🔍 In short. Choosing di or a before the infinitive is one of the first real walls in Italian: spero di partire but comincio a studiare. There is no single rule, yet the verbs that govern an infinitive cluster into clear meaning groups. This guide gives you those groups, a quick test, a cheat sheet and the infinitive traps.
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👆🏻 Jump to section
- The logic behind di or a before the infinitive
- Group zero: verbs that take the bare infinitive
- When the verb needs di
- When the verb needs a
- Same verb, two prepositions, two meanings
- A quick test when you are stuck
- Cheat sheet: di or a at a glance
- Dialogue: sorting out a delivery in Lucca
- Five mistakes English speakers make
- Frequently asked questions
- Related guides
The logic behind di or a before the infinitive
Walk into any classroom in Lucca and the same hand goes up: why decido di partire but imparo a guidare? The honest answer is that there is no formula that covers every verb. But the choice of di or a before the infinitive is far from random. Verbs gather into meaning families, and once you know the family, the preposition before the infinitive follows almost on its own.
Three buckets cover the vast majority of cases. Some verbs take no preposition at all and glue straight onto the infinitive. A large family asks for di: speaking, deciding, hoping, remembering, stopping. Another large family asks for a: starting, continuing, moving towards, learning, succeeding. Sort the verb into its bucket and the di or a before the infinitive question usually answers itself, whatever infinitive follows.
One condition matters before anything else: this whole topic only applies when the same subject does both actions, as in spero di vincere (I hope, I win). When the two verbs have different subjects, Italian switches to che plus a finite verb: spero che tu vinca. Keep that split in mind and the di or a before the infinitive system stays clean.
Group zero: verbs that take the bare infinitive
Before splitting di from a, clear out the verbs that take neither. These attach directly to the infinitive with nothing in between, and forgetting that is a classic slip. The bare-infinitive group is small but extremely frequent, so learning which verbs take a plain infinitive pays back fast.
- Devo passare in libreria prima delle sette.
I have to stop by the bookshop before seven. (modal: dovere) - Voglio finire il lavoro entro venerdì.
I want to finish the work by Friday. (modal: volere) - Preferisco restare a casa stasera.
I prefer to stay home tonight. (preferire) - Ho visto Pietro uscire dal negozio.
I saw Pietro leave the shop. (perception: vedere) - Ci fa aspettare ogni volta.
He makes us wait every time. (causative: fare)
The pattern: modal verbs (dovere, potere, volere, sapere when it means know how to), perception verbs (vedere, sentire, guardare, ascoltare), the causative fare and lasciare, plus preferire, desiderare, osare. No bridge word. If you find yourself wanting di or a before the infinitive here, stop: these verbs refuse it.
🎯 Mini-challenge: bare infinitive, di or a?
- Voglio ___ partire presto. (___ = niente / di / a)
- Spero ___ trovare un posto in treno.
- Comincio ___ capire la regola.
- Devo ___ chiudere il negozio.
- Imparo ___ cucire a macchina.
👉 Show answers
1. niente (modal volere) · 2. di (sperare) · 3. a (cominciare) · 4. niente (modal dovere) · 5. a (imparare)
When the verb needs di
The di family is the one English speakers underuse, because English rarely marks it. Think of di as the infinitive-linking preposition of the mind and of the end point: speaking, thinking, deciding, hoping, fearing, remembering, forgetting, and above all stopping or finishing an activity before its infinitive.
- Ho deciso di cambiare lavoro.
I decided to change jobs. (deciding) - Spero di rivederti presto a Lucca.
I hope to see you again soon in Lucca. (hoping) - Mi sono dimenticata di chiamare il veterinario.
I forgot to call the vet. (forgetting) - Smetti di lamentarti del traffico.
Stop complaining about the traffic. (stopping) - Finisci di sistemare gli scaffali, poi chiudiamo.
Finish arranging the shelves, then we close. (finishing) - Ti consiglio di prenotare prima.
I advise you to book in advance. (advising, with an object)
Notice the sub-pattern. Verbs of ending take di without exception: smettere di, finire di, cessare di. Verbs of saying and ordering aimed at someone also take di: dire di, chiedere di, consigliare di, ordinare di, permettere di, proibire di, vietare di, impedire di. And the everyday trio of trying belongs here too: cercare di, tentare di, provare a stands apart, which is exactly the kind of exception the cheat sheet below catches.
🔍 The mind and the finish line. If the main verb is about thinking, saying, deciding, fearing, or bringing an activity to an end, reach for di. Penso di restare, ho paura di cadere, ho finito di lavorare.
🎯 Mini-challenge: fill in di where the verb belongs to the mind or the finish line.
- Pietro ha deciso ___ vendere il furgone.
- Spero ___ arrivare puntuale alla riunione.
- Ho smesso ___ fumare due anni fa.
- Ti chiedo ___ aspettare un momento.
- Caterina ha finito ___ cucire il vestito.
👉 Show answers
All five take di: deciding, hoping, stopping, asking, finishing are core di verbs.
When the verb needs a
The a family links the verb to its infinitive through motion and process: starting, going on, moving towards, getting used to, learning, succeeding. Where di often points at a mental act or an end, a before the infinitive points at a beginning or a direction of travel, literal or figurative.
- Ho cominciato a studiare il tedesco.
I started studying German. (beginning) - Continua a piovere da stamattina.
It keeps raining since this morning. (continuing) - Sto imparando a cucire a macchina.
I am learning to machine-sew. (learning) - Sono riuscito a finire la consegna in tempo.
I managed to finish the delivery in time. (succeeding) - Mi sono abituata a svegliarmi presto.
I got used to waking up early. (getting used to) - Ti aiuto a portare gli scatoloni.
I will help you carry the boxes. (helping, with an object)
The reliable cores: beginning and continuing verbs (cominciare a, iniziare a, mettersi a, continuare a), movement verbs (andare a, venire a, correre a, tornare a), and verbs of learning and effort (imparare a, abituarsi a, riuscire a, provare a, decidersi a). A second set takes a person as object and then a: aiutare a, invitare a, insegnare a, convincere a, costringere a, obbligare a.
🎯 Mini-challenge: these are all motion or process verbs. Add a (or ad before a vowel).
- Comincio ___ capire la differenza.
- Continuo ___ lavorare fino a tardi.
- Imparo ___ guidare il furgone.
- Sono riuscita ___ aprire il barattolo.
- Ti invito ___ cenare da noi a Lucca.
👉 Show answers
1. a · 2. a · 3. a · 4. ad (ad aprire, before a vowel) · 5. a
Same verb, two prepositions, two meanings
Here is where the di or a before the infinitive choice stops being a memory exercise and starts changing meaning. A handful of common verbs accept both prepositions before the infinitive, and the switch flips the sense entirely. These infinitive pairs are worth memorising as a block.
- Penso di partire domani.
I am thinking of leaving tomorrow. (intention) - Penso a mia sorella a Trieste.
I am thinking about my sister in Trieste. (have in mind) - Ho finito di lavorare alle otto.
I finished working at eight. (stopped the activity) - È finito a vendere giornali alla stazione.
He ended up selling papers at the station. (ended up doing) - Aspetto di sapere la risposta.
I am waiting to know the answer. (expecting) - Aspetta a rispondere, non hai tutti i dati.
Wait before answering, you do not have all the data. (hold off)
The lesson is blunt: with pensare, finire, aspettare, accennare, vergognarsi, the preposition is not decoration. Treat the verb plus its preposition as one lexical unit, the way Italians do, and the di or a before the infinitive choice becomes a meaning choice you actually want to make.
A quick test when you are stuck
No list covers every verb, so here is a working heuristic for the di or a before the infinitive moment when memory fails. Run the verb and its infinitive through these questions in order. It is not a law, but it is right far more often than not.
- Is the verb a modal, a perception verb, or fare or lasciare? Then no preposition.
- Does it describe starting, continuing, moving towards, learning, or succeeding? Lean a.
- Does it describe thinking, saying, hoping, fearing, deciding, or ending an activity? Lean di.
- Does it govern a person before the second verb? Both groups exist (aiutare a, consigliare di): learn the verb with its preposition.
When in real doubt, two reflexes save you. First, the everyday workhorses: cominciare a, continuare a, imparare a, riuscire a on the a side; cercare di, sperare di, decidere di, smettere di, finire di on the di side. Second, read aloud: if a sentence sounds wrong to an ear trained on real Italian, it usually is, and that instinct grows faster than any table.
🎯 Mini-challenge: apply the test, then choose niente, di or a.
- Lorenzo preferisce ___ restare a Modena.
- Mi hanno convinto ___ cambiare idea.
- Ho paura ___ sbagliare strada.
- Continuiamo ___ provarci ogni giorno.
- Vado ___ comprare il pane.
👉 Show answers
1. niente (preferire) · 2. a (convincere a) · 3. di (avere paura di) · 4. a (continuare a) · 5. a (andare a)
Cheat sheet: di or a at a glance
Keep this open while you build sentences. It collapses the di or a before the infinitive system into one screen.
| Meaning | Preposition | Typical verbs | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obligation, will, ability | none | dovere, potere, volere, sapere | Devo partire. |
| Perception, causative | none | vedere, sentire, fare, lasciare | Ho visto Pietro uscire. |
| Deciding, hoping, intending | di | decidere, sperare, pensare, credere | Spero di rivederti. |
| Saying, ordering someone | di | dire, chiedere, consigliare, vietare | Ti consiglio di prenotare. |
| Stopping, finishing | di | smettere, finire, cessare | Smetti di lamentarti. |
| Trying | di | cercare, tentare | Cerco di capire. |
| Beginning, continuing | a | cominciare, iniziare, continuare | Comincio a studiare. |
| Movement towards | a | andare, venire, correre, tornare | Vado a comprare il pane. |
| Learning, succeeding | a | imparare, riuscire, abituarsi | Riesco a finire. |
| Pushing someone to act | a | aiutare, invitare, convincere, obbligare | Ti aiuto a portarlo. |
Dialogue: sorting out a delivery in Lucca
Pietro runs a small bookshop in Lucca; Caterina handles his deliveries. Watch every verb pick its preposition, or none.
👩🏼🦰 Caterina: Allora, hai deciso di anticipare la consegna a giovedì?
So, have you decided to bring the delivery forward to Thursday?
👨🏼🦰 Pietro: Sì, devo svuotare il magazzino prima del weekend. Riesci a passare la mattina?
Yes, I have to clear the warehouse before the weekend. Can you manage to come in the morning?
👩🏼🦰 Caterina: Provo a essere lì alle otto. Ho smesso di prendere consegne nel pomeriggio, c’è troppo traffico.
I will try to be there at eight. I stopped taking afternoon deliveries, there is too much traffic.
👨🏼🦰 Pietro: Capisco. Ti consiglio di entrare dal retro, davanti stanno rifacendo la strada.
I understand. I advise you to come in from the back, they are redoing the road out front.
👩🏼🦰 Caterina: Buono a sapersi. Comincio a scaricare e poi ti aiuto a sistemare gli scaffali?
Good to know. I start unloading and then I help you arrange the shelves?
👨🏼🦰 Pietro: Perfetto. Spero di chiudere tutto entro mezzogiorno, poi ti offro il pranzo.
Perfect. I hope to wrap everything up by noon, then I treat you to lunch.
👩🏼🦰 Caterina: Affare fatto. Ma non aspettare a firmare la bolla, sennò mi dimentico di lasciartela.
Deal. But do not wait to sign the delivery note, otherwise I forget to leave it with you.
What to notice in the dialogue
- hai deciso di, ho smesso di, spero di, mi dimentico di: deciding, stopping, hoping, forgetting, all core di.
- riesci a, provo a, comincio a, ti aiuto a: succeeding, trying-as-attempt, beginning, helping someone, all core a.
- devo svuotare: modal, bare infinitive, no preposition.
- aspettare a firmare vs the expected aspettare di: here it means hold off, the meaning-shift pair from earlier.
Five mistakes English speakers make
These five infinitive slips flag a sentence as non-native faster than any accent. Each maps back to one of the infinitive groups above.
Mistake 1. Adding a preposition after a modal. Wrong: voglio di partire. Correct: voglio partire. Modals take the bare infinitive, never di or a before the infinitive.
Mistake 2. Using a with stopping verbs. Wrong: smetto a fumare. Correct: smetto di fumare. Ending an activity is always di.
Mistake 3. Using di with beginning verbs. Wrong: comincio di studiare. Correct: comincio a studiare. Starting and continuing are always a.
Mistake 4. Dropping the euphonic d. Wrong: imparo a aprire. Better: imparo ad aprire. Before a word starting with a, a becomes ad for smoother sound.
Mistake 5. Ignoring the meaning-shift pairs. Penso di andare (I intend to go) is not penso a andare. With pensare, finire, aspettare the preposition carries the meaning.
🎯 Mini-challenge: each sentence has one error. Fix it.
- Devo di passare in libreria.
- Ho smesso a bere caffè la sera.
- Comincio di capire il problema.
- Imparo a usare il programma. (right or wrong?)
- Penso a partire la settimana prossima. (intention)
👉 Show answers
1. Devo passare (no prep) · 2. Ho smesso di bere · 3. Comincio a capire · 4. correct · 5. Penso di partire (intention = di)
Test your understanding
Take the short quiz below to check whether the di or a before the infinitive groups have stuck.
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Frequently asked questions
These are the doubts that come up again and again among learners working through the di or a before the infinitive system. The verb-and-preposition pairing is documented in the institutional Treccani vocabolario entry on cominciare.
Is there a rule, or do I just memorise which verbs take di and which take a?
There is no single rule that decides every case, and even Italian institutions say so. But the verbs fall into meaning families. Verbs of beginning, continuing, moving towards, learning and succeeding take a (cominciare a, continuare a, imparare a, riuscire a). Verbs of thinking, deciding, hoping, saying, fearing and ending an activity take di (decidere di, sperare di, smettere di, finire di). Modals and perception verbs take neither. You still memorise, but you memorise families, not isolated words.
Why comincio a studiare but smetto di studiare?
Because beginning and ending sit in opposite families. Verbs that open or continue an action (cominciare, iniziare, mettersi, continuare) take a. Verbs that close an action (smettere, finire, cessare) take di. So you start with a and you stop with di, even with the same second verb: comincio a lavorare, finisco di lavorare. The preposition tracks the phase of the action, not the action itself.
Which verbs take no preposition before the infinitive?
Modal verbs (dovere, potere, volere, and sapere when it means know how to), perception verbs (vedere, sentire, guardare, ascoltare), the causative fare and lasciare, plus preferire, desiderare and osare. They attach straight to the infinitive: devo partire, voglio restare, ho visto Pietro uscire, ci fa aspettare. Adding di or a here is one of the most common beginner errors.
Is it cercare di or cercare a?
Cercare always takes di: cerco di capire, ha cercato di aiutarmi. So does tentare: tento di spiegarlo. The verb provare in the sense of attempting takes a instead: provo a aprirlo. Cercare di and provare a are close in meaning, to try, but each keeps its own preposition. Learn them as fixed pairs and the choice never comes up again.
Why ad aprire and not a aprire?
This is the euphonic d. When a is followed by a word that starts with the same vowel a, Italian usually inserts a d for smoother pronunciation: imparo ad aprire, comincio ad ascoltare. The same happens with e becoming ed (e anche becomes ed anche). It is a sound rule, not a grammar one, and it does not change the choice of preposition itself.
Does the di or a choice depend on having the same subject?
The whole infinitive construction only works when both verbs share the same subject: spero di partire (I hope, I leave). When the subjects differ, Italian drops the infinitive and uses che plus a finite verb: spero che tu parta (I hope that you leave). So before worrying about di or a, check that one person is doing both actions. If not, you are in che territory and the preposition question disappears.
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Related guides
Once the di or a before the infinitive logic is clear, these guides take each branch deeper.
- Italian Verbs Followed by DI: The Complete B1 List: every di verb, grouped and exemplified.
- Italian Verbs Followed by A: The Complete B1 List: the full a list, beginning to striving.
- Italian Modal Verbs: Dovere, Potere, Volere, Sapere: the bare-infinitive group in detail.
- Italian DI vs DA: The Complete Guide: di in its other roles, contrasted with da.
- Italian Prepositions: 8 Simple Rules: how di and a fit the whole system.
