Italian articulated prepositions
Articulated prepositions (le preposizioni articolate) are simple prepositions combined with definite articles.
They have the same meaning of the simple prepositions.
Lesson Outline
Hide- 1.Italian articulated prepositions chart
- 2.Use of articulated prepositions
- 2.1.Prepositions "con", "per", "tra/fra"
- 2.2.When not to use articulated prepositions
- 2.3.Articulated prepositions vs partitive articles
- 3.Exercises
- 3.1.Exercise on Italian articulated prepositions - Drag text
- 3.2.Exercise on Italian articulated prepositions - Fill in the blanks
- 3.3.Exercise on the use of Italian articulated prepositions - Simple choice set
Italian articulated prepositions chart
Making up articulated prepositions is pretty easy. Take a look at the following chart.
| + | il | lo | la | i | gli | le | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| di | del | dello | della | dei | degli | delle | of the |
| a | al | allo | alla | ai | agli | alle | at / to the |
| da | dal | dallo | dalla | dai | dagli | dalle | from / by the |
| in | nel | nello | nella | nei | negli | nelle | in the |
| con | col | / | / | coi | / | / | with the |
| su | sul | sullo | sulla | sui | sugli | sulle | on the |
| per | / | / | / | / | / | / | for the |
| tra/fra | / | / | / | / | / | / | between / among the |
- As you can see from the table, articulated prepositions agree in gender and number with the element they go with.
- To choose the article to combine with the simple preposition, you have to follow the rules of articles (see Italian definite articles).
- All the articulated prepositions formed with lo and la lose their ending vowels and put the apostrophe when they precede a noun beginning with a vowel.
Examples:
Dell'albero (Of the tree)
Sull'altalena (On the swing)
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Use of articulated prepositions
Prepositions "con", "per", "tra/fra"
As you can see from the previous table, some simple prepositions don't have their articulated form. They stand as two distinct elements:
- con lo, con la, con gli, con le
- per il, per lo, per la, per i, per gli, per le
- tra/fra il, tra/fra lo, tra/fra la, tra/fra i, tra/fra gli, tra/fra le
The simple preposition con sometimes combines with the articles "il" and "i" and sometimes not.
La pasta col tonno / La pasta con il tonno
Pasta with tuna
La bambola coi capelli biondi / La bambola con i capelli biondi
The doll with blond hair
When not to use articulated prepositions
You can not use articulated prepositions before:
- Indefinite articles
Vado da uno psicologo
I go see a psychologist
- Possessive + singular nouns referring to a relative
Questo è il libro di mio padre
This is my father's book
- Demonstrative adjectives and pronouns
I prezzi di questo negozio sono alti
The prices of this shop are very high.
- Personal pronouns
Regalerò la collana a loro
I will give the necklace to them
- Indefinite adjectives and pronouns
In ogni albergo
In every hotel
- Relative pronouns
La citta` in cui abito
The city where I live
Articulated prepositions vs partitive articles
Articulated prepositions and partitive articles have a different function (see Italian partitive articles)
- Articulated prepositions generally add a new information about the subject.
Il cane dei miei amici
My friends' dog - Partitive articles generally specify an unknown quantity.
Dei miei amici vanno al parco
Some of my friends go to the park
Exercises
- Exercise on Italian articulated prepositions - Drag text
- Exercise on Italian articulated prepositions - Fill in the blanks
- Exercise on the use of Italian articulated prepositions - Simple choice set
Exercise on Italian articulated prepositions - Drag text
Exercise on Italian articulated prepositions - Fill in the blanks
Exercise on the use of Italian articulated prepositions - Simple choice set
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