{"id":4187,"date":"2013-11-12T14:59:00","date_gmt":"2013-11-12T14:59:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/?p=4187"},"modified":"2018-02-12T11:02:16","modified_gmt":"2018-02-12T10:02:16","slug":"da-or-per-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/da-or-per-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Da or Per?"},"content":{"rendered":"

I recently received the following comment from a reader: \u201cI think the two prepositions da<\/strong> and per<\/strong>, when they have the same meaning, is a source of confusion since there isn’t a rule to go by. A future blog would be much appreciated on this.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Yes, it\u2019s true that this is a tricky subject, so I did a bit of research on the use of these two prepositions when they describe the purpose of an object, and, I must admit, I was quite taken aback by the results: several authoritative fonts such as Grammatica Italiana, by Battaglia e Pernicone (Loescher, Torino), <\/em>and Guida all\u2019italiano corretto, by Paola Sorge (Newton Tascabili)<\/em> state that it is actually more correct to say la macchina per<\/span> cucire<\/strong> (the sewing machine), la macchina per<\/span> scrivere<\/strong> (the typewriter) etc., however, we much more commonly say la macchina da<\/span> cucire<\/strong> and la macchina da<\/span> scrivere<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

So unfortunately, dear readers, there\u2019s no fixed rule about which preposition to use, it\u2019s just a matter of constant use, and practice practice practice. As is often the case in colloquial speech, we get used to use a particular form such as in the examples above of la macchina da<\/span> cucire<\/strong> and la macchina da<\/span> scrivere<\/strong>. However, that doesn\u2019t mean that it is necessarily \u2018correct\u2019 because in reality both prepositions can be used, and it\u2019s just a matter of preference or cultural habit that dictates whether da<\/strong> or per<\/strong> is used. Below is a list of some object names in Italian showing the most commonly used of the two prepositions. N.B. in certain cases you will see that both forms are used:<\/p>\n

la crema idratante per<\/span> il corpo\/le mani\/il viso<\/strong> = the moisturizing body\/hand\/face cream<\/p>\n

la schiuma da<\/span> barba<\/strong> = the shaving foam<\/p>\n

lo spazzolino da<\/span> denti<\/strong> = the toothbrush<\/p>\n

la spazzola per<\/span> i capelli<\/strong> = the hairbrush<\/p>\n

il telo da<\/span> bagno<\/strong> = the bath towel<\/p>\n

la salvietta per<\/span> gli ospiti<\/strong> = the guest towel<\/p>\n

il tappetino da<\/span> bagno\/per<\/span> il bagno<\/strong> = the bath mat<\/p>\n

il vestito\/l\u2019abito da<\/span> sera <\/strong>= the evening dress<\/p>\n

il vestito\/l\u2019abito da<\/span> sposa<\/strong> = the wedding dress<\/p>\n

la camicia da<\/span> notte<\/strong> = the nightgown<\/p>\n

le scarpe da<\/span> tennis<\/strong> = the tennis shoes<\/p>\n

gli scarponi da<\/span> montagna\/per<\/span> la montagna<\/strong> = the hiking boots<\/p>\n

la camera da<\/span> letto<\/strong> = the bedroom<\/p>\n

la sala da<\/span> pranzo<\/strong> = the dining room<\/p>\n

il detersivo per<\/span> i piatti<\/strong> = the washing up liquid<\/p>\n

la tazzina da<\/span> caff\u00e8<\/strong> = the coffee cup<\/p>\n

il coltello da<\/span> pane\/per<\/span> il pane<\/strong> = the bread knife<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Remember, we do value constructive comments and questions as these can help us to improve our blog and tailor them to your needs. Grazie a Paolo per averci posto la domanda<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I recently received the following comment from a reader: \u201cI think the two prepositions da and per, when they have the same meaning, is a source of confusion since there isn’t a rule to go by. A future blog would be much appreciated on this.\u201d Yes, it\u2019s true that this is a tricky subject, so…<\/p>\n

Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[6,619],"tags":[292152,292151],"class_list":["post-4187","post","type-post","status-publish","hentry","category-grammar","category-italian-language","tag-italian-prepositions-da-and-per","tag-using-da-and-per-in-italian"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t