La giostra gira accanto al labirinto.

Because gira is the conjugated verb form, while girare is the infinitive.

• girare = to turn / to spin / to go around
• gira = it turns / it spins

Here the subject is la giostra (the merry-go-round / carousel), which is third person singular, so the verb changes accordingly:

• io giro = I turn
• tu giri = you turn
• lui/lei gira = he/she/it turns

So La giostra gira means The merry-go-round turns / is spinning.

This sentence uses the very common Italian word order:

subject + verb + phrase

• La giostra = subject
• gira = verb
• accanto al labirinto = prepositional phrase

So yes, this sentence is structurally close to English.

Italian word order is often flexible, but the most neutral version here is exactly this one: La giostra gira accanto al labirinto.

You could move things around in other contexts for emphasis, but this is the standard, natural order.

In this context, giostra usually means a merry-go-round or carousel, especially in amusement-park language.

Depending on context, giostra can also relate more broadly to a fairground ride. So learners may see it translated in slightly different ways.

Here, because the verb is gira (spins/turns), carousel / merry-go-round is a very natural interpretation.

Usually, yes. Girare is a flexible verb and can mean things like:

• to turn
• to spin
• to go around
• sometimes to move around

In this sentence, gira most naturally means:

• spins
• turns
• goes around

So the learner should understand that gira is not always a literal one-word match in English. The exact translation depends on context.

Because accanto normally works with the preposition a when followed by a noun:

• accanto a = next to / beside

So before il labirinto, you need:

• a + il = al

That is why you get:

• accanto al labirinto

Not:

• accanto il labirinto

This is one of the very common preposition + article contractions in Italian.

Al is a contraction of:

• a + il = al

This is called an articulated preposition in Italian.

Some common ones are:

• a + il = al
• a + lo = allo
• a + la = alla
• a + i = ai
• a + gli = agli
• a + le = alle

So accanto al labirinto literally breaks down as:

• accanto a = next to
• il labirinto = the maze / labyrinth

Together:

• accanto al labirinto = next to the maze

Because the two nouns have different grammatical genders:

• giostra is feminine → la giostra
• labirinto is masculine → il labirinto

In Italian, nouns have grammatical gender, and the article has to match the noun.

Here:

• la = feminine singular the
• il = masculine singular the

This does not necessarily mean anything about real-world sex or biological gender. It is just part of the grammar of the noun.

A useful general pattern is:

• nouns ending in -a are often feminine
• nouns ending in -o are often masculine

So:

• giostr-a → likely feminine
• labirint-o → likely masculine

That rule is very helpful, though not perfect. There are exceptions in Italian, so it is best to learn each noun together with its article:

• la giostra
• il labirinto

Learning the article with the noun helps you remember gender naturally.

Yes. Italian uses articles very regularly, and often more often than English.

In this sentence, both nouns are specific:

• la giostra
• il labirinto

So the definite articles are perfectly natural.

A good habit for learners is to think of nouns as coming with their article:

• not just giostra, but la giostra
• not just labirinto, but il labirinto

That will help with gender and with building correct phrases later.

They are similar, but not always identical in feel.

• accanto a = next to / right beside
• vicino a = near / close to

So accanto often suggests something more directly beside something else, while vicino can be a little broader.

For example:

• La giostra gira accanto al labirinto = The carousel is right next to the maze.
• La giostra gira vicino al labirinto = The carousel is near the maze.

In many everyday situations they can overlap, but accanto usually feels more precise.

Giostra is pronounced roughly like:

• JOHS-tra

More precisely in Italian, gi before o makes a soft sound like the j in job.

So:

• giostra ≈ JOH-stra

A few pronunciation notes:

• gio- sounds like jo
• the str cluster is pronounced clearly
• the stress is on the first syllable: GIÒ-stra

English speakers sometimes want to pronounce the g as in go, but here it is the soft j sound.

It is roughly:

• la-bee-RIN-to

The stress falls on rin:

• labiRINto

A few helpful points:

• la as in lah
• bi as in bee
• rin with a rolled or tapped Italian r
• to is a clean toh

So a rough English-friendly guide is: lah-bee-REEN-toh, though the stress is really on RIN, not on REEN in an English way.

The location is expressed by accanto al labirinto, while gira describes what the carousel is doing.

So the sentence combines:

• what it is doing → gira
• where it is → accanto al labirinto

In other words:

• La giostra = the carousel
• gira = is spinning / turns
• accanto al labirinto = next to the maze

So the sentence means that the carousel is spinning while being next to the maze.

Italian often drops subject pronouns like io, tu, lui, lei, because the verb ending already gives a lot of information.

But here the subject is not a pronoun. It is a full noun phrase:

• la giostra

You cannot simply remove it unless the context already makes it completely clear what gira refers to.

So:

• Gira accanto al labirinto could be possible in context, meaning It spins next to the maze
• but by itself, La giostra gira accanto al labirinto is clearer and more complete

Yes, that is a very good idea.

It is best to learn it as a chunk:

• accanto a = next to / beside

Then apply the correct article contraction afterward:

• accanto al parco
• accanto alla scuola
• accanto ai negozi
• accanto alle case

Memorizing accanto a as one unit will help you avoid mistakes like accanto il.