When stating rules, describing dietary restrictions, or making general statements, you often need to point out what isn't included. To express "except" or "with the exception of," Italian primarily uses two interchangeable prepositions: tranne and eccetto.
Tranne
Tranne is widely used in everyday conversation to single out an exclusion, such as an off-limits room or a food you avoid.
| We do not have any problem, except Marco's allergy. | Noi non abbiamo nessun problema, tranne l'allergia di Marco. |
| All the rooms are open, except the reserved area. | Tutte le stanze sono aperte, tranne l'area riservata. |
Eccetto
Eccetto works exactly like tranne.
| They invite everyone, except the allergic boy. | Loro invitano tutti, eccetto il ragazzo allergico. |
| I eat everything, except walnuts and dairy products. | Mangio tutto, eccetto le noci e i latticini. |
Tranne per (Except for)
Usually, tranne and eccetto connect directly to the noun being excluded. However, if you are stating the underlying reason for the exception, you will combine it with the preposition per (for) to say "except for."
| We do not make exceptions, except for allergies. | Non facciamo eccezioni, tranne per le allergie. |
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