Vedo il giardino dall’alto.

I see the garden from above.

Breakdown of Vedo il giardino dall’alto.

• io: I
• vedere: to see
• il giardino: the garden
• dall’alto: from above

Questions & Answers about Vedo il giardino dall’alto.

What does dall’alto mean, and how is it formed?

Dall’alto literally means “from the top” or “from above.” It’s a contraction of three parts:

• da = “from”
• l’ = the masculine singular article il with elision (drops the i, keeps the apostrophe)
• alto = “high,” “top,” or “height”
  Together: da + l’ + alto = dall’alto.

Why is there an apostrophe in dall’alto instead of writing dal alto?

In Italian, when da combines with the article il, you normally get dal (da + il). But if the following word starts with a vowel (like alto), the article il becomes l’ by dropping its vowel and adding an apostrophe. So:

• da + il → dal (before consonants)
• da + l’ → dall’ (before vowels)
  Hence dall’
  • alto → dall’alto.

Why is the sentence Vedo il giardino dall’alto using il giardino instead of leaving out the article?

In Italian, concrete nouns like giardino nearly always require a definite article when you talk about a specific one you can see or know about. Omitting the article (saying Vedo giardino dall’alto) would sound ungrammatical or overly telegraphic.
Use il because giardino is masculine singular and starts with a consonant.

What tense and mood is vedo, and why not a continuous form like in English?

Vedo is the present indicative of vedere (“to see”) in the first-person singular (I see). Italian doesn’t have an exact equivalent of the English present continuous. If you really want to stress the ongoing action, you can use the periphrastic form:

• Sto vedendo il giardino dall’alto (I am seeing the garden from above),
  but in most contexts vedo perfectly conveys either a simple fact or an action taking place now.

What’s the difference between vedo and guardo? Could I say Guardo il giardino dall’alto?

Yes, you could, but nuances differ:

• Vedere = “to see” (perceive with the eyes; often unintentional or neutral)
• Guardare = “to look at” (direct your gaze deliberately toward something)
  So Vedo il giardino dall’alto suggests “the garden comes into view from above,” while Guardo il giardino dall’alto would imply “I’m consciously looking at the garden from a high vantage point.”

Is dall’alto acting as an adverb here?

Grammatically, dall’alto is a prepositional phrase (preposition + article + noun) functioning adverbially to indicate place or perspective (“from above”). It answers the question where/how you see the garden.

Can I move dall’alto to the front? For example, Dall’alto vedo il giardino?

Yes. Italian allows flexible word order for emphasis:

• Vedo il giardino dall’alto. (neutral)
• Dall’alto vedo il giardino. (emphasizes the vantage point)
  Both are correct; the difference is in rhythm or what you want to highlight first.

How do I pronounce dall’alto and should I pause at the apostrophe?

You pronounce it smoothly as if it were one word:

• [dalˈal.to]
  There’s no audible pause at the apostrophe; it merely marks the elision of i in il before the vowel a of alto.