{"id":15562,"date":"2018-01-29T12:51:47","date_gmt":"2018-01-29T11:51:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/?p=15562"},"modified":"2018-01-29T12:51:47","modified_gmt":"2018-01-29T11:51:47","slug":"combining-articles-with-prepositions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/combining-articles-with-prepositions\/","title":{"rendered":"Combining Articles With Prepositions"},"content":{"rendered":"

Once we understand how the articolo determinativo<\/strong> (‘the’ in English) works, we can take the next logical step and combine it with prepositions in order to create preposizioni articolate<\/strong>. In this blog we’ll find out how it’s done.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Quest’anno ci sono tanti cachi sull’albero.<\/strong> There are lots of persimmons on the tree this year. Photo by Geoff<\/em><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

What are prepositions?
\n<\/span><\/span>A preposition is a word that describes a relationship between other words in a sentence. The most common Italian\u00a0prepositions are:
\na <\/strong>(to, at, in)
\ncon<\/strong> (with)
\nda<\/strong> (from, by, since, to, at)
\ndi<\/strong> (of, than, about)
\nin<\/strong> (in, inside, to, within, at)
\nper<\/strong> (for, to, by)
\nsu<\/strong> (on, in, about)
\ntra\/fra <\/strong>(between, amongst)<\/p>\n

How do we combine them with articles?
\n<\/span><\/span>Of the above, we can combine a<\/strong>, con<\/strong>, da<\/strong>, di<\/strong>, in<\/strong>, and su<\/strong> with the definite articles il, lo, la, l\u2019, i, gli, le<\/strong> in the following way:
\nN.B. You can revise the Italian definite article <\/em>HERE<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Imagine that you want to tell your Italian friend ‘yesterday I went to the sea’. In this phrase we have the preposition ‘to’ (a<\/strong>) and, as the sea is masculine, the definite article ‘the’ (il<\/strong>). We combine a<\/strong><\/span> (to) with il<\/strong><\/span> (the) to create al<\/strong><\/span> (to the). This gives us the phrase: ieri sono andato\/a al<\/span> mare<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Now let’s look at more examples of how we combine the definite article with the various different prepositions:<\/p>\n

a <\/span><\/strong>(to, at, in)<\/span>
\n<\/span>Laura si guarda allo<\/span> specchio<\/strong> = Laura’s looking in the<\/span> mirror. a + lo = allo <\/strong><\/span>
\nqualcuno ha bussato alla<\/span> porta<\/strong> = someone knocked at the<\/span> door. a + la = alla<\/strong><\/span>
\nhanno portato Mario all\u2019<\/span>ospedale<\/strong> = they\u2019ve taken Mario to the<\/span> hospital. a + l\u2019 = all\u2019<\/strong><\/span>
\nhai dato da mangiare ai<\/span> gatti?<\/strong> = have you given any food to the<\/span> cats? a + i = ai<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>
\nil professore ha gridato agli<\/span> studenti<\/strong> = the teacher shouted at the<\/span> students. a + gli = agli<\/strong><\/span>
\nho dato i libri alle<\/span> ragazze<\/strong> = I gave the book to the<\/span> girls. a + le = alle<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

con <\/strong>(with)
\n<\/span><\/span>N.B. con<\/strong> is only combined with the articles il<\/strong> and i<\/strong><\/em>
\nMario \u00e8 uscito col<\/span> cane<\/strong> = Mario went out with the<\/span> dog. con + il = col<\/strong><\/span>
\nLucia sta giocando coi<\/span> ragazzi<\/strong> = Lucia’s playing with the boys. con + i = coi<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

da <\/span><\/strong>(from, by, since, to, at):
\n<\/span><\/span>Fabio \u00e8 andato dal<\/span> dottore <\/strong>= Fabio went to the<\/span> doctor. da + il = dal<\/strong><\/span>
\nhai preso la tua sciarpa dallo<\/span> zaino?<\/strong> = have you taken your scarf from the<\/span> rucksack? da + lo = dallo<\/strong><\/span>
\nsono appena ritornata dalla<\/span> banca<\/strong> = I\u2019ve just come back from the<\/span> bank. da + la = dalla<\/strong><\/span>
\n\u00e8 stato colpito dall\u2019<\/span>influenza<\/strong> = He’s been taken ill with the<\/span> flu. da + l\u2019 = dall\u2019<\/strong><\/span>
\n\u00e8 andata subito dai<\/span> Carabinieri<\/strong> = she went straight to the<\/span> Carabinieri. da + i = dai<\/strong><\/span>
\nCortona fu fondata dagli<\/span> Etruschi<\/strong> = Cortona was founded by the<\/span> Etruscans. da + gli = dagli<\/strong><\/span>
\n\u00e8 stato allevato dalle<\/span> suore<\/strong> = he was raised by the<\/span> nuns. da + le = dalle<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

di <\/span><\/strong>(of, than, about):
\n<\/span><\/span>N.B. when we combine di<\/strong> with the article, the ‘i<\/strong>‘ becomes an ‘e<\/strong>‘.<\/em>
\nl\u2019albero <\/strong>\u00e8 caduto a causa del<\/span> vento<\/strong> = the tree fell down because of the<\/span> wind. di + il = del<\/strong><\/span>
\nci ha avvertito dello<\/span><\/strong> sciopero<\/strong> = he warned us about the<\/span> strike.\u00a0<\/strong> di + lo = dello<\/strong><\/span>
\nci ha raccontato la storia della<\/span> villa<\/strong> = he told us the history of the<\/span> villa.\u00a0 di + la = della<\/strong><\/span>
\nstavamo parlando dell\u2019<\/span>ultimo terremoto<\/strong> = we were talking about the<\/span> latest earthquake. di + l\u2019 = dell\u2019<\/strong><\/span>
\nquella \u00e8 la mamma dei<\/span> gattini <\/strong>= that one is the mother of the<\/span> kittens. di + i = dei<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>
\nle scarpe sono pi\u00f9 leggere degli<\/span> scarponi<\/strong> = the shoes are lighter than the<\/span> boots. di + gli = degli<\/strong><\/span>
\ngli Appennini sono pi\u00f9 antichi delle<\/span> Alpi <\/strong>= the Apennines are older than the<\/span> Alps. di + le = delle<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

in <\/span><\/strong>(in, inside, within, at, to):
\n<\/span><\/span>N.B. when we combine in<\/strong> with the article we drop the ‘i’ and add an ‘e’ after the ‘n’.
\n<\/em>mettilo nel<\/span> bagno<\/strong> = put it in the<\/span> bathroom. in + il = nel<\/strong><\/span>
\nsiamo arrivati tutti e due nello<\/span> stesso momento <\/strong>= we both arrived at the<\/span> same time. in + lo = nello<\/strong>.<\/span>
\nguarda nella<\/span> borsa! = <\/strong>look in the<\/span> bag! in + la = nella<\/strong><\/span>
\nil cappotto \u00e8 nell\u2019<\/span>armadio <\/strong>= the coat is in the<\/span> wardrobe. in + l\u2019 = nell\u2019<\/strong><\/span>
\nhai messo molto zucchero nei<\/span> biscotti<\/strong>?<\/strong> = have you put much sugar in the<\/span> biscuits? in + i = nei<\/strong><\/span>
\n\u00e8 andato negli<\/span> Stati Uniti <\/strong>= he went to the<\/span> United States. in + gli = negli<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>
\nper me<\/strong> c’\u00e8 troppo casino<\/strong> nelle<\/span> grandi citt\u00e0! <\/strong> = there’s too much chaos in the<\/span> big cities for me! ne + le = nelle<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

su <\/span><\/strong>(on, in, about):
\n<\/span><\/span>l’ho letto sul<\/span> giornale <\/strong>= I read it in the<\/span> newspaper. su + il = sul<\/strong><\/span>
\nsullo<\/span> sfondo si vedono le Alpi <\/strong>= in the<\/span> background you can see the Alps. su + lo = sullo<\/strong><\/span>
\nha lasciato la chiave sulla<\/span> porta <\/strong>= he left the key in the<\/span> door. su + la = sulla<\/strong><\/span>
\nci sono tanti cachi sull\u2019<\/span>albero <\/strong>= there are lots of persimmons on the<\/span> tree. su + l\u2019 = sull\u2019<\/strong><\/span>
\nieri ha nevicato sui<\/span> monti = <\/strong>yesterday it snowed on the<\/span> mountains. su + i = sui<\/strong><\/span>
\nc’\u00e8 un vecchio faro sugli<\/span> scogli<\/strong> = there’s an old lighthouse on the<\/span> rocks. su + gli = sugli<\/strong><\/span>
\nspremi un po\u2019 di limone sulle<\/span> fragole<\/strong> = squeeze a bit of lemon on the<\/span> strawberries. su + le = sulle<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Coming soon, an exercise on the preposizioni articolate<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

Once we understand how the articolo determinativo (‘the’ in English) works, we can take the next logical step and combine it with prepositions in order to create preposizioni articolate. In this blog we’ll find out how it’s done. What are prepositions? A preposition is a word that describes a relationship between other words in a…<\/p>\n

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