Italian flag

'Da' + infinitive for something to eat, drink or do

In English you simply add to after a noun or pronoun: something to eat, nothing to drink, a lot to do. Italian needs a little bridge word here, and that word is always da: qualcosa da mangiare, niente da bere, molto da fare. The noun or pronoun comes first, then da, then the infinitive.

English speakers tend to trip over this in two ways. Some leave the preposition out and say qualcosa mangiare. Others reach for di or per, because those are the prepositions they already link to infinitives. Neither works in this pattern. Once you notice that the thing in front is what gets eaten, drunk, read or done, da becomes easy to spot.

Word list
bereA1 to drink niente da bere = nothing to drink fareA1 to make molto da fare = a lot to do leggereA1 to read un libro da leggere = a book to read mangiareA1 to eat qualcosa da mangiare = something to eat moltafA1 much c'è ancora molta strada da fare = there's still a long way to go moltefA1 many molte cose da vedere = many things to see moltimA1 many molti libri da leggere = many books to read moltomA1 much ho molto da fare = I have a lot to do nessunomA1 no one non c'è nessuno da invitare = there's no one to invite nienteA1 nothing non c'è niente da bere = there's nothing to drink nullaA1 nothing non c'è nulla da mangiare = there's nothing to eat pocoA1 little c'è poco da fare = there's little to do qualcosamA1 something qualcosa da mangiare = something to eat qualcunafA1 someone qualcuna da invitare = someone (female) to invite qualcunomA1 someone cerco qualcuno da chiamare = I'm looking for someone to call scrivereA1 to write una lettera da scrivere = a letter to write studiareA1 to study due capitoli da studiare = two chapters to study tuttoA1 everything è ancora tutto da fare = everything is still to be done vedereA1 to see tante cose da vedere = lots of things to see abbastanzaA2 enough abbiamo abbastanza da mangiare = we have enough to eat invitareA2 to invite persone da invitare = people to invite esempio da seguiremB2 role model un esempio da seguire = an example to follow, a role model modello da seguiremB2 role model è un modello da seguire = he's a role model (a model to follow)
How it works

The pattern is thing + da + infinitive. The thing in front is the object of the verb that follows. In qualcosa da mangiare, the something is what you eat. In un libro da leggere, the book is what you read. Da adds the idea of something waiting to be done, something you have to do or can do.

The front slot is often a small word like qualcosa, niente, molto or tanto, but it can be any noun: una lettera, due capitoli, tante cose. The pattern usually follows avere (to have) or c'è / ci sono (there is / there are).

Rule of thumb: if you can rephrase the English as something that I must or can eat, drink or do, Italian uses da.

The words

Qualcosa and niente are the most common words to start with. Pair them with the everyday verbs mangiare and bere, and you have phrases you will use every day.

Hai qualcosa da mangiare? Ho fame.
(Do you have something to eat? I'm hungry.)
In frigo non c'è niente da bere.
(There's nothing to drink in the fridge.)

Fare appears in this pattern constantly, especially after molto, tanto or niente.

Oggi ho moltissimo da fare al lavoro.
(Today I have a lot to do at work.)

Verbs of reading, writing and studying fit naturally, because they always have a clear object: a book, a letter, a chapter.

Ho tre libri da leggere per l'esame.
(I have three books to read for the exam.)
Ho una lettera da scrivere a mia nonna.
(I have a letter to write to my grandmother.)
Stasera ho ancora due capitoli da studiare.
(Tonight I still have two chapters to study.)

Vedere is the verb for sightseeing and for recommending films or places.

A Roma ci sono tante cose da vedere.
(There are so many things to see in Rome.)

The thing in front can also be a person. With invitare, the people are the ones who get invited.

Ci sono ancora molte persone da invitare alla festa.
(There are still lots of people to invite to the party.)
Watch out

Not every English to becomes da. When there is no object in front and you simply want to do something, the infinitive follows the verb directly.

Voglio mangiare qualcosa.
(I want to eat something.)

When the noun in front is not the object of the verb, you need di. Desire isn't something you eat, so you say:

Non ho voglia di mangiare.
(I don't feel like eating.)

You can combine both prepositions. An adjective after qualcosa or niente takes di, and the infinitive still takes da:

Vuoi qualcosa di caldo da bere?
(Would you like something hot to drink?)

Also remember the fixed expression non c'è niente da fare. It can literally mean there's nothing to do, but it often means nothing can be done about it.

Il treno è partito, non c'è niente da fare.
(The train has left, there's nothing we can do.)

Finally, write the preposition da without an accent. Dà with an accent is a form of dare (he/she gives).

Summary

When something is waiting to be eaten, drunk, read, seen or done, put the thing first, then da, then the infinitive: qualcosa da mangiare, niente da bere, molto da fare, un libro da leggere. Don't use di or per in this pattern, and don't leave the preposition out. An adjective in between takes di, as in qualcosa di buono da mangiare.