“Before” in Italian is prima when it stands alone, prima di before a noun, a pronoun or an infinitive (“before doing”), and prima che before a clause with a different subject. For example, prima di mangiare means “before eating”, and prima che tu mangi means “before you eat”.
How to Say “Before” in Italian
| Use | Italian | Example |
|---|---|---|
| on its own (adverb) | prima | Ci sono già stato prima. (I have been there before.) |
| before a noun | prima di / prima del, della… | Torno prima delle otto. (I’ll be back before eight.) |
| before a pronoun | prima di me, te, lui… | Sei arrivato prima di me. (You arrived before me.) |
| before a verb (“before doing”) | prima di + infinitive | Prima di uscire, chiudo la porta. (Before going out, I close the door.) |
| before a clause with a new subject | prima che + subjunctive | Chiudo la porta prima che tu esca. (I close the door before you go out.) |
| in front of | davanti a | Ha parlato davanti al giudice. (He spoke before the judge.) |
| the day / week before | il giorno prima, la settimana prima | Siamo partiti il giorno prima. (We left the day before.) |
The rest of this lesson explains the most useful one for learners, prima di followed by a verb, and shows you when to use prima che instead.
Italian Adverbs of Time
Adverbs of time are essential to organize and describe when actions take place. They allow us to express past, present, and future events clearly and efficiently.
Common Italian adverbs of time are ora (now), oggi (today), ieri (yesterday), domani (tomorrow), prima (before), and dopo (after).
While most of these words stand alone to generally place events on a timeline, prima and dopo are typically used in combination with other event, before or after which something happened.
Here, I want to focus on the behavior of the adverb prima, which is often followed by the preposition di when combined with a noun or a verb.
“Before Doing” in Italian
In Italian, when you want to express the idea of “before doing” something, the structure you use is prima di followed by the infinitive form of the verb, a noun, or a pronoun.
When it is followed by a verb, this verb is normally in the present infinitive, because the action introduced by prima di happens after the action of the main verb, as you can see below:
Prima di mangiare, lavati le mani.
Before eating, wash your hands.
Ho finito il lavoro prima di uscire.
I finished my work before going out.
When it is followed by a noun keep in mind that nouns might – and often are – preceded by definite articles. When this happens, the preposition must combine with that article, creating a preposizione articolata.
Prima di cena, andiamo a fare una passeggiata.
Before dinner, we’ll go for a walk.
Devo finire la presentazione prima dell’evento.
I have to finish the presentation before the event.
Loro sono arrivati prima di me.
They arrived before me.
How to use “Prima di”
Organize Events in Time
As humans, we tend to think chronologically, placing events in a timeline to make sense of what happens when. In Italian, adverbs of time help indicate when things occur.
The phrase prima di is used to express one event that occurs before another.
Prima di mangiare.
Before eating.
Prima di dormire.
Before sleeping.
Prima di leggere.
Before reading.
Linking Events
One of the most useful aspects of prima di is that it can be applied to actions in any tense, whether you’re talking about the past, present, or future. This makes it highly versatile and commonly used in everyday conversations.
Past
Prima di andare in Guatemala, sono andata in Messico.
Before going to Guatemala, I went to Mexico.
Present
Di solito leggo un libro prima di dormire.
Usually, I read a book before sleeping.
Future
Prima di iniziare a lavorare, Riccardo andrà all’università.
Before he starts working, Riccardo will go to university.
Notice that all these examples use the present infinitive, even when they talk about the past. This is because the action after prima di always happens second: the luggage is checked before leaving, not after.
Prima di partire, hanno controllato i bagagli.
Before leaving, they checked the luggage.
Prima di + Past Infinitive
The past infinitive (aver finito, essere partito) after prima di is much less common. You will mainly find it in negative sentences, when you want to stress that something must be completed first:
Non puoi uscire prima di aver finito i compiti.
You can’t go out before finishing your homework.
Non decido prima di aver parlato con lui.
I won’t decide before talking to him.
Prima di or Prima che?
Use prima di + infinitive when the subject is the same in both parts of the sentence. When the subject changes, Italian uses prima che followed by the subjunctive:
Prima di uscire, io chiudo la porta.
Before going out, I close the door. (same subject)
Io chiudo la porta prima che tu esca.
I close the door before you go out. (different subjects)
Vieni prima che faccia buio.
Come before it gets dark.
You can read more in my lesson on prima che + subjunctive. For the opposite idea, see how to say “after doing something”.
Useful Expressions with Prima
| Italian | English |
|---|---|
| prima o poi | sooner or later |
| prima di tutto | first of all |
| come prima | as before |
| prima d’ora | before now |
| il giorno prima | the day before |
Prima o poi imparerai l’italiano.
Sooner or later you will learn Italian.
Prima di tutto, devo chiamare mia madre.
First of all, I have to call my mother.
Common Mistakes with “Before” in Italian
- Do not put a conjugated verb after prima di. Say Prima di uscire, not prima di esco.
- Do not use prima da or prima a: the preposition after prima is always di.
- With articles, di combines with them: prima dell’evento, prima delle otto, but prima di cena and prima di mezzogiorno (no article).
