10.1. Simple Prepositions
| SIMPLE PREPOSITION | USE(S) | EXAMPLE(S) | TRANSLATION |
|---|---|---|---|
| De [Of/From] | 1. Possession 2. Material 3. Origin 4. Function or purpose | 1. Cuesto libro èst de Marco. 2. Lo sòlo èst de legno. 3. Carles èst de Valèntia. 4. Lèntes de sole. | 1. This book is Marco’s. 2. The floor is wooden. 3. Carles is from Valencia. 4. Sunglasses. |
| Ad [To/At] | 1. State in a place 2. Target 3. Movement to a place (Cities) | 1. Paula èst ad la escòla. 2. Dai lo libro ad Davide. 3. Demane vado ad Roma. | 1. Paula is at school. 2. I give the book to Davide. 3. Tomorrow I will go to Rome. |
| En [In] | 1. Movement to a place (Continents, nations, states, regions and big islands) 2. Time (Months and years) 3. Position (Inside) 4. Time (After / Within) | 1. Cuesta estate vado en Italia. 2. En septèmbre, complerai 20 [vinte] annos. 3. Metto mèas causas en una cassa. 4. Tornarai en 10 [dèce] minutos. | 1. This summer I will go to Italy. 2. In September, I will turn 20 [twenty] years old. 3. I put my things in a box. 4. I will return in 10 [ten] minutes. |
| Con [With] | 1. Company 2. Instrument/Tool | 1. Joco ad poker con mèo amico. 2. Escrivo con una pènna. | 1. I play poker with my friend. 2. I write with a pen. |
| Sopre [On/About] | 1. Position (On, with contact) 2. Topic | 1. Lo libro èst sopre la mesa. 2. Legei un artículo sopre la pressa tipogràfica. | 1. The book is on the table. 2. I read an article about the printing press. |
| Entre [Between] | 1. Position (Between) 2. Comparisons/Alternatives | 1. La casa se tropa entre lo àrbore et lo flume. 2. Non pòsso elégere entre rosso aut gàlbeno. | 1. The house is found between the tree and the river. 2. I cannot choose between red or yellow. |
| Sene [Without] | A lack of something | Volería una hamburghesa sene tomate. | I would like a hamburger without tomato. |
| Còntra [Against] | 1. Position (Physically against) 2. Opposition (Opinion) 3. Contrast | 1. La catèdra èst còntra la parete. 2. So còntra la initiativa. 3. La civtate pare pettitta còntra la montannîa. | 1. The chair is against the wall. 2. I am against the initiative. 3. The city looks small against the mountain. |
| Vèrso [Toward] | Direction | Lo vènto soffla vèrso lo mare. | The wind blows toward the sea. |
| Fine ad [Until/Up to] | Limit | Esperarai fine ad plus tarde. | I will wait until later. |
| Durante [During] | 1. Simultaneity 2. Duration | 1. Hai preso moltas fotos durante lo festivale. 2. Lo telèfono sonau durante hòras. | 1. I took many pictures during the festival. 2. The telephone rang for hours. |
| Mediante [By means of] | Medium | Lo pagamènto se effectua mediante carta de crédito. | Payment is made by credit card. |
| Secondo [According to] | Determination | Secondo lo inditio, lo tesoro devería èssere accuí. | According to the clue, the treasure should be here. |
| Sobto [Under/Below] | Position (Under/Below) | La borsa èst sobto la mesa. | The bag is under the table. |
| Pòs [After] | 1. Sequence 2. Time | 1. Mangîai patata pòs patata. 2. Pòs lo concèrto, tornammos ad casa. | 1. I ate potato after potato. 2. After the concert, we returned home. |
| Vía [Via/By means of] | Medium | Nos parlamos vía pòsta electrònica. | We speak to each other via email. |
| Versus [Versus] | Comparison/Opposition | La optione A versus la optione B. | Option A versus option B. |
| Dès (de) / Da [Since/From] | 1. Point of origin 2. Duration (Actions that started in the past and still happen) 3. Extension (From...up to…) | 1. Se vede la casa dès de la estrata. 2. Studio japonese dès de 5 [cinque] annos. 3. Dès de 5 [cinque] mètros fine ad 10 [dèce] mètros. | 1. The house can be seen from the street. 2. I have been studying Japanese for 5 [five] years. 3. From 5 [five] meters up to 10 [ten] meters. |
note
- With the verb "parlare", use the preposition "de". For example: "Estao parlando de libros." which means "I am talking about books." [Literally: "I am speaking of books."] That being said, "parlare sopre" is also possible, following the possibilities in Spanish and Portuguese.
- To differentiate between the preposition “da” and the conjugation of the verb “dare” in the third person, the letter A with a grave accent mark is used (“dà”). For example: Marco dà lo libro ad Elena. [Marco gives the book to Elena.]