli
delle
a
al
allo
alla
all'
ai
agli
alle
Direction and Location Words
The following are a few examples of direction phrases that may be useful to know.
A sinistra
To the left
A destra
To the right
Al centro
At the center
Dietro
Behind
Di fronte
Opposite
Vicino
Near
Sopra
On top
In alto
At the top
Lontano
Far
Qui
Here
Sempre dritto
Straight ahead
Laggiù
Over there
Di sotto
Underneath
Per di là
That way
Dall'altra parte
The other side
Davanti
In front
Su
On
In mezzo
In the middle
In fondo / alla fine
At the end
Lì
There
Dentro
Inside
Sotto
Under
Accanto a
Next to
Fra / tra
Between
Dopo
Behind
Laggiù
Davanti
Fra
Asking directions
The most common way of asking the location of an object, person or place is: "Where is…?" Let's look at the following
five questions using Dov'è before we move on to answering them. Per esempio...
Dov'è il bagno?
Where is the bathroom?
Dov'è la macchina?
Where is the car?
Dov'è il ristorante?
Where is the restaurant?
Dov'è l'albergo?
Where is the hotel?
Dov'è il cinema?
Where is the cinema?
Dov'è il bagno?
Giving directions
Let's look at some possible replies using the words and phrases we have just seen in our long list:
Accanto alla banca.
Next door to the bank.
Di fronte alla chiesa.
Opposite the church.
In fondo alla piazza.
At the far end of the square.
Dietro la farmacia.
Behind the chemist.
Qui a destra.
Here, to the right.
Culture
II. Cultura
As you may recall from our dialogue, Alex asked to find the bathroom when he was at the tourist information desk.
When it comes to public bathrooms in Italy, you'll see either:
Uomini (for the Men's) and Donne (for the Women's)
If it's in a private residence, don't be surprised if it has a bidet in it. Be aware that in many apartments and
accommodations, hot water is regulated by small heaters so you should not expect a long shower. Utilities are very
expensive in general, and you'll find that landlords and homeowners are fairly wary of overuse.
About the water, yes, you can drink it. It's quite reliable throughout the country and will be fine unless you are
clearly informed otherwise.
You will find, however, that many Italians prefer to go with mineral water (acqua minerale), which comes in two
types: sparkling (frizzante) and still (naturale). You'll be asked for your preference when you dine out!
***
Next week we'll be learning about words and expressions relating to work and the workplace. You'll be able to ask
people what they do for a living and talk about your own job. We'll also do some review of andare, a common verb of
the -ARE group, and take a brief look at the words for "this" and "that" in Italian.
I look forward to seeing you then!! See you next week!
A presto... Until then!
Maria DiLorenzi
Rocket Italian
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