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Di (of, than, about):

di + il = del e.g.: l’albero è caduto a causa del vento (the tree fell down because of the wind)

di + lo = dello e.g.: il miele è più nutriente dello zucchero (honey is more nutritious than [the] sugar)

di + la = della e.g.: il tavolo della cucina è troppo piccolo (the kitchen table is too small – literally: ‘the table of the kitchen is too small’)

di + l’ = dell’ e.g.: stavamo parlando dell’ultimo film di Leonardo Di Caprio (we were talking about Leonardo Di Caprio’s last film – literally: ‘we were talking about the last film’ etc.)

di + i = dei e.g.: la terra dei nostri avi (the land of our ancestors)

di + gli = degli e.g.: Posso avere l’orario degli autobus? (Can I have the bus timetable? – literally: ‘the timetable of the bus’)

di + le = delle e.g.: gli Appennini sono più antichi delle Alpi (the Apennines are older than the Alps)

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In (in, inside, within, at, to):

in + il = nel e.g.: Giorgio è nato nel 1980 (Giorgio was born in [the] 1980)

in + lo = nello e.g.: siamo arrivati nello stesso momento (we arrived at the same time)

in + la = nella e.g.: guarda nella borsa! (look in/inside the bag!)

in + l’ = nell’ e.g.: il cappotto è nell’armadio (the coat is in/inside the wardrobe)

in + i = nei e.g.: ho fatto quello che potevo nei limiti delle mie capacità (I did what I could within the limits of my capabilities)

in + gli = negli e.g.: David è andato negli Stati Uniti (David went to the United States)

in + le = nelle e.g.: nelle grandi città c’è troppo traffico (in the big cities there is too much traffic)

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Su (on, in, about):

su + il = sul e.g.: ho letto un articolo interessante sul giornale di oggi (I read an interesting article in today’s newspaper – literally: in the newspaper of today)

su + lo = sullo e.g.: sullo sfondo si vedono le Alpi (in the background you can see the Alps)

su + la = sulla e.g.: ha scritto un libro sulla caduta dell’Impero Romano (he wrote a book about the fall of the Roman Empire)

su + l’ = sull’ e.g.: ci sono molte mele sull’albero (there are lots of apples on the tree)

su + i = sui e.g.: ieri ha nevicato sui monti (yesterday it snowed on the mountains)

su + gli = sugli e.g.: ho visto un documentario sugli struzzi (I saw a documentary about [the] ostriches)

su + le = sulle e.g.: spremi un po’ di limone sulle fragole (squeeze a bit of lemon on the strawberries)

A (to, at, in):

a + il = al e.g.: Mario è andato al mare (Mario went to the sea)

a + lo = allo e.g.: Laura si guarda allo specchio (Laura is looking at herself in the mirror)

a + la = alla e.g.: hanno bussato alla porta (they have knocked at the door)

a + l’ = all’ e.g.: hanno portato Mario all’ospedale (they’ve taken Mario to the hospital)

a + i = ai e.g.: hai dato da mangiare ai gatti? (have you fed the cats? Lit.: have you given food to the cats?)

a + gli = agli e.g.: il professore ha spiegato il teorema di Pitagora agli studenti (the teacher explained Pythagoras’s theorem to the students)

a + le = alle e.g.: stamattina mi sono alzata alle 7 (this morning I got up at [the] 7 o’clock)

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Con (with) – this preposition only combines with two articles, il and i:

con + il = col e.g.: Mario è uscito col cane (Mario went out with the dog)

con + i = coi e.g.: i carciofi stanno bene coi piselli (artichokes go well with [the] peas)

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Da (from, by, since, to, at):

da + il = dal e.g.: Mario è andato dal dottore (Mario went to the doctor)

da + lo = dallo e.g.: hai preso la tua sciarpa dallo zaino? (have you taken your scarf from the rucksack?)

da + la = dalla e.g.: sono appena ritornata dalla banca (I’ve just come back from the bank)

da + l’ = dall’ e.g.: è dall’una che non prendo un caffè (I haven’t had a coffee since [the] one o’clock)

da + i = dai e.g.: a Natale sono stata dai miei (I spent Christmas at [the] my parent’s [house])

da + gli = dagli e.g.: Cortona è stata fondata dagli Etruschi (Cortona was founded by the Etruscans)

da + le = dalle e.g.: i negozi sono aperti dalle 9 a mezzogiorno e mezzo (the shops are open from [the] 9 to half past 12)

ancora = anchor (noun): la nave ha gettato l’ancora = the ship has dropped its anchor;

ancora = still/some more (adverb): la nave è ancora nel porto = the ship is still in the port.

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pero = pear tree (noun): nel nostro frutteto c’è un bel pero grande = in our orchard there’s a nice big pear tree;

però = but, however (conjunction): le pere sono buone, però quest’anno ce ne sono state poche = the pears are good, but this year there weren’t very many.

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leggere = to read (infinitive): mi piace leggere poesie = I like reading poems;

leggere = light, weightless (adjective feminine plural): queste scarpe sono molto comode, sono leggere come piume = these shoes are very comfortable, they are as light as feathers.

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capitano = they happen (third person plural present tense of the verb capitare = to happen): sono cose che capitano = these things happen;

capitano = captain (noun): il capitano della nave è sul ponte di comando = the ship’s captain is on the bridge.

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principi = princes (noun, masculine plural of principe): i principi William e Harry sono inglesi = princes William and Harry are English;

principi = principles (noun, masculine plural of principio): è un uomo senza principi morali = he’s a man without any moral principles.

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ambito = limits, scope (noun): questo lavoro non rientra nell’ambito delle mie responsabilità = this job doesn’t fall within the scope of my responsibilities;

ambito = sought-after, coveted (past participle of the verb ambire = to aspire to): questo è un lavoro molto ambito = this is a very sought-after job.

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Papa = Pope (noun): il Papa ha celebrato la messa di Natale = the Pope celebrated Christmas mass;

papà = dad (noun): quello è il papà di Mario = that’s Mario’s dad.

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pure = too, also (adverb): è venuto pure Giovanni = Giovanni came too;

purè = purée (noun): mi piace il purè di patate = I like mashed potatoes.

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balia = wet-nurse (noun), nowadays used in a figurative way of speaking: sei un adulto, non hai più bisogno della balia = you are an adult, you don’t need a wet-nurse any more;

essere in balia of = to be at the mercy of (noun): durante l’alluvione eravamo in balia della natura = during the flood we were at the mercy of nature.

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retina = retina (noun), ‘a light-sensitive tissue lining the inner surface of the eye’: Fernanda ha avuto il distaccamento della retina = Fernanda suffered from a detached retina;

retina = hairnet (noun): mia nonna si metteva sempre la retina quando andava a letto = my grandmother always wore her hairnet in bed.

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subito = immediately, straight away (adverb): arrivo subito! = I’ll be there straight away!

subito = suffered (past participle of the verb subire = to suffer, to endure, to undergo): la macchina ha subito molto danno = the car suffered a lot of damage.

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impari = unequal, uneven, one-sided (adjective): è stata una partita impari = it was an unequal match;

impari = you learn (second person singular present tense of the verb imparare = to learn): se impari a guidare sarai più indipendente = if you learn to drive you’ll be more independent.

In Italian, we have fixed rules for the pronunciation of letters which, once learnt, make it much easier to understand the relationship between written and spoken language. Unfortunately, the same is not true for accents. Although there are rules for where accents fall in verbs there are also lots of exceptions. As for nouns, adjectives, and so on there are no rules, and these have to be learnt by heart.  Let’s have a look at the rules and exceptions for verbs (N.B. I have highlighted accents in red):

The accent falls on the penultimate syllable in:

1. all infinitives ending in –are (e.g. mangiare = to eat, andare = to go), all infinitives ending  in –ire (e.g. sentire = to hear, finire = to finish), and most infinitives ending in –ere (e.g. cadere = to fall, vedere = to see). However, there are numerous verbs in –ere which have the accent on the third syllable counting from the end (e.g. cedere = to give up, chiedere = to ask). This is due to the fact that in Latin there were originally two distinctive groups of verbs in –ere.

2. all the gerundives (e.g. vedendo = seeing, mangiando = eating), and all the present and past participles (e.g. cadente = falling, caduto = fallen, precedente = preceding, preceduto = preceded)

3. the future tense, with the exception of the first and third persons singular where the accent falls on the last syllable and is always marked (e.g. sentirò = I’ll hear, sentirai = you’ll hear, sentirà = he/she’ll hear, sentiremo = we’ll hear, sentirete = you’ll hear, sentiranno = they’ll hear)

4. the imperfect tense, with the exception of the third person plural (e.g. cadevo = I fell, cadevi = you fell, cadeva = he/she fell, cadevamo = we fell, cadevate = you fell, cadevano = they fell)

5. the conditional, with the exception of the third person plural (e.g. finirei = I would finish, finiresti = you would finish, finirebbe = he/she would finish, finiremmo = we would finish, finireste = you would finish, finirebbero = they would finish)

6. in the imperfect subjunctive, with the exception of the first and third persons plural where the accent falls on the third syllable from the end (e.g. chiedessi = I may have asked, chiedessi = you may have asked, chiedesse = he/she may have asked, chiedessimo = we may have asked, chiedeste = you may have asked, chiedessero = they may have asked)

I haven’t mentioned the most common tenses, the present, the imperative, and the present subjunctive, for a reason: there are more exceptions. Let’s see:

in the present, imperative, present subjunctive tense the accent generally falls on the penultimate syllable, with the exception of third person plural where the accent falls on the third syllable from the end (e.g. ascolto = I listen, ascolti = you listen, ascolta = he/she listens, ascoltiamo = we listen, ascoltate = you listen ascoltano = they listen). However, there are a few verbs, the most common being ordinare (to order), capitare (to happen), telefonare (to phone), in which the accents falls one syllable further back in the first, second, and third persons singular, and the third person plural (e.g. ordino = I order, ordini = you order, ordina = he/she orders, ordiniamo = we order, ordinate = you order, ordinano = they order).

Finally, when reflexive pronouns, or direct and indirect object pronouns are added to a verb at the end (this is possible only with gerundives, infinitives and imperatives), the accent remains on the original syllable, e.g.: passa il sale a me (pass the salt to me) becomes passami il sale (pass me the salt), and passamelo (lit: pass me it). So you can even find the accent falling on the fifth syllable from the end in verbs such as telefonare or ordinare, e.g.: Ti va un cappuccino? Sì, grazie. Ordinamelo, se non ti dispiace (Do you fancy a cappuccino? Yes, please. Order it for me, if you don’t mind)

Well, I’ve tried to give you all the rules and their exceptions, but I’m sure that there are some more hiding somewhere in the dark. If you come across any discrepancies, please let me know!

Prendi la prossima strada a sinistra = Take the next road on the left

Prenda la prossima strada a sinistra = Take the next road on the left

Siediti = Take a seat

Si sieda = Take a seat

As you can see from the above examples, two main grammatical changes take place: 1. the verb, in this case prendere (to take), changes from the informal imperative mode prendi (second person singular) to the formal subjunctive mode prenda (third person singular), and 2. the personal pronoun, ti (to you) in the informal form changes to si (to you) in the formal form. Notice that the personal pronoun goes at the end of the imperative verb in the informal siediti, but before the subjunctive verb in the formal si sieda.

Finally, when we tell somebody not to do something in the informal form we use ‘non’ followed by the infinitive (in the example below ‘preoccupare’). The formal form, however, follows the same rule as when we tell someone to do something, e.g.:

Non ti preoccupare = don’t worry

Non si preoccupi = don’t worry

Now let’s look at some common requests and orders which illustrate the difference between using the tu and using the lei: