Forum Rocket Italian Italian Grammar Usage of "Andare" .. "To go" in English

Usage of "Andare" .. "To go" in English

Jemma

Jemma

Hi,

i have a slight confusion with the usage of "andare"...

for example, 
to say: where do you go to work(/school/party)?

Would it be right for me to ask a person "Dove andare a lavori?" / "Dove andare a scuola?" ? 

 
Lucia - Rocket Languages Tutor

Lucia - Rocket Languages Tutor

Hi Rachelyeo,

You would either ask Dove lavori? or Dove vai a scuola?.

Andare is an infinite verb and needs to be conjugated according to the subject in the sentence. Assuming you're using the informal way of addressing someone, the subject is tu. Andare is an irregular verb, but the -i of the main conjugation still remains, hence vai. (The other present forms are io vado, lui/lei va, noi andiamo, voi andate, essi vanno.)

"Dove vai a lavoro?" sounds a bit odd to me, as the form that's commonly used is Dove lavori?. (Where do you work?Dove vai a scuola? is different and can be directly translated from English.
If you were to address someone you have to show respect to, you can ask Dove lavora? or Dove va a scuola?.
Always remember to conjugate the verb!

Hope this helps :)

Lucia

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