Italian · CEFR Band 1 (A1) · Chapter 25
Giri a destraTurn right
The secret revealed: al, alla, del, nel are not new words — they are the prepositions you know FUSED with the article. A + il = al, a + la = alla, di + il = del, in + il = nel. With the fusion come the CILS street directions: «Deve andare in fondo alla strada e girare a destra» — deve + infinitive, the polite formula of directions. Destra, sinistra, dritto, il binario, il biglietto: the shopping-and-places arc closes at the station, with Mike finally knowing where to go — and how to ask.
Dialogue
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Vicino alla stazione— Near the station
- MikeMarco, il supermercato è vicino alla stazione?Marco, is the supermarket near the station?
- MarcoSì, è vicino alla stazione.Yes, it's near the station.
- MikeE dov'è la stazione?And where's the station?
- MarcoDevi andare dritto, in fondo alla strada, e girare a destra. La stazione è lì!You need to go straight, to the end of the street, and turn right. The station is there!
- MikeDritto, in fondo alla strada, a destra. Vado alla stazione — e prendo il treno per Napoli!Straight, to the end of the street, right. I'm going to the station — and taking the train to Naples!
Dialogue
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Binario tre— Platform three
- GiuliaDue biglietti per Napoli, per favore! …Ecco. Marco, dov'è il binario tre?Two tickets to Naples, please! …There. Marco, where is platform three?
- MarcoIn fondo alla stazione, a sinistra. Ma attenzione: «treno in transito al binario due» — non è il nostro!At the end of the station, on the left. But careful: «treno in transito al binario due» — that's not ours!
- GiuliaIl nostro va dal binario tre alle undici e mezzo. Andiamo — dritto e a sinistra!Ours leaves from platform three at half past eleven. Let's go — straight and then left!
- MarcoE a Napoli, benvenuti a casa mia: il centro, il mare — e la vera pizza!And in Naples, welcome to my home turf: the centro, the sea — and the real pizza!
Vocabulary
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- al / alla / allo / all'
prepositionto the, at the — a fused with the article: a+il=al, a+la=alla, a+lo=allo, a+l'=all'
- del / nel / dal
prepositionof the / in the / from the — di, in, da fuse the same way: di+il=del, in+il=nel, da+il=dal
- la destra
n.f.the right (girare a destra = turn right)
- la sinistra
n.f.the left (a sinistra = on/to the left)
- dritto
adverbstraight ahead (andare dritto — hold the tt)
- in fondo a…
phraseat the end of… (in fondo alla strada — the attested CILS phrase, fusion included)
- girare
verbto turn (io giro; girare a destra/sinistra — the CILS directions verb)
- devi / deve + infinito
phraseyou need to… (devi to a friend, deve with Lei) — Devi andare dritto; the directions chunk (dovere's full family in chapter 30)
- il binario
n.m.the platform, the track (binario 18 — the CILS announcement's star)
- il biglietto
n.m.the ticket (train, movie theater, museum — one word for all of them; a CILS regular)
- benvenuto / benvenuta / benvenuti
adjectivewelcome (to a man / to a woman / to several people)
- il nostro / la nostra
adjectiveour, ours
- vero / vera
adjectivetrue, real (è vero! = that's true!)
Grammar
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Al, alla, del, nel — the fusion revealed
Explanation
You have already said them — al bar, alle otto, della mamma — and today you see the mechanism: when a, di, da, in and su meet a definite article, they FUSE into a single word. The recipe: preposition + the article form you already know how to choose. A: al, allo, alla, all', ai, agli, alle. DI: del, dello, della, dell', dei, degli, delle. IN: nel, nello, nella… DA: dal, dalla… SU: sul, sulla… There is nothing new to decide: pick the article with chapters 7-8-11's rules, and the fusion comes by itself — vicino ALLA stazione (a+la), in fondo ALLA strada, il treno DAL binario tre, la casa DELLA nonna. Mind the border: the frozen families stay frozen — a casa, in centro, in treno take no article, so no fusion. And the chapter's practical gift: directions. Devi andare dritto, in fondo alla strada, e girare a destra — devi + infinitive guides a friend, as Marco guides Mike; to someone you don't know, with Lei, it is deve: deve andare dritto (dovere's whole family arrives in chapter 30). Ask, listen for the fusion, walk.
Examples
- a + il = al · a + la = alla · di + il = del · in + il = nelto/at the · to/at the · of the · in the
- vicino alla stazione · in fondo alla strada · dal binario trenear the station · at the end of the street · from platform three
- a casa, in centro, in trenoat home, downtown, by train
- Deve andare dritto e girare a destra.You need to go straight and turn right.
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