Lì or là? Qui or qua? Is there any difference between them?
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN LI AND LA
However, whereas là indicates something that is far from the person who is speaking and more approximate, lì indicates something that is far from the individual who is speaking BUT with less approximation.
In short, lì is more accurate and specific than là.
Lì and là often appear in spoken Italian together with the pronoun quello meaning ‘that one over there’
- Chi è quello là ? – Who is that one over there?
COMMON ITALIAN EXPRESSIONS USING “LA'”
mettilo là/lì – put it there
là dentro, là fuori, là sotto – in, out
là dentro, là fuori, là sopra – in, out, up
più in là – further on (space), later on (time)
essere di là – to be somewhere else
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN QUA AND QUI?
Both qui and qua means here (in this place), and follow the same rule that applies for lì and là.
Qui indicates something close to the person that is speaking and is more accurate and specific than qua.
Let’s some practical examples…
- Qui si mangia bene, I am probably referring to my place, my house (thus a smaller or more specific place
- Qua si mangia bene , I am probably referring to my city or country (thus a wider or more general place)
Qui and qua often appears in spoken Italian with the pronoun questo.
- Chi è questa qua ? – Who is this one?
COMMON ITALIAN EXPRESSIONS USING QUI / QUA
vieni qui/qua – come here
mettilo qui/qua – put it here
qua/qui dentro – in here
qua/qui sotto – under here