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How to use the Italian prepositions ‘in’ and ‘a’ for place and movement?

By: Luna Checchini Thu May 16 2024

Prepositions

The Italian prepositions in and a are used when we talk about where something or someone is, or where they are going. These prepositions can be confusing for English speakers, since they can both be translated as “in,” “at,” “on,” or “to.” When you’ll use one and when you’ll use the other will depend on the context.

In this post, we will look at how to use the prepositions in and a when talking about place and movement, both as simple prepositions and when combined with definite articles, so read on to delve into it!

How to talk about place and movement in Italian using ‘in’ and ‘a’?

To talk about place and movement in Italian, use the prepositions in and a before a noun (or noun phrase) that describes a location, a destination, or sometimes a means of transport. For example:

noun
Abito a Roma
I live in Rome
noun
Vivo in Italia
I live in Italy

Tip

These words, in and a, are Italian prepositions. Prepositions are little words that are used to connect a noun to the rest of a sentence.

In and a are, specifically, “simple prepositions,” meaning that they are not combined with another word, like a definite article. We’ll talk more about how and when in and a are combined below!

As we mentioned above, the prepositions in and a are similar to one another in meaning, but they are used in different contexts. They are also often used differently from their direct translations “in” and “at” in English, which can make using them confusing for English speakers.

To help clear things up, here are some of the main uses of in and a in Italian:

In	A
Before big islands, regions, countries, and continents In quale regione abiti? In which region do you live? Abito in Sicilia. I live in Sicily. Exception! Even though Cuba, Crete, and Puerto Rico are big islands, we say: a Cuba, a Creta, a Porto Rico.	Before cities and small islands Abito a Venezia, domani vado a Murano. I live in Venice, tomorrow I’m going to Murano.
Before public places and businesses Voi rimanete in ufficio, invece noi ceniamo in pizzeria e poi torniamo in albergo. You’re staying at the office, while we are having dinner at the pizzeria and then we are going back to the hotel.	Before some public and private spaces Simone resta a casa, ma tu sei a scuola o a teatro? Simone is staying at home, but are you at school or at the theater?
Before addresses Il cinema è in via Rossetto, non in vicolo Barnaba! The cinema is on Rossetto street, not in Barnaba alley!	Before cardinal directions La stazione è a nord, la farmacia è a sud.* The station is to the north, the pharmacy is to the south. With est(east) and ovest(west), sometimes we see ad est, ad ovest — the d is added just to make it easier to pronounce.
Before the rooms in the house Non trovo gli occhiali! I can’t find my glasses! Sono in salotto o in bagno! They’re in the living room or in the bathroom**!	Before piedi(foot) and cavallo(horse) Andiamo a piedi o a cavallo? Are we going on foot or on horseback
Before the means of transportation Sono andata in ufficio in moto, ma loro sono andati in tram. I went to the office by motorbike, but they went by tram.
Before some holiday destinations* Preferisci andare in vacanza in spiaggia o in montagna? Do you prefer to go on holiday to the beach or to the mountains? Remember: not all holiday destinations! For example, al mare(to the seaside), al lago(to the lake), all'estero(abroad) use the combined forms of a instead!

Check out this extensive list of words preceded by prepositions in or a for some more detail!

So far, we discussed the simple prepositions. Below is a comprehensive look at all the combinations of in and a + articles and their uses to talk about place and movement.

Combined prepositions with ‘in’ and ‘a’: What are they and how to use them?

The combined forms of in and a in Italian are created when these prepositions are used before a definite article. The prepositions in and a will “merge” with definite articles to create a so-called preposizioni articolate, that look like new words. For example: in + il(the) → nel.

The simple prepositions in and a can be combined with the definite articles to create following combined prepositions:

Article	IN	A
il	nel	al
lo	nello	allo
l'	nell'	all'
la	nella	alla
i	nei	ai
gli	negli	agli
le	nelle	alle

How to use combined prepositions to talk about place and movement?

The table below illustrates some of the common situations where you’ll need to use the combined forms of in and a to talk about place and movement. Let’s have a look:

IN+ ARTICLE	A+ ARTICLE
Before plural countries and regions negli Stati Uniti d'America in the United States	Before some public places The following expressions never use the simple preposition a: all'aeroporto to the airport al cinema to the movie theater alle poste to the post office al ristorante to the restaurant allo stadio to the stadium alla stazione to the station al supermercato to the supermarket
Before specific places when you'd use in for the generic place nell'hotel di mio padre in my father's hotel	Before specific places ending in - ia, -teca, or places that require a when they are generic alla biblioteca VEZ to the VEZ library al teatro Verdi to the Verdi theater
	Other expressions: al bagno to the restroom → We saw that in bagno refers to the room in the house, while al bagno refers to the actual purpose of the restroom. al mare to the seaside al lago to the lake al lavoro at work all'estero abroad all'indietro backwards

Important tips and highlights for using ‘in’ and ‘a’ in Italian

Here are some important tips and highlights to remember about the prepositions in and a:

Relying on the English translations might be misleading: as we can see in the table above, the prepositions in the two languages often don’t match. For example:
Voi rimanete in ufficio.
You’re staying at the office.
Don’t forget that Italian prepositions always come directly before the noun phrase they are partnered with. This is different from English, where we could have prepositions at the end of questions. For example:
prepositionnoun phrase
A quale scuola vai?
Which school do you go to?
In is used with public spaces related to business activities, and in particular with all the words ending in -ia and -teca. For example:
- in pizzeria
  pizzeria
- in biblioteca
  library
But remember: if the place ending in -ia or -teca is specific, you’ll use a combination of a + article instead. As in:
- In quale pizzeria andiamo?
  Which pizzeria are we going to?
  → not specific (use in)
- Andiamo alla Pizzeria Garibaldi.
  We’re going to the Garibaldi Pizzeria.
  → specific (use a + article)
A is used with most places related to private life, education, and culture. For example:
- a casa (at home)→ private life
- a scuola(at school)→ education
- a teatro(at the theater)→ culture
However, we can use in when we mean inside a private space, as in:
La mamma è in casa, non è in giardino.
Mom is inside the house, she’s not in the garden.
Notice that there are two different prepositions used to describe being “at work” depending on exactly how you phrase it:
- al lavoro(at work)→ a + il
- in ufficio(at the office) → in
To learn about other Italian prepositions, head over to our posts on Italian prepositions of time, Italian prepositions of place, and a comprehensive post on Italian prepositions.

Summing up

We’ve seen that prepositions are small words that connect two parts of the sentence; we have focused on in and a as they can be confusing, especially because they follow different rules than their English equivalent. We have covered in particular when to use them when talking about place and movement, by themselves, or when combined with definite articles as well.

The best way to practice is to see them in context, just like in these activities… give it a try and a presto(see you soon)!

Downloadable Resources

Elevate your language-learning journey to new heights with the following downloadable resources.

How do you use Italian prepositions ‘in’ and ‘a’ for place and movement~In and A Table How do you use Italian prepositions ‘in’ and ‘a’ for place and movement~Summary of prepositions usesHow do you use Italian prepositions ‘in’ and ‘a’ for place and movement~Activities

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How to use the Italian prepositions ‘in’ and ‘a’ for place and movement?

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