🔍 In short. English uses one word, “about”, for many things. Italian splits it into five: su for the topic of a book or talk, di for what you discuss or speak of, riguardo a and per quanto riguarda for “regarding” in a formal tone, circa mostly for approximate numbers, secondo for “according to”, and a proposito di for “on the subject of”. Knowing which one to pick is one of those small choices that makes your italian su riguardo a secondo sound natural rather than translated.
By the end of this guide you will be able to introduce a topic, quote someone, and steer a conversation in Italian without falling back on a single all-purpose word. We will use a book club planning meeting in Padova between Andrea and Beatrice as the running scene, because choosing the next book is exactly the kind of chat where every one of these little words shows up.
Cosa impareremo oggi
👆🏻 Jump to section
- The one-liner rule for italian su riguardo a secondo
- Su and di: the topic of a book, a talk, a chat
- Riguardo a and per quanto riguarda: the formal “regarding”
- Circa: when “about” really means “roughly”
- Secondo: “according to” and “in my opinion”
- A proposito di and quanto a: opening and shifting topics
- Nei confronti di: “towards a person”
- Cheat sheet
- Dialogue: planning the book club in Padova
- Mini-challenge
- Frequently asked questions
- Related guides
The one-liner rule for italian su riguardo a secondo
If you are choosing between the seven little words italian uses for “about”, here is the shortest possible map. Use su when something is the subject of a written or spoken piece. Use di after the verbs parlare, discutere, scrivere. Use riguardo a or per quanto riguarda when you want to sound polished or formal. Use circa only with numbers, dates, distances. Use secondo to introduce someone’s view. Use a proposito di to drop a new but related topic into a conversation. Use nei confronti di when the “about” is really a feeling toward a person.
That single paragraph is most of what you need. The rest of this guide unpacks each choice with real sentences, the small traps Italians notice, and a dialogue that puts all of them in one place.
Su and di: the topic of a book, a talk, a chat
Walk into any bookshop in Padova and you will hear customers asking for un libro su Calvino or un saggio sull’economia. The preposition su introduces the topic of a finished or planned work: a book, an article, a documentary, a talk, a thesis. It pins down what the work is about in the most direct sense.
- Andrea sta scrivendo un articolo su Calvino per la rivista della biblioteca.
Andrea is writing an article about Calvino for the library magazine. - Ho comprato un saggio sulla cucina di Padova.
I bought an essay about Padova’s cuisine. - Beatrice prepara una presentazione sull’arte rinascimentale.
Beatrice is preparing a presentation about Renaissance art. - Abbiamo visto un documentario sui canali di Venezia.
We watched a documentary about the canals of Venice.
The preposition di covers a slightly different angle. It usually follows verbs of talking, writing or thinking: parlare di, discutere di, scrivere di, pensare di. With these verbs Italian almost never uses su; it is di that pulls in the subject of the conversation.
- Abbiamo parlato di cinema per tutta la sera.
We talked about cinema all evening. - Andrea e Beatrice discutono spesso di libri al telefono.
Andrea and Beatrice often discuss books on the phone. - Scrivo di viaggi sul mio blog ogni domenica.
I write about travel on my blog every Sunday. - Che cosa pensi di questo nuovo romanzo?
What do you think about this new novel?
Both options can sometimes coexist, with a small shift in flavour. Un libro di Pavese means a book by Pavese (he wrote it). Un libro su Pavese means a book about Pavese (someone wrote about him). The same trap catches English speakers with songs and films: una canzone di Lucio Battisti is by Battisti; una canzone su Milano is about Milan.
🎯 Mini-challenge: Pick su, sulla, di or della.
- Ho letto un libro molto bello (su / di) Cesare Pavese, scritto da una sua amica.
- Beatrice vuole parlare (su / di) cinema italiano stasera.
- Andrea sta preparando una tesi (sulla / della) storia di Padova.
- Che cosa pensi (su / di) questa idea?
- È un documentario (sui / dei) mosaici di Ravenna.
👉 Show answers
1. su Cesare Pavese (a book about him, written by a friend)
2. parlare di cinema (verb parlare takes di)
3. una tesi sulla storia di Padova (the topic of the thesis)
4. Che cosa pensi di questa idea? (verb pensare takes di for opinion)
5. un documentario sui mosaici (topic of the documentary)
Riguardo a and per quanto riguarda: the formal “regarding”
Move from a relaxed chat to a slightly more formal context, like an email to a colleague or a meeting at the town hall, and you will start hearing riguardo a and per quanto riguarda. Both translate as “regarding”, “concerning”, “with regard to”. They are the polished cousins of su and di, useful when you want to mark a specific point cleanly.
- Riguardo alla riunione di lunedì, ancora non sono sicura di poter venire.
Regarding Monday’s meeting, I’m still not sure I can come. - Per quanto riguarda il prossimo libro, propongo qualcosa di breve.
As for the next book, I suggest something short. - Riguardo al pagamento, può lasciarlo in segreteria.
Regarding the payment, you can leave it at the front desk. - Per quanto riguarda l’orario, ci vediamo alle diciotto e trenta.
As for the time, we’ll meet at six thirty.
Two practical points. First, riguardo needs the preposition a (or, more rarely, di): riguardo a Maria, riguardo al lavoro. A bare riguardo Maria sounds clipped, like an unfinished sentence. Second, per quanto riguarda usually opens a sentence and prepares a new point, the way English uses “as for”.
There is also a shorter cousin, rispetto a, that you will see in writing: rispetto al programma originale, abbiamo fatto dei tagli, “with respect to the original schedule, we made some cuts”. In speech it is less common than riguardo a. Save rispetto a for written reports or polished talks.
Circa: when “about” really means “roughly”
English “about” hides two completely different jobs. One is “on the topic of”: a book about Calvino. The other is “roughly, approximately”: about a hundred pages. Italian sends each job to a different word. The second job, the “roughly” one, belongs almost entirely to circa.
- Il libro è lungo circa cento pagine.
The book is about a hundred pages long. - Andrea ha circa quarant’anni.
Andrea is about forty years old. - Circa duecento persone hanno partecipato al festival di Lecce.
About two hundred people took part in the Lecce festival. - Vivo a Padova da circa tre anni.
I have been living in Padova for about three years. - Il treno arriva fra circa venti minuti.
The train arrives in about twenty minutes.
Notice the pattern. Circa sits next to a number, a date, a quantity, a length of time. Trying to use circa for the topic of a book (“a book circa Calvino”) is one of the cleanest signs of a translation from English. Italians simply do not say it that way. If a number is involved, circa; if a subject is involved, su, di, riguardo a.
One small subtlety: circa can sit either before or after the number, with no change in meaning. Circa cento pagine and cento pagine circa are both fine; the second is slightly more conversational. There is also a near-synonym you will hear constantly, all’incirca, which means exactly the same as circa: all’incirca cento pagine, siamo all’incirca cinquanta persone.
Secondo: “according to” and “in my opinion”
The word secondo has two grammatical lives in Italian. One is the ordinal number “second”, as in il secondo capitolo. The other, the one we want here, is the preposition that means “according to”. Once you spot it sitting at the start of a sentence in front of a person or a source, you know it is the “according to” version.
- Secondo il bollettino del comune, il mercato chiude alle tredici.
According to the town council bulletin, the market closes at one. - Secondo Andrea, il libro è troppo lungo.
According to Andrea, the book is too long. - Secondo le previsioni, domani pioverà a Trento.
According to the forecast, it will rain in Trento tomorrow. - Secondo me, il finale è troppo affrettato.
In my opinion, the ending is too rushed.
The last example needs a note. Italians use secondo me, secondo te, secondo lui, secondo lei, secondo noi, secondo voi, secondo loro as the everyday way of saying “in my opinion”, “in your opinion”, and so on. Literally it is “according to me”, which sounds strange in English but is completely natural in Italian. You can scatter secondo me through any conversation about books, food, films, politics; it never sounds odd.
Two extra patterns to recognise. Secondo cui means “according to which”: una teoria secondo cui il romanzo è autobiografico, “a theory according to which the novel is autobiographical”. And secondo quanto + verb means “according to what”: secondo quanto ha detto Beatrice, la riunione è alle sette. Both are common in news reports and articles, less so in casual speech.
🎯 Mini-challenge: Fill the gap with circa, secondo, riguardo a, or per quanto riguarda.
- ___ me, dovremmo scegliere un libro più corto.
- Il romanzo è lungo ___ trecento pagine.
- ___ il prossimo incontro, propongo giovedì sera.
- ___ alla riunione di lunedì, ti scrivo una mail più tardi.
- Vivo a Padova da ___ cinque anni.
- ___ il giornale di stamattina, oggi piove a Trento.
👉 Show answers
1. Secondo me (in my opinion)
2. circa trecento pagine (approximate number)
3. Per quanto riguarda il prossimo incontro (opening a new topic)
4. Riguardo alla riunione (formal “regarding”)
5. circa cinque anni (approximate time)
6. Secondo il giornale (attributing a source)
A proposito di and quanto a: opening and shifting topics
Italian has two very useful conversation tools that English speakers underuse. The first is a proposito di, “on the topic of”, “speaking of”. It lets you introduce a related but new subject with a soft landing, the way English uses “speaking of” or “on the subject of”.
- A proposito di libri, hai finito quello che ti avevo prestato?
Speaking of books, did you finish the one I lent you? - A proposito di Beatrice, l’hai sentita ieri?
Speaking of Beatrice, did you hear from her yesterday? - Non disse niente a proposito del furto in biblioteca.
He didn’t say anything about the theft at the library.
You will also hear the short form a proposito on its own, with no following noun, used as a discourse hinge meaning “by the way”: A proposito, hai visto Andrea ieri?, “by the way, did you see Andrea yesterday?”. The full form a proposito di needs a noun after it; the bare a proposito stands alone like a comma between two thoughts.
The second tool is quanto a, “as for”. It singles out one element among several to comment on it.
- Quanto a me, preferisco rivedere il film prima della prossima riunione.
As for me, I’d rather rewatch the film before the next meeting. - Quanto al libro di Pavese, l’ho già letto due volte.
As for Pavese’s book, I have already read it twice. - Quanto al pagamento, parliamo dopo.
As for the payment, let’s talk later.
Quanto a and per quanto riguarda overlap a lot. The difference is mostly tone: quanto a is a little more direct and personal, per quanto riguarda a little more institutional. Both work in writing and in speech, both follow the same structure: preposition + noun or pronoun + comma + the comment.
Nei confronti di: “towards a person”
One last expression covers a narrow but important case. When “about” really means “towards a person” (an attitude, a feeling, a behaviour), Italian uses nei confronti di. You will never see it next to a book or an idea; it always points at a person or a group of people.
- Andrea ha un atteggiamento un po’ diffidente nei confronti del nuovo direttore.
Andrea has a slightly distrustful attitude towards the new director. - Beatrice si comporta sempre bene nei confronti dei colleghi.
Beatrice always behaves well towards her colleagues. - Hanno preso una decisione severa nei confronti degli studenti in ritardo.
They took a harsh decision towards the late students.
Try to swap any of these with riguardo a and the sentence still works, but loses the “directed at a person” flavour. Riguardo al nuovo direttore sounds like a topic for a meeting; nei confronti del nuovo direttore sounds like a personal stance. Pick nei confronti di whenever the feeling or behaviour is aimed at someone.
Cheat sheet
One table to keep open while you build your next Italian sentence with italian su riguardo a secondo.
| Situation | Word | Italian example | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| Topic of a book, film, talk | su | un libro su Calvino | a book about Calvino |
| After parlare, discutere, scrivere, pensare | di | parlare di cinema | to talk about cinema |
| “Regarding” (formal) | riguardo a | riguardo alla riunione | regarding the meeting |
| “As for” (formal opener) | per quanto riguarda | per quanto riguarda l’orario | as for the time |
| Approximate number, date, length | circa | circa cento pagine | about a hundred pages |
| “According to” a source | secondo | secondo il giornale | according to the paper |
| “In my opinion” | secondo me | secondo me è troppo lungo | in my opinion it’s too long |
| “Speaking of” (soft topic shift) | a proposito di | a proposito di libri | speaking of books |
| “By the way” (alone) | a proposito | a proposito, hai chiamato? | by the way, did you call? |
| “As for” (direct, personal) | quanto a | quanto a me, preferisco aspettare | as for me, I’d rather wait |
| “Towards a person” | nei confronti di | nei confronti del direttore | towards the director |
Dialogue: planning the book club in Padova
Andrea and Beatrice meet at Beatrice’s flat in Padova to pick the next book for their reading club. Watch every “about” word as it shows up: su, di, riguardo a, circa, secondo, a proposito di, quanto a.
👱🏼♀️ Beatrice: Ciao Andrea! Allora, per il prossimo incontro del club del libro, hai già qualche idea?
Hi Andrea! So, for the next book club meeting, do you have any ideas yet?
👨🏽🦱 Andrea: Sì, stavo pensando a un saggio breve su Pavese, circa centocinquanta pagine.
Yes, I was thinking of a short essay about Pavese, around a hundred and fifty pages.
👱🏼♀️ Beatrice: Su Pavese o di Pavese? Sono due cose molto diverse.
About Pavese or by Pavese? Those are very different.
👨🏽🦱 Andrea: Su Pavese, scritto da una sua amica torinese. Si parla molto della Langa e dei suoi anni da giovane.
About Pavese, written by a Turin friend of his. It talks a lot about the Langa region and his early years.
👱🏼♀️ Beatrice: Interessante. Secondo me però l’ultima volta abbiamo già letto un saggio. Vorrei un romanzo questa volta.
Interesting. In my opinion though we already read an essay last time. I’d like a novel this time.
👨🏽🦱 Andrea: Va bene. Allora, riguardo ai romanzi, ho letto delle recensioni positive su un libro ambientato a Lucca negli anni Sessanta.
Alright. So, regarding novels, I read some positive reviews about a book set in Lucca in the sixties.
👱🏼♀️ Beatrice: Quanto pagine?
How many pages?
👨🏽🦱 Andrea: Circa duecentottanta. Si legge in fretta, secondo il sito della libreria.
About two hundred and eighty. It reads quickly, according to the bookshop website.
👱🏼♀️ Beatrice: A proposito di pagine, Caterina mi ha chiesto un libro più breve la settimana scorsa. Quanto a me, va bene anche di più.
Speaking of pages, Caterina asked me for a shorter book last week. As for me, longer is fine too.
👨🏽🦱 Andrea: Per quanto riguarda Caterina, possiamo darle un capitolo in più di tempo. Lei legge sempre con calma.
As for Caterina, we can give her an extra chapter’s worth of time. She always reads slowly.
👱🏼♀️ Beatrice: Buona idea. A proposito, hai più sentito Lorenzo? L’ultima volta non è venuto.
Good idea. By the way, have you heard from Lorenzo lately? He didn’t come last time.
👨🏽🦱 Andrea: Sì, ieri. Mi ha detto che ha un periodo difficile al lavoro. Comunque ha un atteggiamento positivo nei confronti del gruppo, vuole tornare.
Yes, yesterday. He told me he’s having a tough time at work. Still, he has a positive attitude towards the group, he wants to come back.
👱🏼♀️ Beatrice: Bene. Allora, decidiamo: il romanzo ambientato a Lucca. Mando il messaggio agli altri stasera.
Good. Then let’s decide: the novel set in Lucca. I’ll message the others tonight.
👨🏽🦱 Andrea: Perfetto. Quanto al posto dell’incontro, possiamo fare di nuovo da te?
Perfect. As for the meeting place, can we do it at yours again?
👱🏼♀️ Beatrice: Certo. A giovedì allora.
Sure. See you Thursday then.
What to notice in the dialogue
- Su Pavese / di Pavese: Beatrice catches the difference immediately. Native ear, classic distinction.
- Secondo me: the everyday “in my opinion”, not a translation choice but a habit.
- Riguardo ai romanzi / Per quanto riguarda Caterina: formal connectors that work even between friends because they organise the conversation.
- Circa centocinquanta / circa duecentottanta: numbers and lengths only.
- A proposito di pagine / A proposito, hai sentito Lorenzo: full form with a noun, then short form alone as a hinge between topics.
- Quanto a me / Quanto al posto: a slightly more personal “as for”.
- Nei confronti del gruppo: a feeling pointed at people, not at a topic.
Mini-challenge
🎯 Final challenge: Translate into natural Italian.
- I’m reading a book about Calvino.
- Speaking of films, did you see the new one set in Trento?
- According to Beatrice, the restaurant closes at ten.
- Regarding the meeting, I’ll be ten minutes late.
- The article is about three hundred words long.
- As for me, I prefer to read before the discussion.
- She has a kind attitude towards the new students.
👉 Show answers
1. Sto leggendo un libro su Calvino. (topic of a book → su)
2. A proposito di film, hai visto quello nuovo ambientato a Trento? (soft topic shift)
3. Secondo Beatrice, il ristorante chiude alle dieci. (attributing a source)
4. Riguardo alla riunione, arriverò con dieci minuti di ritardo. (formal “regarding”)
5. L’articolo è lungo circa trecento parole. (approximate number)
6. Quanto a me, preferisco leggere prima della discussione. (direct “as for me”)
7. Ha un atteggiamento gentile nei confronti dei nuovi studenti. (feeling towards people)
Mastering italian su riguardo a secondo comes from noticing patterns in everyday Italian rather than memorising rules. Read book reviews, listen to podcasts, watch how Italians introduce a topic in interviews. Each time you spot one of these little words, ask yourself which job it is doing: topic of a written work, topic after a verb of talking, formal “regarding”, approximate quantity, attribution, soft hinge, feeling towards a person. After a week of conscious noticing, the choice will feel automatic.
Test your understanding
Take the quiz below to test what you’ve learned about italian su riguardo a secondo.
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Frequently asked questions
These questions about italian su riguardo a secondo come from real conversations among Italian learners. The usage notes on riguardo a and a proposito are documented in the Treccani entry on riguardo.
When do I use su versus di for the topic of a book or film?
Use su when the work is about a person, place or theme that is the subject of the book or film: un libro su Calvino (a book about Calvino), un film sui canali di Venezia (a film about Venice’s canals). Use di after the verbs parlare, discutere, scrivere, pensare: parliamo di cinema, scrivo di viaggi. Be careful with the di pattern: un libro di Pavese means a book written by Pavese, while un libro su Pavese means a book about him. The same trap applies to songs and films.
Is riguardo correct on its own, or do I always need riguardo a?
You almost always need riguardo a. A bare riguardo Maria, riguardo il libro sounds clipped and unfinished to a native ear. The standard pattern is riguardo a + noun: riguardo a Maria, riguardo al libro, riguardo alla riunione. A less common alternative is riguardo di, which sounds slightly old-fashioned. In writing the safe choice is always riguardo a; in casual speech some Italians drop the a, but it is not the form taught or expected in clear Italian.
Can I use circa to mean about in the topic sense?
No, that’s the most common mistake English speakers make. Circa in Italian means roughly, approximately, and sits only next to numbers, dates, quantities or lengths of time: circa cento pagine, circa tre anni, circa venti minuti. Saying un libro circa Calvino is not Italian; the correct form is un libro su Calvino. If the about you want to translate has a number behind it, use circa. If the about has a topic behind it, use su, di, or riguardo a.
Why do Italians say secondo me when they mean in my opinion?
Literally secondo me means according to me, which sounds strange in English but is perfectly natural in Italian. It is the standard, everyday way of marking a personal opinion: secondo me il film è troppo lungo, secondo me dovremmo aspettare. The same pattern works with all pronouns: secondo te, secondo lui, secondo lei, secondo noi, secondo voi, secondo loro. Use it in any casual conversation about books, food, films, politics. It never sounds odd or formal.
What’s the difference between a proposito and a proposito di?
A proposito di X means on the topic of X or speaking of X: a proposito di libri, hai finito quello che ti avevo prestato? It needs a noun after di. The short form a proposito stands alone with no noun after it and works like by the way: a proposito, hai chiamato Andrea? It marks a soft jump between two topics. In writing both forms are spelled with two separate words; the joined spelling appropostio is not correct.
When should I use nei confronti di instead of riguardo a?
Use nei confronti di only when the about really means towards a person or a group of people, and you are describing a feeling, an attitude or a behaviour: ha un atteggiamento positivo nei confronti dei colleghi, hanno preso una decisione severa nei confronti degli studenti. With a topic or an idea you cannot use nei confronti di; you need riguardo a or per quanto riguarda instead. The clue is simple: if the about points at a person and describes how someone feels or acts towards them, nei confronti di fits.
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