Headword
Language Italian · fourth language of borrow · no ordinary simple verb · the Borrower is the subject of prendere · the Theme is the direct object · the Source is da + a noun · in prestito is the noun’s preposition, and the less common a prestito is the same kind of phrase · the Recipient of prestare is a + a noun, or a dative clitic (mi is printed; gli / le are the third-person forms) · farsi prestare is an analytic fare + reflexive wrap over prestare, not a second numeration of that verb. The first language is borrow · leihen. The second is borrow · emprunter. The third is borrow · pedir prestado / tomar prestado. No English page.
Borrower, Theme, Source · a periphrasis, and a causative wrap · da is not the Recipient’s a · Duration unranked · Italian cloth · working claim, revisable
prendere in prestito · Voice[Borrower] + Themedirect object + Sourceda+NP
prestare · the lend lemma · Recipient = a+NP / dative clitic · the subject hands the thing over · see lend · prestare
farsi prestare · analytic fare + reflexive · a periphrastic outer wrap over prestare · the Borrower is the subject of fare · the Theme is the object · the Source is da+NP where the bilingual frame prints it · an a-phrase or a dative clitic is the causative coding of the one who lends, unprinted as a filled line of this wrap
A borrowing, on this reading, has a Borrower, a Theme, and a Source. Italian does not put that Borrower in the subject of one ordinary simple verb. The frame that matches English X borrows Y from Z is the periphrasis prendere in prestito. Voice adds the Borrower as the subject of prendere. The root’s object is the Theme, a direct object. The Source is da plus a noun. in prestito, and the less common a prestito, belong to the noun. They are not the Recipient’s a, and they are not the Source’s da. A time expression may sit beside a loan. It is not ranked as an argument or as an adjunct. Treccani’s definition of prestare says the thing is given so that the other person gives it back after a certain use. That wording is the definition’s. It is not an endpoint claim.
What is different from English X borrows Y from Z, from prestare, and from French and Spanish. English uses one simple verb, and the source is from. The WordReference government of borrow something from someone is prendere in prestito [qlcs] da [qlcn]. The subject, the object, and da line up with that gloss. The divergence is that the Italian side is not one verb. WordReference’s note on bare borrow is Diversa costruzione: Can I borrow your pen? is given as Puoi prestarmi la tua penna?, and also as Posso prendere in prestito la tua penna? The single verb in the first of those lines is prestare. The borrower is the dative clitic, and the subject is the one who would lend. Prestare files that person as the Recipient: Treccani prints p. un libro a qualcuno and prestami la penna. gli and le are the third-person dative clitics of that a-phrase. They are not printed in the lend-sense lines read for this page. French emprunter is one ordinary simple verb, and its Source is à, the same preposition as the Recipient of prêter. Spanish pedir prestado puts the lender in a or in dative le, the same slot as the Recipient of prestar. Italian da on prendere in prestito does not reuse that Recipient preposition. farsi prestare is a further translation, not a lexical converse. The Borrower is the subject of reflexive fare, and the infinitive is prestare. The borrower gets the lender to lend. dict.cc prints the person as da: farsi prestare qc. da qn. Which phrase is the structural object is the note Causative templates and argument selection. This page does not edit that note.
Treccani’s article for the noun prestito prints chiedere, prendere in p. (meno com. a p.) una matita, una bicicletta, un trapano and prendere in p. un libro. The thing is there. The person is not. WordReference fills the person of prendere in prestito with da. Treccani’s article for prestare prints the other direction: a qualcuno, and the clitic mi. No printed line in the entries opened stacks the Borrower, the Theme, the Source, and a time expression on one clause of prendere in prestito.
Printed borrow periphrasis · the thing is the direct object · the person is unprinted on this article
✓ chiedere, prendere in p. (meno com. a p.) una matita, una bicicletta, un trapano; prendere in p. un libro. Treccani · prestito sense 1.b · the thing is filled · no person · a p. is marked less common · that a is the noun’s preposition
✓ prendere in prestito [qlcs] da [qlcn]. Kathy ha preso in prestito una gonna da sua sorella da indossare alla festa. WordReference · borrow something from someone · da sua sorella is the Source · da indossare is a purpose infinitive, not a second source
English from is this da · it is not the Recipient’s a
Printed lend frame · the same thing can be the object · a or a dative clitic is the Recipient
✓ Dare in prestito, dare ad altri una cosa col patto che la restituisca dopo averne fatto un certo uso: p. un libro a qualcuno. prestami la penna. Treccani · prestare sense 1 · a qualcuno is the goal of the handing over · mi is that person as a clitic · the return wording is the definition’s
✓ Can I borrow your pen? Puoi prestarmi la tua penna? Posso prendere in prestito la tua penna? WordReference · note Diversa costruzione · the first Italian line keeps prestare and puts the borrower in the dative
English lend me the pen · a bare borrow without from is given this way as well as with prendere in prestito
Analytic wrap · fare + reflexive + prestare · not a second lemma
✓ farsi prestare [qlcs]. dovrà farseli prestare. WordReference · intransitive borrow · the reflexive is on fare · li is on fare (farseli), not on prestare · no da in this line
✓ farsi prestare qc. da qn. dict.cc · German reflexive leihen · the person is da · no filled proper name
✓ When the object and the one who carries out the infinitive are both expressed, that person is dative: ho fatto cantare la canzone ai bambini. Clitics attach to fare, not to the infinitive: mi ha fatto guidare la macchina → me l’ha fatta guidare, and not mi ha fatto guidarla. The reflexive type prints da, not a: si è fatto rubare il portafogli da un mariolo. Treccani · Enciclopedia dell’Italiano · costruzione causativa (Simone 2010) · these lines are not prestare · they are the wrap’s coding
the Borrower gets the lender to lend · the wrap is periphrastic · it is not a simple verb beside prendere
| Role | Marking | Obligatoriness | What the sources print |
|---|---|---|---|
| Borrower | subject of prendere · or subject of fare in the wrap | the periphrasis has a subject · not the subject of prestare | WordReference Kathy ha preso · WordReference Posso prendere · the subject of farsi is the one who gets the thing lent |
| Theme | direct object | the thing is the object when it is named · the bare intransitive gloss has a clitic instead | Treccani una matita, un libro · WordReference una gonna, la tua penna · WordReference farseli is that object on fare |
| Source of prendere in prestito | da+NP | not in the Treccani noun line · the marking when the person is named | WordReference government da [qlcn] · da sua sorella · Treccani prints no person on prendere in p. un libro |
| Recipient of prestare | a+NP, or a dative clitic | the other verb · the subject is the lender | Treccani a qualcuno · prestami la penna · gli / le are the third-person dative · unprinted on the lines read here · see lend · prestare |
| Source of farsi prestare | da+NP in the bilingual frame · a+NP or a dative clitic on the general causative coding of the one who lends | not in WordReference’s farseli prestare · da is the printed person of the bilingual frame | dict.cc da qn. · Treccani causative: dative when object and Esecutore are both expressed (ai bambini) · da, not a, on si è fatto rubare … da un mariolo · a filled a or gli on farsi prestare is unprinted |
| Lender as a bare noun beside the Theme | not a printed frame | not a second object | the printed person of prendere in prestito is inside da · a bare prende in prestito Pat il libro is unprinted |
| chiedere in prestito | the thing is the direct object · the person is unprinted | named beside prendere · not a second page | Treccani chiedere, prendere in p. … una matita · asking-to-borrow · no da and no a of a person on that line |
| Duration | per qualche ora is on prestare | not obligatory · not a co-argument of the borrow formula | Treccani puoi prestarmi la macchina per qualche ora? · that phrase is the lend line · unprinted on prendere in prestito |
| Loanword / figurative | the noun prestito · a passive participle of prendere | another sense of the noun · not a second page | Treccani sono idee prese in p. · sense 2.b, linguistic: an element of another language · not a filled da + language on the verb |
Marking map. Read the verb first. On prendere in prestito the subject takes, and da is the Source. On prestare the subject hands the thing over, and a or a dative clitic is the person who receives it. The two prepositions are not one slot. On farsi prestare the subject of fare is the Borrower, the infinitive is still prestare, and the person who lends is da in the frame dict.cc prints. English from matches da. It does not match the Recipient’s a.
Each row lines up one English slot with an Italian slot, and names the French or Spanish slot where the direction split differs. The alignment type says what happens to the slot: = (same object status), or shift (a periphrasis where English has one verb, or prestare where English has borrow). Printed lines come first. Every other Italian sentence is constructed, modelled on a printed line. They show the working alignment, not frequency, and not a bilingual corpus.
| Slot | EN form | IT form | Align | EN example | IT example |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Borrower | SUBJ of borrow | subject of prendere | shift · no ordinary simple verb · the subject still takes | Kathy borrowed a skirt from her sister. WordReference | Kathy ha preso in prestito una gonna WordReference |
| Theme | OBJ | direct object | = | borrow a book gloss | un libro Treccani · prendere in p. un libro |
| Source | from | da+NP | = oblique · a separative preposition · not the Recipient’s a | from her sister WordReference | da sua sorella WordReference |
| Bare borrow without from | SUBJ = borrower · OBJ = theme | subject of prestare · borrower = dative clitic · or subject of prendere with no source | shift on the first Italian line · WordReference: Diversa costruzione | Can I borrow your pen? WordReference | Puoi prestarmi la tua penna? · Posso prendere in prestito la tua penna? WordReference |
| Recipient of prestare | to of lend · a different verb | a+NP or dative mi · gli / le are that clitic in the third person | on prestare the role matches English lend · it is not the Source of prendere | lend me the pen gloss of the Treccani line | a qualcuno · prestami la penna Treccani |
| farsi prestare | subject of borrow | subject of analytic fare + si · Theme object · Source da where printed | shift · a periphrastic wrap · the Borrower gets the lender to lend · not a simple verb | borrow something from someone gloss of the dict.cc frame | farsi prestare qc. da qn. dict.cc · dovrà farseli prestare WordReference · no da |
| Clitics on the wrap | object pronouns, separate words | proclitic to finite fare · or enclitic on infinitive fare · not on prestare | climbing · Treccani stars the clitic on the infinitive of the lower verb | I get it lent to me gloss | me l’ha fatta guidare Treccani · not prestare · Me lo faccio prestare. constructed |
| French emprunter | one simple verb · from | one simple verb · Source à | French reuses the Recipient preposition · Italian da does not | — | emprunter qqch à qqn borrow · French |
| Spanish pedir prestado | one simple verb · from | a periphrasis · Source a or dative le | Spanish puts the lender in the Recipient’s dative · Italian prendere uses da | — | pedir prestado borrow · Spanish |
| chiedere in prestito | ask to borrow | chiedere + the thing · person unprinted | asking · not the da frame of prendere | ask to borrow a pencil gloss | chiedere … una matita Treccani · beside prendere |
EN · IT · prendere · da
Kathy borrowed a skirt from her sister
Kathy ha preso in prestito una gonna da sua sorella
IT · WordReference · da sua sorella is the Source · the later da indossare is not
Move da matches English from · the verb is a periphrasis
IT · same theme, other verb
lend me the pen
prestami la penna
IT · Treccani · mi is the Recipient · the subject hands the pen over · see lend · prestare
Move the dative is a Recipient · gli / le are that clitic · they are not da
IT · analytic wrap · da
get it lent by Pat
Chris si fa prestare il libro da Pat
IT constructed · da qn. is dict.cc · the name is not · the subject of fare gets the lender to lend
Move outer wrap · prestare stays inside · not a simple borrow verb
FR · ES · the other Source markers
borrow something from someone
emprunter qqch à qqn · pedir prestado
FR · emprunter · ES · pedir prestado · those markers are also Recipients · Italian da is not
Move Italian prendere keeps da for the Source and a for the Recipient of prestare
Argument difference against the lend page, against English from, and against French and Spanish. Lend · prestare files the subject as the Lender and a or a dative clitic as the Recipient. This page files the subject of prendere as the Borrower, and da as the Source. English Kathy borrowed a skirt from her sister uses from. The WordReference line uses da. French prints the source as à on emprunter. Spanish pedir prestado prints the lender in the dative. Nothing dropped from prestare turns that verb into borrow. The ordinary borrow expression is already prendere plus in prestito. farsi prestare does not replace that periphrasis with a simple verb. It wraps prestare.
Dictionary frames and lines · checked · quoted as printed
chiedere, prendere in p. (meno com. a p.) una matita, una bicicletta, un trapano; prendere in p. un libro. Treccani · prestito · treccani.it/vocabolario/prestito
Dare in prestito … p. un libro a qualcuno. prestami la penna. puoi prestarmi la macchina per qualche ora? Treccani · prestare sense 1 · treccani.it/vocabolario/prestare
prendere in prestito [qlcs] da [qlcn]. Kathy ha preso in prestito una gonna da sua sorella da indossare alla festa. Puoi prestarmi la tua penna? Posso prendere in prestito la tua penna? dovrà farseli prestare. WordReference · borrow · wordreference.com/enit/borrow
farsi prestare qc. da qn. dict.cc · reflexive leihen · dict.cc · leihen
ho fatto cantare la canzone ai bambini. me l’ha fatta guidare ~ * mi ha fatto guidarla. si è fatto rubare il portafogli da un mariolo. Treccani · Enciclopedia dell’Italiano · costruzione causativa · Simone 2010 · costruzione causativa
sono idee prese in p. Treccani · prestito sense 2 · the noun · not a da + language on the verb
Strings below are constructed, modelled on the printed lines. They are not spontaneous-speech citations and not dictionary lines. Chris and Pat continue the named-participant series on prestare. A name does not spell a preposition. da Pat follows WordReference’s da [qlcn] and dict.cc’s da qn. a Pat and gli follow the Recipient of prestare and the dative Esecutore of the causative article. They are not stacked with a printed loan line.
✓ Chris prende in prestito il libro da Pat.
constructed · da modelled on WordReference da [qlcn] · the thing modelled on Treccani un libro · Treccani does not print the person
✓ Pat gli presta il libro.
constructed · the lend frame · gli is the third-person dative of printed prestami and of a qualcuno · not a borrow line · le would be the feminine of that clitic and is not added here · the lend page is prestare
✓ Chris si fa prestare il libro da Pat.
constructed · analytic fare + si · da modelled on dict.cc da qn. · the Borrower gets Pat to lend · not a lexical converse of prestare
✓ Me lo faccio prestare.
constructed · clitic climbing · me and lo stand before finite fare · modelled on Treccani me l’ha fatta guidare and on WordReference farseli · no Source in this clause, because dovrà farseli prestare has none
✓ Chris si fa prestare il libro a Pat.
constructed · the dative coding of a transitive infinitive · modelled on Treccani ai bambini · not a line of farsi prestare · the reflexive type in that article uses da, as in da un mariolo · gli would be the clitic of this a and is not added as a second clause
* Mi faccio prestarlo.
constructed · not a dictionary line · Treccani pairs me l’ha fatta guidare with starred mi ha fatto guidarla · the clitic of the Theme is on fare, not on prestare
* Chris prende in prestito Pat il libro.
constructed · not a dictionary line · the printed person of prendere in prestito is inside da · a bare second object is unprinted
Each sketch is a working drawing, not a locked analysis. The drawing gives the Borrower to Voice and the Theme to the root. On prendere the Source stays in da. The lend drawing on the lend page gives a to the Recipient and names the subject the Lender, on prestare. The wrap drawing puts fare outside prestare. Open one sketch at a time.
One external argument · da is the Source · not the dative of prestare
[VoiceP Chris Voice ← Borrower = Spec,Voice
[VP
[√prendere-
[Theme il libro ]
[PP in prestito ] ← the noun’s phrase · not a person
[PP da Pat ]]]] ← Source · da
Kathy ha preso in prestito una gonna da sua sorella. WordReference
The subject takes. The other person is not the Recipient of prestare. da names where the thing is taken from. in prestito is the noun. The drawing does not put gli on this verb.
Other lemma · the dative is the Recipient · working, revisable
[VoiceP Pat Voice ← Lender · not the Borrower
[VP gli
[√prestare-
[Theme il libro ]
[PP a Chris ]]]] ← Recipient · a · not da
✓ prestami la penna. Treccani
This is the frame lend · prestare describes. The direct object can be the same book. a and gli / le cannot be read off as a source, because prestare fixes them as the Recipient and prendere in prestito fixes the source as da. French à is a shared marker, on two simple verbs. Spanish pedir prestado shares the dative with prestar. Italian does not share da with the Recipient.
Outer fare · the Borrower gets the lender to lend · working, revisable
[VoiceP Chris Voice ← Borrower · subject of fare
[fare si ← reflexive · not a lexical borrow verb
[√prestare-
[Theme il libro ]
[PP da Pat ]]]] ← the one who lends · da in the printed frame
farsi prestare qc. da qn. dict.cc
The higher verb is fare. prestare is the infinitive inside it. The drawing is a periphrastic outer wrap, a second layer, not a second entry for prestare. Clitics of the Theme and of the reflexive stand with fare: WordReference farseli, and Treccani me l’ha fatta guidare on another infinitive. Me lo faccio prestare is that order on this infinitive, and it is constructed. An a-phrase in place of da would be the dative Esecutore of ho fatto cantare la canzone ai bambini. That a is not the line dict.cc prints for this wrap.
Working paper · October 2026 · Italian micro-entry · Beyond Index 2
Borrowing in Italian is not one ordinary simple verb. The Borrower is the subject of prendere. The Theme is the direct object. The Source is da plus a noun. Prestare is lend: the Recipient is a plus a noun, or a dative clitic. farsi prestare is an analytic fare plus reflexive wrapped around prestare. The borrower gets the lender to lend. It is not a lexical converse. chiedere in prestito is the asking expression Treccani prints beside prendere, with the thing and with no person. A time phrase is not a co-argument.
Not a flat grid of four sisters. Voice adds the Borrower. The root takes the Theme. da adds the Source of prendere in prestito. a or the dative clitic adds the Recipient of prestare, on the other lemma. fare sits outside prestare on the wrap. A time expression stays unranked.
What Italian changes, against English borrow from, is the verb, not the separative preposition. English has one simple verb and from. Italian has prendere in prestito and da. What Italian changes, against French emprunter and against Spanish pedir prestado, is that the Source is not the Recipient’s preposition. What farsi prestare changes is the layer: the Borrower is the subject of fare, and prestare remains the infinitive.
Dictionary frames: Treccani prestito and prestare; Treccani Enciclopedia dell’Italiano, costruzione causativa (Simone 2010); WordReference borrow; dict.cc leihen. Constructed clauses put WordReference’s da, or dict.cc’s da, or the causative article’s dative, on Chris and Pat. The prestare string is the lend frame. Garzanti, De Mauro, Lo Zingarelli, and Barron’s 501 Italian Verbs were not opened. Index 2 does not list the periphrasis. Italian Transfer in Index 2 is scambiare, dare.
Records the subject Borrower, the direct-object Theme, and the da-Source of prendere in prestito. Records prestare as lend, with the Recipient in a or in a dative clitic. Records farsi prestare as an analytic fare plus reflexive wrap over prestare, with da where the bilingual frame prints the person, and with clitic climbing onto fare. Records chiedere in prestito as Treccani’s asking line, with no person filled. Records the split against English borrow from, against Spanish pedir prestado, and against French emprunter. Does not open an English page.