справа/слева -- location: находиться справа/слева -- to be on the right/left side направо/налево -- direction: повернуть направо/налево -- to turn right/left or to turn to the right/left.

@Neil направо/налево -- вправо/влево Basically, they are interchangeable. I think, you should use 'вправо/влево' when you're talking about something going or moving to a side, instead of moving or keeping in a straight line (with the verbs like 'to go, pull, drift' etc). For example: turn right at crossroads — поверните на перекрестке направо. But: When I let go of my wheel it goes to the left — когда я отпускаю руль, он уходит влево. My car keeps pulling to the right while driving — мою машину постоянно уносит/тянет вправо.

Справа- and направо are explained by Dennis. But we still have: Право - лево (without prefixes) They are used (rarely!!!) to describe the "right side" and "the left side" themselves. Usually in "где право, где лево" ("я перестал понимать, где право, а где лево"- disorientation. "где у него право, а где лево?" "Это что, право или лево?" - about an object. "научился отличать право от лева" - 'learned to tell the left from the right, about a child who's remembered those directions. "Право руля! Лево руля!" - nautical expressions, commands.) Neil, I agree with Dennis. 1. they may be interchangeable 2. But налево is associated with _changing_ direction or orientation (повернуть(ся) налево. Turn left. -ся being added when you're turning in place. повернуться на бок/на левый бок(in a bed). влево - is (or just associated with) either continuing movement without ones direction changed. or shift, kinda parallel translation in geometry. Cf. example with the car skidding. Some examples. If you're sitting on a couch, and I ask you to move left - its, most probably влево. But, as was noted above, they may be used interchangeably. If you have a door leading to a psychiatrist at your left and a dentist's room at your right - then it's "к стоматологу - направо" for sure, because it's a common and stable expression.

And when does one use вправо and влево? If it also connotes motion, how is it different from направо and налево? Thanks.