Italian Preposition Da - Preposition Da in Italian

In its simplest form, the Italian preposition da means from in English. It’s used in time expressions, in which case you may translate it as since or for. Here are the most common ways to use â€Å"da† in Italian. Common Ways to Use â€Å"Da† 1) To indicate an an action that began in the past and is still going on in the present. You would use the construction of present tense da time. Da quanto tempo leggi questa rivista? - How long have you been reading this magazine?Leggo questa rivista da molto tempo. - Ive been reading this magazine for a long time. 2) To express the equivalent of the English phrase at the house of: Vado da mio fratello. - Im going to my brothers house.Vado da Filippo. - Im going to Filippos house.Andiamo dai signori Rossi. - Were going to the Rossis house.Arrivo subito da te. - I’ll be right over to your place. 3) To indicate origin or source Vengo da Torino. - I come from Torino.Vengo dalla Francia. - I come from France.È tornato dalle vacanze. - He’s back from vacation.È tornato dagli zii. - He’s back from his aunt and uncles house. This also occurs In surnames: Francesca da Rimini; Leonardo da Vinci In correlation with the prepositions a and : si à ¨ trasferito da Roma a Firenze (movement); cadere dalla padella nella brace (figurative) 4) To indicate the worth or price of something: Voglio un francobollo da cento lire. - I want a 100 lire stamp.È una casa da poco prezzo. - Its a house of little worth.Unautomobile da dieci milioni - A ten thousand million dollar car 5) To indicate a location, place (stato in luogo) Ti aspetto dallavvocato. - I’ll wait for you at the lawyer’s office. 6) To indicate cause, reason (causa) Piangeva dalla gioia - To cry from joy 7) To indicate time Non lo vedo da molti anni. - I haven’t seen him in years. In correlation with the preposition a: lavorare dalla mattina alla sera - to work from the morning until the evening Other Ways to Use â€Å"Da† Here are some other ways to use â€Å"Da† 1) To indicate movement through a particular point (moto per luogo): Sono fuggiti dalluscita di servizio. - They escaped through the service exit. 2) To indicate separation (separazione, allontanamento): I Pirenei dividono la Spagna dalla Francia. - The Pyrenees divide Spain from France.Non riesce a staccarsi da quegli amici. - They can’t get away from those friends. 3) To indicate means, method (mezzo): Giudico le persone dai fatti, non dalle chiacchiere. - I judge people from facts, not from gossip. 4) To indicate purpose, ending (fine): Carte da gioco - Playing cardsSala da pranzo - LunchroomSpazzolino da denti - ToothbrushAbito da sera - Evening dress 5) To indicate an attribute (qualità  ): Una ragazza dagli occhi azzurri - A girl with blue eyesUn uomo dal cuore doro - A man with a heart of gold 6) To indicate a way, matter, mode (modo): Agire da galantuomo - To act like a gentlemanTrattare da amico - To treat as a friend 8) As a predicative (predicativo): Fare da padre - To act as a fatherFungere da presidente - To serve as president â€Å"Da† With Infinitives Followed by a verb in the infinitive, the preposition da introduces the following clauses:  » consecutive clause (proposizione consecutiva): Ho (una) fame da morire. - I’m starving.Fa (un) caldo da impazzire. - It’s so hot!  » final clause (proposizione finale): Dammi un libro da leggere. - Give me a book to read.Che cosa vuoi da bere? - What do you want to drink? Phrases Using â€Å"Da† The Italian preposition da is used to form prepositional and adverbial phrases, such as: Da parte di - A part ofFuori da - Outside ofDi qua da - Further on from/This side ofDi là   da - On the other side of/BeyondDa vicino - Close/CloselyDa lontano - From afar/From far awayDa capo - Start over (from the top)/Start anewDa parte (from somebody) -  Of youDa parte (to save something) - (Put) AsideDa meno - For less...Dappertutto - Everywhere Prepositional Articles With Da When followed by a definite article, da is combined with the article to give the following combined forms known as prepositional articles (preposizioni articolate: Le Preposizioni Articolate Con Da PREPOSIZONE ARTICOLO PREPOSIZIONI DETERMINATIVO ARTICOLATE da il dal da lo dallo da l' dall' da i dai da gli dagli da la dalla da le dalle