Giving directions, street and car vocabulary
Giving Directions
Here are some sample phrases and expressions to use in giving directions in English.
(First,) go down this street (for ____ blocks).
(Then,) turn left/right at the traffic light.
(After that,) go straight on _____ Street until you get to the ______.
(When you get to the _____,) turn left/right again.
(Then,) stay on_______Avenue for about _______ yards/meters.
It’s on your left, next to the __________. You can’t miss it.
| 1. Excuse me. Is there a supermarket around here?2. Can you tell me how to get to Reggio Emilia?
3. Where’s The Book Shop? 4. How do you get to the post office? |
Yeah. There’s one right across the street. Sorry. I don’t live around here.
It’s on the corner of Pine street and Hemlock street. Next to the library. Go straight down this street for two blocks. Turn left when you get to Maple Street. Stay on Maple for half a block. It’s on the left hand side. |
Directions
| Go straight. | Vai diritto. |
| Turn left. | Gira a sinistra. |
| Turn right. | Gira a destra. |
| to the left | alla sinistra |
| to the right | alla destra |
| straight ahead | sempre diritto |
| next to | accanto a |
| in front of | davanti a |
| in back of | dietro |
| near (to) | vicino a |
| far (from) | lontano da |
| north | nord |
| south | sud |
| east | est |
| west | ovest |
Street and car words
| accident | un incidente |
| all routes/ directions | tutte le direzioni |
| bypass road | un tangenziale |
| dead end | strada senza uscita |
| diesel | il diesel |
| driver | l’autista |
| gas | la benzina |
| gas station | un distributore di benzina |
| highway | un’autostrada |
| lane | una corsia |
| lights | i fari |
| no parking | vietato parcheggiare |
| no stopping | vietata la sosta |
| one way | senso unico |
| pedestrian | il pedonale |
| pedestrian crosswalk | le strisce pedonali |
| rush hour | l’ ora di punta |
| speed limit | il limite di velocità |
| stop | stop |
| traffic lights | il semaforo |
| car hood | il cofano |
| radio | la radio |
| rearview mirror | lo specchietto |
| seatbelt | la cintura di sicurezza |
| steering wheel | il volante |
| tire | la gomma/il pneumatico |
| trunk | il bagagliaio |
| windshield | la parabrezza |
| windshield wipers | i tergicristalli |
Useful Driving Verbs
to pass/overtake sorpassare
to slow down rallentare
to yield dare la precedenza
to get a ticket prendere una multa
to give a ticket dare una multa
to pull over to the side of the road accostare
to get gas fare la benzina
to fill it up fare il pieno
to hitchhike fare l’autostop
to park parcheggiare
to turn girare
to drive guidare
to travel viaggiare
to cross attraversare
to go andare
to buckle your seat belt allacciare la cintura di sicurezza
Prepositions of Place: at, in, on
In general, we use:
at for a POINT
in for an ENCLOSED SPACE
on for a SURFACE
| at | in | on |
| POINT | ENCLOSED SPACE | SURFACE |
| at the corner | in the garden | on the wall |
| at the bus stop | in London | on the ceiling |
| at the door | in France | on the door |
| at the top of the page | in a box | on the cover |
| at the end of the road | in my pocket | on the floor |
| at the entrance | in my wallet | on the carpet |
| at the crossroads | in a building | on the menu |
| at the front desk | in a car | on a page |
Look at these examples:
Rose is waiting for you at the bus stop.
The supermarket is at the end of the street.
My plane stopped at Dubai and Hanoi and arrived in Bangkok two hours late.
When will you arrive at the bank?
Do you work in a book store?
I have a meeting in California.
Do you live in Rome?
Jupiter is in the Solar System.
The author’s name is on the cover of the book.
There are no prices on this menu.
You are standing on my foot.
There was a “no smoking” sign on the wall.
I live on the 6th floor at 21 Lincon Street in New York.
Notice the use of the prepositions of place at, in and on in these standard expressions:
| at | in | on |
| at home | in a car | on a bus |
| at work | in a taxi | on a train |
| at school | in a helicopter | on a plane |
| at university | in a boat | on a ship |
| at college | in a lift (elevator) | on a bicycle, on a motorbike |
| at the top | in the newspaper | on a horse, on an elephant |
| at the bottom | in the sky | on the radio, on television |
| at the side | in a row | on the left, on the right |
| at reception | in Oxford Street | on the way |
