Italian Verbs: An Introduction
All Italian verbs can be divided into three groups.
They are classified according to the ending of their infinitive forms into three groups (conjugations): – are, – ere, or – ire.
Distinctions between these groups are important to learn how to form verb tenses in Italian, such as the regular present tense.
- First conjugation verbs end in – are. For example: mangiare (= to eat), lavorare (= to work), studiare (= to study), imparare (= to learn).
- Second conjugation verbs end in – ere. For example: leggere (=to read), perdere (= to lose), vivere (= to live).
- Third conjugation verbs end in – ire. For example: dormire (= to sleep), capire (= to understand), preferire (= to prefer).
How do you conjugate verbs in Italian? Conjugation is simply the act of changing a verb to suit the way it’s being used inside the sentences
It is in the same way that the verb “to be” in English changes according to the subject and verb tense and becomes “I am”, “you are”, “he is”, or “I was”, “they were”, and so on.
Italian regular verbs conjugate according to:
- The subject
- The verb tenses
- The verb group (or conjugation): – are, – ere, or – ire
When you conjugate a regular verb, you take the first part of the infinitive version of the verb and then add on the ending that correlates to the subject, the tense, and the ending of the infinitive version.
Depending on the groups of verbs you’re conjugating (– are, – ere, or – ire) the endings will be different.
Most Italian verbs use regular conjugations, which means that most verbs from each of the three groups follow a pattern that is the same every time.
Still, some very common verbs in Italian are irregular verbs, which means they do not exactly follow these rules.
Regular Present Tense: Conjugation
First conjugation regular verbs (ending in – are) conjugate as follows by adding different endings to the verb root, depending on the subject.
Please note that the verb root is what is left after the suffix “– are” is removed from the infinitive form.
| Present Tense (First Conjugation) | |
| io | lavoro |
| tu | lavori |
| lui/lei | lavora |
| noi | lavoriamo |
| voi | lavorate |
| loro | lavorano |
Second conjugation regular verbs (ending in – ere) conjugate as follows by adding different endings to the verb root, depending on the subject.
Please note that the verb root is what is left after the suffix “– ere” is removed from the infinitive form.
| Present Tense (Second Conjugation) | |
| io | vivo |
| tu | vivi |
| lui/lei | vive |
| noi | viviamo |
| voi | vivete |
| loro | vivono |
Third conjugation regular verbs (ending in – ire) conjugate as follows by adding different endings to the verb root, depending on the subject.
Please note that the verb root is what is left after the suffix “– ire” is removed from the infinitive form.
Important: some regular verbs in this group (ending in – ire) also add the suffix –isc between the root and the declination.
The suffix –isc is only added for the subjects: io, tu, lui/lei, loro, and not for noi and voi.
| Present Tense (Second Conjugation) | ||
| Without suffix –isc | With suffix –isc | |
| io | dormo | capisco |
| tu | dormi | capisci |
| lui/lei | dorme | capisce |
| noi | dormiamo | capiamo |
| voi | dormite | capite |
| loro | dormono | capiscono |
Learn more about Italian verb conjugation.
Present Tense: Explained
In Italian, the present tense is used in the following cases:
- To talk about ongoing actions happening in the present:
- To talk about general truths:
L’acqua bolle a 100 gradi.
Water boils at 100 degrees.
Le tigri non vivono in Africa.
Tigers don’t live in Africa.
- To talk about habits and recurrent actions still happening in the present:
Mangio due piatti di pasta al giorno.
I eat pasta twice a day.
Tutte le sere leggo un po’ prima di andare a dormire.
Every evening I read for a bit before I go to sleep.
Sometimes, the present tense is used to talk about the future, if the time of the action is clear from other elements in the sentence, meaning if other words refer to a future time or event.
Domani torno a casa.
I’m going back home tomorrow.
Practice with Quizlet
Here's a set of flashcards and quizzes to practice this grammar topic.Regular present tense: what you need to remember
Verbs are classified according to the ending of their infinitive forms into three groups: – are, – ere, or – ire.
This is an important distinction to make as it helps you to form regular tenses, like the present tense.
Conjugation is the process of changing the verb to suit the way it is used in the sentence.
For regular verbs, the conjugation follows a pattern that depends on the subject, the tense, and the ending of the infinitive form. The endings for the verbs will vary according to the group they belong to.
There are also irregular verbs, but these are less common.
The present tense is used to talk about ongoing actions and habits in the present, as well as future actions if the time of the action is clear in the sentence.
Remember that if you want to emphasize that something is happening right now, you can use the progressive tense.
Still translating in your head? Wanna speak Italian for real? Check out Stefano's courses to think directly in Italian and become fluent fast!
5 Responses
It says “Third conjugation verbs end in – ere. ” 🙂
Corretto! Grazie.
Sorry, I didn’t make the Quizlet. 😛
For instance… Test asks for written translation of “Lui invita molti amici”. I said “he invites many friends”; but the correct answer given is “He is inviting many friends”. Per che?
Caio Stefano,
I really like using the grammar section quiz/flashcards to reinforce the lessons. Io ho una domanda, per che qualcuno present tense is used (we pay at the cash register)/ and other times progressive (we are paying at the cash register)… are they interchangeable??? Grazie, Rosemary