How many verb tenses are there in Italian?

The indicative mood has eight tenses: presente, passato prossimo, imperfetto, trapassato prossimo, passato remoto, trapassato remoto, futuro semplice, and futuro anteriore. The subjunctive has four, the conditional has two, and there is the imperative, plus the infinitive, gerund, and participle. Everyday conversation runs on about six: the present, passato prossimo, imperfetto, future, present conditional, and present subjunctive.

What are the three groups of Italian regular verbs?

Italian regular verbs are grouped by infinitive ending: -are (parlare, to speak), -ere (credere, to believe), and -ire (dormire, to sleep). The -are group is the largest. Many -ire verbs, such as finire and capire, add -isc- in most present-tense forms: finisco, capisci, but finiamo.

When do I use essere and when do I use avere in compound tenses?

Use avere with most verbs, including every verb that takes a direct object: ho visto il film. Use essere with verbs of motion or change of state (andare, venire, arrivare, partire, nascere, morire, diventare), with essere itself, and with all reflexive verbs. With essere, the past participle agrees with the subject: Maria è arrivata, i ragazzi sono arrivati.

What is the difference between the passato prossimo and the imperfetto?

The passato prossimo reports a finished event that moves the story forward. The imperfetto describes the background: habits, ongoing actions, and states such as age, weather, and feelings. In mentre cucinavo, è arrivato Marco (while I was cooking, Marco arrived), the cooking is the background and the arrival is the event.

Do Italians still use the passato remoto?

Yes, but mainly in writing. Novels, history books, and biographies use it for finished events in the distant past. In speech, most speakers in the north and much of the center use the passato prossimo instead, while many speakers in the south still use the passato remoto in conversation. Learn to recognize it first, then to use it.

Italian grammar · Beginner

Italian Verb Tenses

Written by Parrot Italian Team, Italian Curriculum Editors · Reviewed October 2026

Italian tenses place an action in time, and moods show how the speaker sees it: as a fact, a wish, a condition, or an order. Italian regular verbs fall into three groups by infinitive ending (-are, -ere, -ire), and the compound tenses add a form of avere or essere to a past participle.

What it is

An Italian verb changes its ending to show who does the action and when. The infinitive ends in -are, -ere, or -ire, and each group has its own endings: parlare gives parlo, credere gives credo, dormire gives dormo. Simple tenses change only the ending. Compound tenses, such as the passato prossimo, put a form of avere or essere before a past participle: ho parlato, sono andato. Because the ending already shows the person, Italian usually drops the subject pronoun that English needs.

Parlo italiano. Ieri ho parlato con Marco. Domani parlerò con Anna. (I speak Italian. Yesterday I spoke with Marco. Tomorrow I will speak with Anna.)

How to spot it

To choose a tense, ask when the action happens, then ask if it is finished, ongoing, or a habit. To choose a mood, ask if you state a fact (indicative), give a wish, doubt, or opinion (subjunctive), set a condition (conditional), or give an order (imperative).

Mangio una mela. (I eat an apple. / I am eating an apple. (present))
Ho mangiato una mela. (I ate an apple. (passato prossimo))
Da bambino mangiavo molte mele. (As a child I used to eat a lot of apples. (imperfetto))
Penso che Marco mangi troppo. (I think Marco eats too much. (subjunctive))

The auxiliary rule: most verbs form compound tenses with avere (ho mangiato). Verbs of motion or change of state, such as andare, venire, partire, nascere, and diventare, and all reflexive verbs take essere, and their past participle agrees with the subject: Anna è partita, le ragazze si sono alzate.

Verbs & Tenses Quick Reference

Every Italian tense and mood, with one example each

Tense or mood	Use	Example
Present (presente)	Current actions, habits, the near future	Lavoro a Roma. (I work in Rome.)
Passato prossimo	Finished past actions, in speech	Ho finito il libro. (I finished the book.)
Imperfetto	Past habits, background, ongoing states	Da piccolo giocavo a calcio. (As a child I used to play soccer.)
Trapassato prossimo	An action before another past action	Quando sono arrivato, il treno era già partito. (When I arrived, the train had already left.)
Passato remoto	Finished, distant past, mostly in writing	Dante nacque a Firenze nel 1265. (Dante was born in Florence in 1265.)
Trapassato remoto	An action just before a passato remoto, literary only	Dopo che ebbe finito, uscì. (After he had finished, he went out.)
Future (futuro semplice)	Future actions, guesses about the present	Domani partirò presto. (I will leave early tomorrow.)
Futuro anteriore	An action finished before a future point	Quando arriverai, avrò già cenato. (When you arrive, I will have already had dinner.)
Present subjunctive (congiuntivo presente)	Wishes, doubts, opinions, usually after che	Spero che tu stia bene. (I hope you are well.)
Past subjunctive (congiuntivo passato)	A past action seen through a wish, doubt, or opinion	Penso che abbia già mangiato. (I think he has already eaten.)
Imperfect subjunctive (congiuntivo imperfetto)	Wishes about others, hypothetical if clauses	Vorrei che tu venissi. (I would like you to come.)
Pluperfect subjunctive (congiuntivo trapassato)	Unreal conditions in the past	Se avessi saputo, sarei venuto. (If I had known, I would have come.)
Conditional (condizionale presente)	Polite requests, hypotheses, advice	Vorrei un caffè. (I would like a coffee.)
Past conditional (condizionale passato)	What would have happened	Sarei venuto volentieri. (I would gladly have come.)
Imperative (imperativo)	Orders, instructions, advice	Aspetta un momento. (Wait a moment.)
Gerund (gerundio)	Ongoing actions, with stare for the progressive	Sto leggendo un libro. (I am reading a book.)
Infinitive (infinito)	The base form, after modal verbs and prepositions	Voglio imparare l'italiano. (I want to learn Italian.)
Past participle (participio passato)	Forms every compound tense	Ho dormito bene. (I slept well.)
Auxiliary rule	Avere for most verbs; essere for motion, change of state, and reflexive verbs	Ho mangiato. Sono uscito. Mi sono alzato. (I ate. I went out. I got up.)

All 22 verbs & tenses lessons

These lessons cover the whole Italian verb system. The tenses come first: the present, the three everyday past tenses (passato prossimo, imperfetto, trapassato prossimo), the literary passato remoto, and the two futures. The moods follow: the subjunctive in its present, past, and imperfect forms, the conditional, the imperative, and the gerund, infinitive, and past participle. The last group explains the verb types that change how a sentence is built, from auxiliary and modal verbs to pronominal verbs and the passive voice.

Tenses

When an action happens: the present, the past tenses that English speakers most often mix up, and the future.

Imperfetto: The imperfetto is the Italian past tense for habits, descriptions, and actions that were in progress. It answers the question what was it like, or what used to happen, rather than what happened next. English spreads this meaning across used to, would, and was -ing, while Italian puts all three into one set of endings: -avo, -evo, -ivo.
Future Tense: The Italian future tense, the futuro semplice, says what will happen: parlerò, I will speak. It is one word, with no helper like English will, and it is built on the infinitive. Italian also uses it to make guesses about the present, so sarà a casa can mean he is probably at home.
Passato Prossimo: The passato prossimo is the everyday Italian past tense for finished actions. It is often called the Italian present perfect because it is built the same way: a helper verb (avere or essere) plus a past participle, as in ho mangiato. Unlike the English present perfect, it also covers the simple past, so ho mangiato means both I have eaten and I ate.
Past Tense: Italian has no single past tense. Everyday speech uses two: the passato prossimo for finished events (ho mangiato, I ate) and the imperfetto for habits, descriptions, and actions in progress (mangiavo, I used to eat or I was eating). The trapassato prossimo looks further back, and the passato remoto is mainly for history and literature.
Passato Remoto: The passato remoto is the Italian past tense for completed events in the distant past, with no link to the present. It is the tense of history books, biographies, fairy tales, and novels. In most of Italy it is rare in conversation, where the passato prossimo has replaced it, but you need to recognise it to read Italian.
Present Tense: The Italian present tense (il presente indicativo) describes what happens now, what happens regularly, and often what is about to happen. You form it by removing -are, -ere, or -ire from the infinitive and adding an ending that shows who does the action. One Italian form covers both English I work and I am working.
Trapassato Prossimo: The trapassato prossimo is the Italian past perfect: it describes an action that happened before another past action, like English I had eaten. It is built with the imperfetto of avere or essere plus the past participle (avevo mangiato, ero partito). The auxiliary choice and the agreement rules are the same as in the passato prossimo.
Present Progressive: The Italian present progressive (stare + gerundio) describes an action that is in progress at this exact moment. You form it with the present tense of stare and the gerund of the main verb: sto parlando, I am speaking. Italian uses it less than English does, because the simple present also covers most English -ing sentences.
Futuro Anteriore: The futuro anteriore is the Italian future perfect: it describes an action that will be complete before another future moment, like English I will have finished. It is built with the future of avere or essere plus the past participle (avrò finito, sarò partito). Italian also uses it to guess about the past: avrà perso il treno means he must have missed the train.

Moods

How the speaker sees the action, from the subjunctive and conditional to the imperative and the forms with no person, such as the gerund and infinitive.

Subjunctive: The Italian subjunctive (congiuntivo) is the verb mood for things seen through someone's opinion, wish, feeling, or doubt rather than stated as fact. This page covers the present subjunctive, which follows phrases such as penso che, spero che, and è importante che. English has almost lost its subjunctive, so where English says I think he is, Italian says penso che sia.
Conditional: The Italian conditional (condizionale presente) expresses what would happen: parlerei, I would speak. It is the polite form for requests and wishes (vorrei, I would like), the normal way to give advice (dovresti, you should), and the result half of an if sentence. It uses the same stem as the future, with its own endings.
Imperative: The Italian imperative (imperativo) is the verb form for orders, instructions, advice, and invitations: parla, speak; venite, come; andiamo, let's go. Unlike English, which has one command form for everyone, Italian has separate forms for tu, Lei, noi, and voi, and the negative tu form uses the infinitive.
Past Participle: The Italian past participle (participio passato) is the verb form that builds every compound tense, such as ho parlato and sono partito. Regular participles end in -ato, -uto, or -ito, but many common verbs have irregular past participles, such as fatto, detto, and visto. The participle can also change its ending to agree with a subject or an object, and it often works as an adjective.
Gerund: The Italian gerund (il gerundio) is the verb form ending in -ando or -endo, as in parlando and leggendo. It is used with stare for actions in progress, and on its own to say how, when, or why something happens. It covers only some uses of English -ing: when -ing works as a noun or follows a preposition, Italian uses the infinitive.
Imperfect Subjunctive: The Italian imperfect subjunctive (il congiuntivo imperfetto) is the subjunctive you use for unreal situations and after a main verb in the past or the conditional. It is the form in se avessi tempo (if I had time) and vorrei che tu venissi (I'd like you to come). English often uses a simple past here, so learners easily miss that Italian needs a special form.
Infinitive: The Italian infinitive (l'infinito) is the basic form of the verb, the one you find in the dictionary: parlare, vedere, dormire. It ends in -are, -ere, or -ire, and that ending tells you how the verb conjugates. Italian uses the infinitive after modal verbs, after prepositions, and as a noun, which covers many places where English uses to or -ing.
Past Conditional: The Italian past conditional (il condizionale passato) says what would have happened: avrei comprato, I would have bought. You form it with the conditional of avere or essere and the past participle. Italian also uses it for a future seen from the past, where English uses a simple would: ha detto che sarebbe venuto, he said he would come.
Past Subjunctive: The Italian past subjunctive (il congiuntivo passato) describes a past action after a verb or expression that needs the subjunctive, such as penso che, spero che, or sono contento che. You form it with the present subjunctive of avere or essere and the past participle: che abbia parlato, che sia partito. English uses a simple past or a present perfect in the same place.

Verb Types

The verbs that shape other verbs: avere and essere as auxiliaries, the modals dovere, potere, and volere, pronominal verbs, and the passive.

Auxiliary Verbs: Italian auxiliary verbs (i verbi ausiliari) are avere and essere, the two helper verbs that build every compound tense. Most verbs take avere (ho mangiato), but verbs of movement, change of state, and all reflexive verbs take essere (sono andato, mi sono alzato). English uses have for every verb, so choosing between avere and essere is one of the main new skills for English speakers.
Modal Verbs: Italian modal verbs (i verbi modali) are dovere (to have to, must), potere (can, may), and volere (to want), plus sapere when it means to know how to. They are followed directly by an infinitive, with no preposition: devo lavorare, posso venire. All four are irregular in the present tense, and in compound tenses they usually take the auxiliary of the infinitive that follows.
Pronominal Verbs: Italian pronominal verbs (i verbi pronominali) are verbs that carry one or more fixed pronouns, such as andarsene (to leave), farcela (to manage), and cavarsela (to get by). The pronouns si, ci, ne, and la are part of the verb and change its meaning: andare means to go, but andarsene means to go away. You find them in the dictionary with the pronouns attached to the infinitive.
Passive Voice: The Italian passive voice (la forma passiva) puts the focus on the person or thing that receives the action, not on the one who does it. Italian forms it with essere or venire and the past participle, which agrees with the subject: la lettera è stata scritta. It also has two passives that English does not: andare + participle (must be done) and the si passivante.

Browse the full Italian grammar library

Verbs & Tenses FAQs

How many verb tenses are there in Italian?: The indicative mood has eight tenses: presente, passato prossimo, imperfetto, trapassato prossimo, passato remoto, trapassato remoto, futuro semplice, and futuro anteriore. The subjunctive has four, the conditional has two, and there is the imperative, plus the infinitive, gerund, and participle. Everyday conversation runs on about six: the present, passato prossimo, imperfetto, future, present conditional, and present subjunctive.
What are the three groups of Italian regular verbs?: Italian regular verbs are grouped by infinitive ending: -are (parlare, to speak), -ere (credere, to believe), and -ire (dormire, to sleep). The -are group is the largest. Many -ire verbs, such as finire and capire, add -isc- in most present-tense forms: finisco, capisci, but finiamo.
When do I use essere and when do I use avere in compound tenses?: Use avere with most verbs, including every verb that takes a direct object: ho visto il film. Use essere with verbs of motion or change of state (andare, venire, arrivare, partire, nascere, morire, diventare), with essere itself, and with all reflexive verbs. With essere, the past participle agrees with the subject: Maria è arrivata, i ragazzi sono arrivati.
What is the difference between the passato prossimo and the imperfetto?: The passato prossimo reports a finished event that moves the story forward. The imperfetto describes the background: habits, ongoing actions, and states such as age, weather, and feelings. In mentre cucinavo, è arrivato Marco (while I was cooking, Marco arrived), the cooking is the background and the arrival is the event.
Do Italians still use the passato remoto?: Yes, but mainly in writing. Novels, history books, and biographies use it for finished events in the distant past. In speech, most speakers in the north and much of the center use the passato prossimo instead, while many speakers in the south still use the passato remoto in conversation. Learn to recognize it first, then to use it.