How do you say "over here," "over there," or "all over" (everywhere) in Italian? There are several ways, and sometimes it's tricky to know which to use, as they all get mixed up in our brains. As with many expressions, people have their regional and personal preferences.
The first words we learn for "here" and "there" are qui (here), qua (here), lì (there), and là (there). While they are interchangeable in many cases, we could say that qui and lì are often more specific or precise than qua and là.
One common way to say "over here" and "over there" is with the preposition di (of, from, than, by, and more) plus either qua or là.
Carini, questi. -Camilla, magari un'altra volta. -Prego, allora potete accomodarvi di qua alla cassa.
These are cute. -Camilla, maybe another time. -Please, so, you can come over here to the register.
Captions 56-57, Provaci ancora prof! S3EP1 - Due americane a Roma - Part 10
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Di là? -No di qua. Di là. -Ciao.
Over there? -No, over here. Over there. -Hi.
Captions 66-67, Provaci ancora prof! S3 EP3 La terza vittima - Part 3
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In the following example, we can see in the video that Lojacono is indicating a different room, so instead of "over here," it's "in here." But he is indicating the way.
E di qua c'è un altro cadavere.
And in here, there is another corpse.
Caption 10, I Bastardi di Pizzofalcone S1EP4 Gelo - Part 2
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As a matter of fact, often, di qua means "this way," when giving directions or leading someone.
Prego, di qua.
Please, this way.
Caption 15, Liberi tutti EP1 Ma bevete anche l'aqua piovana? - Part 2
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When we want to say, "in the other room," without being specific as to what kind of room it is, it's enough to say di là.
Tua madre invece è di là che ti aspetta.
Your mother, on the other hand, is in there/in the other room, waiting for you.
Caption 64, Com'è umano lui Film - Part 26
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Another way to say "over here" or "over there" is with the noun, la parte (the side).
Da questa/quella parte (literally, "to this side"). Da is a preposition meaning "from" "at," "to" and more. Questo/a and quello/a are adjectives in this case, meaning, respectively, "this" and "that." La parte has different meanings. Usually it's "a section," or "a part," but it's also a synonym for il lato, meaning "the side." Lato is more specific, often referring to one of two sides, and it can also be figurative, meaning "aspect."
Devi sempre guardare il lato negativo delle cose?
Do you always have to look at the negative side of things?
Caption 68, Sposami EP 6 - Part 5
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Parte is more general.
Controlla da questa parte.
Check over here.
Caption 78, Provaci ancora prof! S3 EP3 La terza vittima - Part 3
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It works the same way with quella.
Scusate, è qua l'entrata? -Sì, da quella parte.
Excuse me, is this the entrance? -Yes, over there.
Caption 1, Volare - La grande storia di Domenico Modugno Ep. 1 - Part 6
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L'ho affrontato. -[Se] Cerca il bagno è da quella parte.
I confronted him. -If you're looking for the restroom, it's that way.
Caption 24, Provaci ancora prof! S2E3 Dietro la porta - Part 25
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Here is a popular way to say "all over," or "all over the place." Its synonym is used just before it: dappertutto, which we can guess was once three words: da per tutto, meaning in ogni parte (in every place). Over time, the three words merged into one, a process called univerbazione (fusion).
L'abbiamo cercato dappertutto. Da tutte le parti, ma non si trova.
We have looked for him everywhere. All over the place, but he hasn't been found.
Captions 29-30, Imma Tataranni Sostituto procuratore S1 EP5 Rione Serra Venerdì - Part 14
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We hope things are clearer now on how to say "over here" and "over there," as well as "this way," and "that way." Write to us at [email protected].
Let's talk about some adverbs of time and how Italians use them. Some adverbs of time have multiple meanings and need context to be understood and used precisely.
We can detect the noun notte (night) as part of the time adverb stanotte. The beginning, on the other hand, is sta, a short form of questa (this).
Non ti dispiace se rimango qui stanotte, vero?
You don't mind if I stay here tonight, do you?
Caption 4, Il Commissario Manara S1EP7 - Sogni di Vetro - Part 9
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But sometimes, the same adverb stanotte refers to "last night."
E mio marito non è rientrato stanotte e non ha nemmeno avvertito...
And my husband didn't come home last night and he didn't even let me know...
Caption 16, Il Commissario Manara S1EP6 - Reazione a Catena - Part 2
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We can use the same form to talk about the evening: stasera. Normally, we'd say that stasera means "this evening" but in English, we often use "tonight" when referring to the dinner hour, so sometimes "tonight" is the best translation.
La lista della spesa per la cena di stasera.
The shopping list for tonight's dinner.
Caption 2, Anna e Marika La mozzarella di bufala - La produzione e i tagli - Part 1
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While we say things like "I'm going out tonight," Italians will choose stasera over stanotte, unless we are talking about something happening in the middle of the night. But let's remember that sera generally means "evening."
Ma', stasera esco. -Dove vai?
Mom, tonight I'm going out. -Where are you going?
Caption 53, Acqua in bocca Un amico per Pippo - Ep 1
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Also, let's take the opportunity to remind ourselves that buonasera is a greeting upon arrival, whereas buonanotte is when you're leaving (and perhaps headed for bed).
You may already be familiar with the word for "yesterday." It's ieri. Just in case stanotte might not be clear enough, we have the choice of using ieri notte to mean "last night." If you are just getting up in the morning, you'll probably use stanotte to talk about the night before, but if it is later in the day, ieri notte makes sense.
Ieri notte tre ladri hanno pensato bene di svaligiare un atelier di abiti da sposa.
Last night, three thieves had the bright idea of cleaning out a wedding gown studio.
Caption 40, La Ladra EP. 2 - Viva le spose - Part 13
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If we say ieri sera, we can translate it with either "last night" or "yesterday evening," depending on how we think of it. But sera is generally used until late, let's say, until bedtime, whenever that is.
E voi due ieri sera eravate in casa? Sì, stavamo guardando la televisione.
And you two last night were at home? Yes, we were watching television.
Captions 47-48, I Bastardi di Pizzofalcone EP4 Gelo - Part 2
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We have said that ieri means "yesterday," but what about the day before yesterday?
One way to say this is l'altro ieri (the other yesterday).
Quando l'hai vista l'ultima volta? -L'altro ieri.
When did you last see her? -The day before yesterday.
Captions 5-6, I Bastardi di Pizzofalcone EP4 Gelo - Part 5
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Some people invert the words and say ieri l'altro.
Of course, we can also say due giorni fa (2 days ago).
E quando l'hai vista l'ultima volta? -Due giorni fa.
And when did you see her last? -Two days ago.
Captions 50-51, I Bastardi di Pizzofalcone EP4 Gelo - Part 4
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If we don't need to be precise, we can say "the other day."
No, scusa l'altro giorno non t'ho potuto richiamare, ma dovevi dirmi qualcosa di lavoro?
No, sorry, the other day I couldn't call you back, but did you have something about work to tell me?
Captions 29-30, Imma Tataranni Sostituto procuratore S1 EP1 L'estate del dito - Part 16
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When we're referring to the past with these adverbs of time, we'll want to use the passato prossimo (which works like the present perfect) tense. The exception is when we use the verb essere (to be). In this case, we might also use the imperfetto.
Note that we don't say il giorno prima di ieri to correspond to "the day before yesterday!" But if that's all you can think of, people will understand. They'll probably say, "Oh, sì, l'altro ieri."
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