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To describe where buildings and places are located in a town, Italian uses complex prepositions. These are location words that require an additional short preposition—usually **a** (to/at) or **da** (from)—to connect them to the landmark.

### Prepositions with "A"

Most common prepositions of place pair with **a**. Remember that when **a** is followed by a definite article (like **il**, **la**, **lo**), they combine into one word (e.g., **a** + **il** = **al**, **a** + **la** = **alla**).

Here are the key location phrases that use **a**:

- **vicino a** (near / close to)
- **dietro a** (behind)
- **davanti a** (in front of)
- **di fronte a** (opposite / across from)

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### Far From: Lontano da

While most spatial prepositions use **a**, the word for "far"—**lontano**—pairs with **da** (from). Like **a**, **da** will combine with definite articles, though it is frequently used with words like **qui** (here) which do not require an article.

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### Giving Directions

When giving directions around these landmarks, you will often need to tell someone to turn. Use the verb **girare** (to turn).

Helpful vocabulary for navigating includes:
- **l'angolo** (the corner)
- **la fermata** (the stop, such as a bus stop)

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Prepositions of place (vicino a, davanti a)

adjective

adjective/adverb

adverb

conjunction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

preposition

pronoun

proper noun

sentence

verb

Subject pronouns and the verb to be (io sono)

Singular definite articles (il, la)

Singular demonstratives (questo, questa)

Basic verbal negation (non)

Yes/No questions

Coordinating conjunctions (e, ma, o)

Regular plurals and definite articles (-i, -e, i, le)

Plural verb to be (noi siamo, voi siete)

Plural demonstratives (questi, queste)

Nouns ending in -e

Special singular articles (lo, l')

The plural article (gli)

Special indefinite articles (uno, un')

Demonstrative adjectives (quello, quella)

Adjective endings (-o, -a, -i, -e)

Expressing quantity (molto, poco, tanto)

The verb to have (ho, hai, ha...)

There is / there are (c'è, ci sono)

The preposition of (di)

Singular possessives (il mio, la mia)

Numbers 1 to 10 (uno, due, tre...)

Numbers 11 to 20 (undici, dodici...)

Numbers 21 to 100 (trenta, quaranta...)

Idiomatic avere (avere fame, avere anni)

Plural possessive adjectives (i miei, le mie)

Possessives with family members (mio padre)

Formal address (dare del Lei)

Present tense of -are verbs (-o, -i, -a)

Question words (chi, cosa, dove)

Present tense of -ere verbs (-o, -i, -e)

Question words (quando, come, perché)

Question word agreement (quanto, quanta, quanti, quante)

Regular -ire verbs

Verbs with -isc- (capisco, capisci, capisce)

Pronouns after prepositions (me, te, lui)

The verb fare (faccio, fai, fa)

The verb andare (vado, vai, va)

The verb stare (sto, stai, sta)

The verb venire (vengo, vieni, viene)

The verb uscire (esco, esci, esce)

Location and destination (a, in)

Origin and movement (da)

Articulated prepositions with a (al, alla)

Articulated prepositions with in (nel, nella)

Articulated prepositions with di and da (del, dal)

Simple prepositions (con, per, su, tra)

Articulated prepositions with su (sul, sulla)

Months of the year

Telling time (sono le...)

Dates (il + number)

Ordinal numbers 1st to 10th (primo, secondo, terzo...)

The verb to want (volere)

The verb can (potere)

The verb must (dovere)

The verb to know (sapere)

Reflexive verbs (mi lavo, ti lavi)

Indirect object pronouns (gli, le, ci...)

Expressing preferences (mi piace)

Plural preferences (mi piacciono)

Comparatives (più... di, meno... di)

The passato prossimo with avere (ho parlato)

Irregular past participles (fatto, letto, preso)

The passato prossimo with essere (sono andato)

Reflexive verbs in the past (mi sono svegliato)

Time adverbs with the past tense (già, mai, ancora)

Third-person direct object pronouns (lo, la, li, le)

First and second-person direct object pronouns (mi, ti, ci, vi)

The four seasons

Conversational words (beh, allora, davvero)

Indefinite adjectives for some (qualche, alcuni)

Indefinite adjectives for every and all (ogni, tutti)

Indefinite pronouns (qualcosa, qualcuno)

Noun suffixes (-ino, -one)

Adverbs of manner (-mente)

Comparisons of equality (così... come)

The relative superlative (il più)

The absolute superlative (-issimo)

Irregular comparatives (migliore, peggiore)

Present progressive (stare + -ando, -endo)

Imminent actions (stare per)

The locative pronoun (ci)

The partitive pronoun (ne)

Pronoun placement with modal verbs

Impersonal subjects (si)

Prepositions of time (da, per, tra, fra)

Past participle agreement with pronouns

Past tense of modal verbs

Question	Answer
the bookstore	la libreria
near / close	vicino
The bookstore is near the bank.	La libreria è vicino alla banca.
We have to go to the bookstore near the school.	Dobbiamo andare alla libreria vicino alla scuola.
the bakery	il panificio
behind	dietro
the town hall	il municipio
The bakery is behind the town hall.	Il panificio è dietro al municipio.
to turn	girare
the corner	l'angolo
You must turn the corner to find the bakery.	Devi girare l'angolo per trovare il panificio.
in front / ahead	davanti
I am waiting for the bus in front of the museum.	Aspetto l'autobus davanti al museo.
the stop (e.g., bus stop)	la fermata
The bus stop is in front of the station.	La fermata è davanti alla stazione.
The hospital is far from here.	L'ospedale è lontano da qui.
The supermarket is not far from here.	Il supermercato non è lontano da qui.
front (used in 'di fronte a')	la fronte
The cinema is opposite the bookstore.	Il cinema è di fronte alla libreria.
There is a bar opposite the park.	C'è un bar di fronte al parco.
I work behind the pharmacy.	Lavoro dietro alla farmacia.
The restaurant is near the corner.	Il ristorante è vicino all'angolo.
I live opposite the supermarket.	Abito di fronte al supermercato.
You have to go in front of the entrance.	Devi andare davanti all'ingresso.
The hotel is near the square.	L'albergo è vicino alla piazza.
The town hall is near the stop, we have to turn here.	Il municipio è vicino alla fermata, dobbiamo girare qui.
outside	fuori
It is cold outside.	Fuori fa freddo.
The dog is outside.	Il cane è fuori.
inside, in	dentro
The cat is inside the house.	Il gatto è dentro la casa.
What is inside?	Che cosa c'è dentro?
under, below	sotto
The cat is under the bed.	Il gatto è sotto il letto.
The money is under the book.	I soldi sono sotto il libro.
forward, ahead (avanti! = come in!)	avanti
I turn the corner and go straight ahead.	Giro l'angolo e vado avanti.
Come in, please!	Avanti, per favore!

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