The Imperfect Tense in Italian
The Italian imperfetto (imperfect tense) is the past tense for habits, descriptions and actions that were in progress in the past: Da giovane giocavo a calcio ogni giorno (When I was young, I played football every day). To form it, drop the final -re of the infinitive and add -vo, -vi, -va, -vamo, -vate, -vano: parlare becomes parlavo, credere becomes credevo and sentire becomes sentivo.
The imperfect tense in Italian, known as imperfetto, is a past tense that is used to talk about past actions that were ongoing or habitual. It is the second most used past tense in Italian, after the passato prossimo.
These two verbs tenses are often confused by Italian language learners, because they can be both translated with the English past simple, even though imperfetto does not always correspond to that.
In fact, the Italian imperfetto has no literal translation in English. However, I always tell my students that it conceptually corresponds to the English used to + verb (I used to ride the bike).
Check the difference between passato prossimo and imperfetto in Italian!
To be precise, imperfetto means “not perfect”, so we use it when we talk about events that happened at some point in the past, without specifying exactly when.
It has two forms: the simple form imperfetto(imperfect) and the compound form trapassato prossimo(past perfect). Here, I will focus on the imperfect only, specifically on regular verbs.
Learn more about the imperfect of irregular verbs and the past perfect!
Regular Imperfect in Italian
Conjugation
Forming the imperfect in Italian is relatively easy: as with all verb conjugations, you have to drop the ending of the infinitive (-are, –ere, –ire) and add those of the corresponding tense.
In the case of the Italian imperfect, these endings are composed of:
- thematic vowel (-are-> a; –ere-> e; –ire-> i)
- v
- conjugation
Let me show you what I mean with the verb cantare (to sing).
First, we get rid of the ending of the infinitive and obtain cant-. This is a first conjugation verb, therefore we add the thematic vowel a, and obtain cant–a. Then, we add the v and obtain cant–a–v, and finally we attach the endings that are specific for the imperfetto, as follows:
| io | -o |
| tu | -i |
| lui/lei | -a |
| noi | -amo |
| voi | -ate |
| loro | -ano |
Therefore, if you want to say that you used to sing a song, you can say Io cantavo una canzone.
As I said, it is not that hard, but if you feel it is tricky at the beginning, I’ll give you good news: the endings are the same for all three verb conjugations! Feel relieved?
Here I created three tables so that you can see how regular verbs work:
- -are as in parlare (to talk)
| Io parlavo | I talked / used to talk |
| Tu parlavi | You talked |
| Lui/lei parlava | He/she talked |
| Noi parlavamo | We talked |
| Voi parlavate | You talked |
| Loro parlavano | They talked |
- -ere as in credere (to think)
| Io credevo | I thought / used to think |
| Tu credevi | You thought |
| Lui/lei credeva | He/she thought |
| Noi credevamo | We thought |
| Voi credevate | You thought |
| Loro credevano | They thought |
- -ire as in sentire (to feel)
| Io sentivo | I felt / used to feel |
| Tu sentivi | You felt |
| Lui/lei sentiva | He/she felt |
| Noi sentivamo | We felt |
| Voi sentivate | You felt |
| Loro sentivano | They felt |
When to use Imperfetto
In Italian, we use the imperfetto in the following cases:
- To make descriptions in the past.
Da piccola avevo i capelli ricci.
When I was a child, I had curly hair.
- To describe ongoing situations which happened over a continuous or unspecified period.
Il dj suonava la musica e gli invitati si divertivano. Tutto era perfetto.
The dj was playing and guests were having fun. Everything was perfect.
- To describe habits and repeated actions in the past.
Ogni venerdì ci incontravamo al bar.
We used to meet at the bar every Friday.
- To describe two past actions happening at the same time: specifically, we use imperfetto for the ongoing background action, and passato prossimo for the interrupting action which happened for a shorter time.
Mentre andavo in ufficio, ho incontrato Claudia.
While I was going to the office, I met Claudia.
As you can see, the imperfetto is often introduced by mentre (while).
More Uses of the Imperfetto
The imperfetto is also the tense you need to set the scene in a story. Use it to say:
- the time and the age:
Erano le otto e pioveva.
It was eight o’clock and it was raining.
Avevo dieci anni.
I was ten years old.
- the weather, feelings and physical states:
Faceva freddo e ero stanco.
It was cold and I was tired.
- a polite request. In shops and restaurants, Italians use the imperfetto to sound gentler:
Volevo un caffè, per favore.
I would like a coffee, please. (literally: I wanted a coffee)
- the beginning of a story or a fairy tale.
C’era una volta un re molto povero.
Once upon a time there was a very poor king.
If you want to say that an action was in progress at a precise moment, you can also use the past progressive: Stavo mangiando (I was eating).
Time Expressions with Imperfetto
There are several expressions of time we usually use with the Italian imperfetto:
- sempre – always
- non – mai – never
- spesso – often
- tutti i giorni – all days
- ogni giorno – each day
- da piccolo – when I was a kid
- a volte – at times, sometimes
- ogni tanto – once in a while / every now and then
The placement of these adverbs is not consistent, but I can tell you that, in general, some of them always precede the verb, while others always follow it.
For instance, sempre and non – mai always follow the verb.
Da bambini volevamo sempre andare in Italia.
When we were children we always wanted to go to Italy.
Quando vivevo in Germania il cielo non era mai blu.
When I was living in Germany the sky was never blue.
Instead, spesso is quite flexible, allowing both constructions.
Andavo spesso a ballare in discoteca / Spesso andavo a ballare in discoteca.
I often went dancing at the disco
Tutti i giorni and ogni giorno are always placed at the end of the entire sentence.
Rifacevo il mio letto tutti i giorni / ogni giorno.
I used to make my bed all days / every day
All the other adverbs usually precede the verb or are placed at the end of the entire sentence.
Nel 2000, avevo vent’anni.
In 2000, I was twenty years old.
Ogni tanto andavo al cinema da solo.
Every now and then I went to the cinema on my own.
More Time Expressions
| Italian | English |
|---|---|
| di solito | usually |
| una volta | in the past, once (as a habit) |
| all’epoca | at the time |
| in quel periodo | in that period |
| allora | at that time |
| ogni estate | every summer |
Irregular Verbs in the Imperfetto
Very few verbs are irregular in the imperfetto, and only essere is completely different: ero, eri, era, eravamo, eravate, erano. The others keep the regular endings but use an older stem:
| Verb | Stem | Example (io) | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| essere | er- | ero | I was |
| fare | fac- | facevo | I did / I used to do |
| dire | dic- | dicevo | I said / I used to say |
| bere | bev- | bevevo | I drank / I used to drink |
| tradurre | traduc- | traducevo | I translated |
| porre | pon- | ponevo | I put |
Read the full list in the lesson on the imperfect of irregular verbs.
Imperfetto vs Passato Prossimo
The imperfetto describes the background and habits. The passato prossimo tells what happened, one action at a time. In a story they often appear together:
Mentre cucinavo, è squillato il telefono.
While I was cooking, the phone rang.
Ogni estate andavamo al mare, ma quell’anno siamo rimasti a casa.
Every summer we went to the sea, but that year we stayed at home.
In literature and in the South, the passato remoto replaces the passato prossimo in this role. For the full comparison, read passato prossimo vs imperfetto.
Common Mistakes With the Imperfetto
- Using the passato prossimo for a habit. Say Da bambino giocavo sempre in cortile, not ho giocato sempre.
- Using the imperfetto for a single, finished action. Ieri sono andato al cinema (Yesterday I went to the cinema) needs the passato prossimo, not andavo.
- Forgetting the v. The endings always contain a v: parlavo, credevo, sentivo.
Practice: Complete With the Imperfetto
Put the verb in brackets in the imperfetto:
- Da bambino (giocare) sempre in cortile.
- Ogni domenica noi (andare) dalla nonna.
- Quando (essere, io) piccola, (avere) i capelli lunghi.
- Mentre tu (dormire), io (studiare).
- Loro (leggere) sempre il giornale.
- (Fare) freddo quella sera.
Answers: 1. giocavo, 2. andavamo, 3. ero and avevo, 4. dormivi and studiavo, 5. leggevano, 6. Faceva.
Imperfetto: Frequently Asked Questions
What is the imperfetto in Italian?
It is a past tense used for habits, descriptions and ongoing actions in the past. In English it corresponds to “used to”, “was doing” or the simple past in descriptions.
How do you form the imperfetto?
Drop the final -re of the infinitive and add -vo, -vi, -va, -vamo, -vate, -vano. The endings are the same for the three conjugations.
When do you use the imperfetto?
For habits (Ogni venerdì ci incontravamo), descriptions of people, places, time, age and weather in the past (Faceva freddo), actions in progress (Mentre andavo in ufficio) and polite requests (Volevo un caffè).
What is the difference between imperfetto and passato prossimo?
The imperfetto describes situations and repeated actions without a fixed end. The passato prossimo describes completed actions. Compare Giocavo a calcio ogni giorno (I played football every day) with Ieri ho giocato a calcio (Yesterday I played football).
Ready to Talk About Past Habits
L’imperfetto è facile, avevo ragione? (The imperfect is easy, was I right?)
With the Italian imperfetto you are a step further in your Italian learning journey: I have just embarked the world of the habitual past events. You can now describe past situations, talk about habits, and even describe two actions occurring simultaneously.
So, practice the use of this verb tense and unlock new topics and conversations!
