Verbs and prepositions in Italian

In Italian, there are verbs that need specific prepositions to convey the right meaning and fulfill the syntactic structure of the clause.

Lesson outline

Hide

1.Usage and functions of the prepositions with verbs
2.Which Italian verbs need prepositions?
2.1.List of main Italian verbs with preposition

Usage and functions of the prepositions with verbs

As we know, the prepositions create a relations between two elements in the sentence.

When they occur with verbs, they usually complete the meaning of the sentence, also by introducing another phrase.

Example	Translation
Loro hanno deciso di andar via.	They decided to leave.
Loro abitano in campagna.	They live in the country.

Be careful! When the preposition introduce another sentence, this one is usually an implicit subordinate.
e.g. Vieni a vedere! (Come to see it!); Ho una fame da impazzire. (I am really hungry).

Have a question?

Take online language lessons with a professional teacher

Native & verified teachers
Free trial lesson
Learning materials included

Donatella P.

Sara V.

Martina G.

Elisa C.

Alessandra B.

Alessandra M.

Cecilia C.

Marta D.

Martina R.

Elisabetta R.

Sign up for free

Which Italian verbs need prepositions?

In Italian, there a lot of verbs that cannot take a direct object. They are intransitive, impersonal and reflexive verbs.

Be careful! Sometimes, we could find clauses with prepositions with transitive verbs too. Indeed, the prepositions can complete the general meaning of the sentence.
e.g. Il postino ha consegnato la lettera al destinatario. (The postman delivered the postcard to the addressee).

Let's see these verbs in detail.

List of main Italian verbs with preposition

Below you will find a list of the main verbs that occur with prepositions in Italian.

Verb	Preposition	Example	Translation
Abbandonarsi (to collapse on)	+ su	Mi sono abbandonato sul letto per la stanchezza.	I collapsed onto the bed due to the tiredness.
Abitare (to live)	+ in / con	Io abito con i miei genitori. Lei abita in città.	I live with my parents. She lives in the city.
Accompagnare (to bring, to carry)	direct obj + a / da	Ho accompagnato mia sorella a scuola.	I brought my sister to school.
Accorgersi (to notice)	+ di	Non si sono accorti di essere in ritardo?	Didn't they notice they were late?
Affidare (to entrust)	+ a	Il mio gatto è stato affidato alle cure del veterinario.	The veterinary was entrusted with the care of my cat.
Aggiungere (to add)	direct obj + a	Mio padre ha appena aggiunto il sale alla minestra.	My dad has just added salt to the soup.
Approfittare (to take advance)	+ di	Si sono chiaramente approfittate di te.	They clearly took advantage of you.
Arrivare (to arrive)	+ a / in / su	Marco e Luca sono arrivati presto in ufficio. Mio fratello arriverà tardi a casa.	Marco and Luca arrived early at the office. My brother is going to arrive late at home.
Brindare (to toast, to make a toast)	+ a	Abbiamo brindato alla sua salute.	We toasted on her health.
Cadere (to fall)	+ in / per	La bambina è caduta per terra mentre giocava.	The child fell to the ground while playing.
Cenare (to have dinner)	+ in / a / da	L'altro ieri Lucia ha cenato a casa di amici.	The day before yesterday Lucia had dinner at a friend's house.
Comunicare (to communicate)	direct object + a (+ di)	Hanno comunicato a noi la loro preoccupazione. Ci hanno comunicato di essere preoccupati.	They communicated us that they were worried.
Continuare (to continue)	+ a + per	Ha continuato a piovere per tutto il giorno.	It was raining all day long.
Convincere (to convince)	direct object + di / a	Avete finalmente convinto vostra madre a farvi uscire?	Have you finally convinced your mom to let you out?
Credere (to believe)	+ in / a	Tu credi in te stesso?	Do you believe in yourself?
Dare (to give)	direct object + a + da / di	Voi non avete dato il regalo a Giovanna?	Didn't you give the gift to Giovanna?