Modern Italian Grammar: A Practical Guide, Third Edition (2013)

Part B. Functions

IV. Putting in context

37. Place and manner

37.1 Introduction

Chapter 36 showed how to put events in a time context, by saying when and how frequently something happened. Another way of setting an action or event in context is to say where it happened or how it happened, in other words to indicate place and manner. There are various ways of doing this, including using adverbs (see 6.2), prepositions (see Chapter 4) and adverbial phrases (see 6.2.5).

37.2 Place: adverbs

Adverbs of place indicate the place where an event or action happened. The most common adverbs of place are:

All of the adverbs listed above are also used as prepositions (see 37.3.6).

Mia madre abita a Via Carducci e mia zia ha comprato la casa accanto.

My mother lives in Via Carducci and my aunt has bought the house next door.

Ho freddo. Vado dentro.

I'm cold. I'm going inside.

Vai tu davanti. Io mi siedo dietro.

You go in front. I'll sit behind.

Mangiamo fuori stasera?

Shall we eat out tonight?

Il mio collega si deve alzare alle 6.00 perché abita lontano.

My colleague has to get up at 6 am because he lives far away.

In un condominio sente più rumori chi abita sotto o chi abita sopra?

In a block of flats, who hears the most noise - the person who lives underneath or the person who lives above?

Non ho bisogno della macchina. Abito qui vicino.

I don't need a car. I live near here.

Adverbs and adverbial phrases indicating position include:

Guardi in alto, poi in basso.

Look up, then down.

Questo panorama è bellissimo: a sinistra il Vesuvio, a destra Posillipo, e in centro il mare. Infondo si vede Capri.

This view is very beautiful: on the left, Vesuvius, on the right Posillipo, in the middle the sea. In the background you can see Capri.

Vengo giù dopo il 15 agosto.

I'm coming down after the 15th of August.

Quando torni su?

When are you going back up?

Some of these adverbs can also be used as prepositions (see 37.3.6).

37.3 Place: prepositions

Prepositions of place can indicate the place where an action or event happens, the place to where an action or a person is directed, and the place from where something originates.

37.3.1 Forms of prepositions

There are many prepositions that relate to place (see 4.3). Full information on each specific preposition and on their forms when combined with the definite article (al, dal, del, nel, sul) can be found in 4.3 and 4.2 respectively.

37.3.2 To a place

The prepositions most often used to indicate to a place or other kinds of destination, including people, include a ‘at, to’, in ‘in, into’, per ‘for’, su ‘on, onto’, verso ‘towards’ and also da ‘at, to’ (see also 4.3.1, 4.3.5). While a is used for towns, cities and small islands, in is used for countries, regions and larger islands.

Quest'estate andiamo in Sicilia.

This summer we are going to Sicily.

Vorrei andare a Venezia per Carnevale.

I would like to go to Venice for Carnival.

A maggio si sono trasferiti negli Stati Uniti.

In May they moved to the USA.

Domani devo partire presto per Roma.

Tomorrow I have to leave early for Rome.

È arrivato un pacco per Lei.

There is a parcel for you.

Il passeggero ha cercato di saltare sull 'autobus che però era già in partenza.

The passenger tried to jump onto the bus, which however was already leaving.

L'aereo stava scendendo verso l'aeroporto quando è caduta a terra una porta.

The plane was making its descent towards the airport when a door fell to the ground.

Da can indicate movement to somewhere, normally the place (shop, studio, surgery, house) of an individual indicated by name or by trade:

Devo accompagnare i bambini dal dentista.

I have to take the children to the dentist.

Stasera andiamo da Gianni.

Tonight we're going to Gianni's place.

37.3.3 In or at a place

Prepositions that indicate in or at a place include a, da, in. While a is used for towns, cities and small islands, in is used for countries, regions and larger islands (see also 37.3.2 above).

Ho fatto i miei studi a Padova.

I carried out my studies at Padua.

Abbiamo fatto una bellissima vacanza a Capri.

We had a lovely holiday on Capri.

Molti scozzesi hanno comprato casa in Garfagnana.

Many Scottish people have bought a house in the Garfagnana region.

Una grande percentuale dei lavoratori lavora in centro ma abita in periferia o anche in campagna.

A large percentage of workers work in the city centre but live in the suburbs or even in the country.

Da (see also 4.3.3 and 37.3.2) has no equivalent in English but can roughly be translated as ‘at the house of or ’at the shop/restaurant/office of.

Abbiamo mangiato benissimo da Gianni.

We ate really well at Gianni's.

Ho comprato dei gamberi dal pescivendolo.

I bought some prawns at the fishmongers.

Facciamo il Cenone di Capodanno da mia sorella.

We're having the New Year's Eve dinner at my sister's house.

The combined form of prepositions is used for many phrases such as:

With many common destinations, however, the simple preposition is used:

37.3.4 From a place

Prepositions which express movement from a place include da and less frequently di:

Il treno da Trieste arriverà al binario 10.

The train from Trieste will arrive on platform 10.

Venendo dal centro, si prende Viale Cavour con direzione Ovest.

Coming from the centre, you take Viale Cavour heading west.

Per arrivare alle 7.00 all'aeroporto, bisognerà uscire di casa alle 6.00.

To get to the airport by 7.00, we will have to leave the house at 6.00.

Vai via di qua, brutto cane.

Get away from here, you horrible dog.

Esci di là, stupido.

Get out of there, idiot.

37.3.5 Position (using prepositions)

Prepositions that indicate position include: fra, tra ‘between’, ‘among’ (there is no difference in meaning), in ‘in’, su ‘on’ (and their combined article and preposition forms).

La mia macchina è parcheggiata tra due camion. Non si vede da qui.

My car is parked between two lorries. You can't see it from here.

La farina per fare 1a pasta si trova nell'armadietto.

The flour to make pasta is in the kitchen cupboard.

Quando vengono i nipoti, metto i vasi di porcellana sullo scaffale più alto.

When my grandchildren come, I put the china vases on the highest shelf.

37.3.6 Position (using prepositions and/or adverbs)

Many of the adverbs you saw earlier (see 37.2 above) can also be used as prepositions (see also 4.5.1). These include accanto ‘next to’, davanti 'in front of, dentro ‘inside’, dietro ‘behind’, di fronte ‘opposite’, fuori ‘outside’, lontano ‘far’, sopra ‘above’, sotto ‘underneath, under’, vicino ‘nearby, near’.

Some of these prepositions require a second preposition (for example, a, da, di) depending on whether they are followed by a noun or a pronoun. Others only require a preposition before a stressed pronoun such as me, te. For some prepositions, use of a second preposition is optional.

accanto (a)

Siediti accanto a me!

Sit next to me!

Accanto can also have the less literal meaning of ‘to be close to someone’:

Sono sempre accanto a te.

I'm always near you.

davanti (a)

La macchina era parcheggiata davanti alla casa.

The car was parked in front of the house.

La signora davanti a me era molto elegante.

The woman in front of me was very elegant.

dentro (di)

Ci sono dei negozi anche dentro la galleria, ma sono costosi.

There are some shops inside the shopping mall as well, but they're expensive.

Dentro di me, mi sentivo molto triste.

I felt very sad inside.

dietro (a, di)

La salumeria si trova dietro l'angolo.

The delicatessen is just round the corner.

Il portafogli è caduto dietro all'armadio.

The wallet has fallen behind the cupboard.

Il signore dietro di me russava.

The man behind me was snoring.

di fronte (a)

Tragedia di fronte a un asilo — bimbo di 5 anni ucciso da un Suv.

Tragedy opposite a nursery — five year old killed by an SUV

Di fronte a can also have the less literal meaning of ‘faced with’:

Di fronte ad una tragedia del genere, non sappiamo cosa dire.

When faced with a tragedy of this kind, we don't know what to say.

fuori (di)

La chiesa era affollatissima, c'erano dei fedeli che ascoltavano la messa fuori della chiesa.

The church was packed out, there were some worshippers who were listening to the mass outside the church.

lontano (da)

Per me è triste abitare lontano dalla famiglia.

In my opinion, it's sad living far away from one's family.

sopra (di)

Mia madre nascondeva i regali sopra l'armadio nella sua camera.

My mother hid the presents on top of the cupboard in her bedroom.

Guardavamo il cielo e le nuvole sopra di noi.

We watched the sky and the clouds above us.

sotto (di)

I gattini dormivano sotto il letto.

The kittens were sleeping under the bed.

Il Mondo Sotto di Noi è un kit per osservare il mondo delle formiche.

‘The World Beneath Us’ is a kit for observing the world of ants.

vicino (a)

Loro abitano vicino a casa mia.

They live near my house.

A few of the adverbs which specify position (see 37.2) can also be used as prepositions, along with a second preposition as required:

In fondo alla strada, giri a destra.

At the bottom of the street, turn right.

Il museo si trova a destra della chiesa.

The museum is on the right of the church.

37.4 Manner

37.4.1 Introduction

The easiest way of stating how an action is carried out is to use an adverb. Full details of the formation and use of adverbs are found in Chapter 6. Here we look at other ways to specify or state how an action is carried out, using alternatives to adverbs.

37.4.2 Adverbial phrases

An adverbial phrase is composed of preposition (see Chapter 4) and noun and has the function of an adverb. We list the most common ones.

Adverbial phrases formed with maniera or modo indicate the way or manner in which something is done:

Nell'ultimo anno, le vendite degli smartphone (cellulari intelligenti) sono aumentate in una maniera incredibile.

Over the last year, sales of smartphones have increased at an incredible rate.

Mi ha risposto in maniera molto brusca.

He replied to me in a very abrupt manner.

Non parlarmi in questo modo.

Don't speak to me in this way.

Adverbial phrase with con (see also 4.3.2):

Mariolina suonava il violino con molto entusiasmo ma con poca accuratezza.

Mariolina played the violin with great enthusiasm but with little accuracy.

Adverbial phrase with a (see also 4.3.1):

I bambini dormivano e noi parlavamo a bassa voce.

The children were asleep and we were speaking in a low voice.

I treni Interregionali corrono a grande velocità.

The Inter-regional trains run at high speed.

Adverbial phrase with in (see also 4.3.5):

Guardavano il programma in silenzio e senza commentare.

They watched the programme in silence and without commenting.

Ho preso un basso voto perché ho fatto il compito in fretta.

I got a low mark because I did the work in a hurry.

Adverbial phrase with senza (see also 4.5.3):

Ha fatto l'esame di guida cinque volte senza successo.

She's taken the driving test five times without success.

Adverbial phrase composed of alia, all' and either an adjective in feminine form or adverb (see also 4.3.1):

Saltimbocca alla romana

Saltimbocca Roman style

Scaloppe alla milanese

Escalopes Milanese style

Salutare all'inglese

To say goodbye English fashion (i.e. to leave without saying goodbye!)

This expression uses the adverb meglio to imply that you did things as well as you could but not perfectly:

Abbiamo sistemato la casa alla meglio.

We sorted the house out as well as we could.

The following expression meaning ‘sloppily, without much care’ apparently derives from the name of king Carlo Magno (‘Cartone’) who always did things in a rather haphazard way:

Fa le cose sempre alla carlona.

He always does things in a sloppy way.

37.4.3 Adverbial adjective

The so-called adverbial adjective, an adjective used with the force of an adverb, is becoming more and more common, for example in advertising language. The masculine singular form is the form always used: for example parlare chiaro instead of chiaramente. Here are some more examples:

Mangiare sano. Mangiare Yomo.

Eat healthy. Eat Yomo.

Abbiamo lavorato sodo per una settimana.

We worked solidly for a week.

Chi va piano va sano e va lontano.

He who goes slowly goes healthily and goes far.

37.4.4 Benino, benone

Some common adverbs such as bene can also have suffixes such as -ino, -one added (see 6.2.6) to produce the forms benino ‘quite well’, benone ‘very well’.

Come va Alessandro a scuola?

How is Alessandro doing at school?

Benino.

Quite well.

Nel villaggio turistico, abbiamo mangiato benone.

In the tourist village, we ate very well.

37.4.5 Unusual adverbial forms

Unusual adverbial forms include those ending in -oni (see 6.2.2) which apply mainly to physical actions. Examples include:

Il bambino aveva cinque mesi e già andava carponi.

The baby was five months old and was already crawling.

Stare con i piedi penzoloni guardando il mondo girare.

Sitting with your feet dangling down, watching the world go round.

(from the lyrics of Dolce far niente', by Italian singer-songwriter Jovanotti)

37.4.6 With come or da

You can use come (see also 4.5.3) or da (see also 4.3.3, 4.4.2) when you want to compare the way someone does something to a person or to an animal:

Camminava con 1a testa alta, come una giraffa.

She walked with her head high, like a giraffe.

Si è comportato da pazzo.

He behaved like a lunatic.

37.4.7 Come se

Come se ‘as if, as though’ takes the subjunctive, most commonly the imperfect:

Vivi ogni giorno come se fosse l'ultimo.

Live every day as if it were your last.

Camminava come se avesse i tacchi alti.

She walked as though she had high heels.

Si comportava come se fosse la regina.

She behaved as though she were the queen.