Grammar Lesson 5:
Preposition Di
Di is an Italian simple preposition used to indicate:
—> NOTE that when di comes before a word starting with a vowel the i can be elided and
replaced with an apostrophe.
Example:
Parliamo d’altro / Let’s talk about something else
C’erano dolci d’ogni tipo / There were sweets of any kind
Remember that the contraction is preferred but not always mandatory. This means that it calls
for a stylistic choice, and when using it you have to trust your ears.
Example:
C’erano dolci d’ogni tipo is as correct as C’erano dolci di ogni tipo
But you’re never going to say “parliamo di altro”, whereas you could perfectly say “Stiamo
parlando di altre persone” (We are talking about other people).
Preposition Di
Di is an Italian simple preposition used to indicate:
| ownership / possession belonging |
La nonna di Pietro / Pietro’s grandmother La casa di mia madre è stata venduta / My mother’s house has been sold |
| description / specification | di cosa parli? / what are you talking about? La rosa d’Inghilterra / The rose of England |
| partition |
uno di noi / one of us Il migliore degli studenti / the best student in his class |
| comparison | Migliore di te / better than you |
| topic / content | libro di storia / History book Un chilo di mele / a kilo of apples |
| authorship | Il romanzo più famoso di Tolstoj / Tolstoy’s most famous novel Vorrei potermi permettere un quadro di Monet / I wish I could afford a painting by Monet |
| material | una maglietta di cotone / a cotton T-shirt un tavolo di legno / a wooden table |
| mode / manner | Scusa ma vado di fretta / Sorry, I’m in a hurry |
| origin / location |
Mariangela è di Milano / Mariangela comes from Milan Di dove sei? / Where are you from? |
| time | di martedì / on Tuesdays di mattino / in the morning di sera / in the evening di notte / at night d’estate / in summertime d’inverno / in wintertime |
—> NOTE that when di comes before a word starting with a vowel the i can be elided and
replaced with an apostrophe.
Example:
Parliamo d’altro / Let’s talk about something else
C’erano dolci d’ogni tipo / There were sweets of any kind
Remember that the contraction is preferred but not always mandatory. This means that it calls
for a stylistic choice, and when using it you have to trust your ears.
Example:
C’erano dolci d’ogni tipo is as correct as C’erano dolci di ogni tipo
But you’re never going to say “parliamo di altro”, whereas you could perfectly say “Stiamo
parlando di altre persone” (We are talking about other people).
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