Italian verbs
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Verbs (verbi) are the core of each possible sentence in speech, as they express whatever action is being carried out and whatever is being talked about in the phrase.
The Italian language is very rich in term of varieties of verbs, embedded with a large number of many different moods and tenses.
Mastering them mught be quite a challenging experience - nevertheless, it is definitely worth the effort.
Lesson outline
HideHow do verbs in Italian work?
For any English speaker willing to get familiar with the verbs in the Italian language, it is paramount to learn two very important aspects:
- in contrast with English, there is a different verb declension for each person, therefore making it possible for up to six different verbal forms occurring in a single tense;
- consequently, it is not obligatory to write the personal pronoun before each verb.
If you are confused, please have a look at the following table for a more practical explanation:
| EN | IT | |
|---|---|---|
| 1st sing. | I run | corro |
| 2nd sing. | you run | corri |
| 3rd sing. | he runs | corre |
| 1st plur. | we run | corriamo |
| 2nd plur. | you run | correte |
| 3rd plur. | they run | corrono |
As you may notice, whereas all declensed form of "run" are equal to the infinitive form of the verb (except for the 3rd person singular), in Italian it is different for each person.
Therefore, even if it is not wrong to say io corro, tu corri, lui corre (and so on), it is possible to omit the pronoun since the verb itself implies who is performing the action!
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Characteristics of the Italian verbs
It is fundamental to be able to recognize the two main elements of an Italian verb - that is, the radice (lit. "root") and desinenza ("ending").
In the above mentioned verb corriamo ("we run"), the radice is corr- and the desinenza is -iamo. Now, for a bit of explanation:
- as radice we consider the portion of verb which stems directly from the infinite form and stays unchanged in every tense. It is thus the fixed part of the verb;
- as desinenza we consider the ending of the verb, which changes according to both the tense and the person. Therefore it is the variable part of the verb.
So essentially, learning how to conjugate verbs in Italian is a matter of learning how desinenze work with each different kind of tenses.
Italian moods and tenses
All the Italian verb conjugations may be subdivided in several different categories.
The main category is called modo ("mood"), expressing the way the action described by the verb is carried out.
Each modo has one or more tempo ("tense") which expresses the timeframe of the verb (be it present, past or future).
There are over twenty different tenses in the Italian language, shared among several different moods. In the next few lessons, you shall have a look to each one of them singularly.
Italian verb conjugation
One last paragraph to introduce the verb conjugation in Italian.
There are three different ways to conjugate verbs in Italian, with each verb belonging to one class according to the desinenza of their present infinitive form.
Therefore:
- conjugation, verbs ending in -are: cantare, parlare, trovare;
- conjugation, verbs ending in -ere: chiedere, ridere, scrivere;
- conjugation, verbs ending in -ire: dormire, pulire, servire.
Each one of these classes of verbs conjugates in its own way.
Have a look at some examples of conjugations (present tense) for each one of those classes:
| parlare (I) | ridere (II) | dormire (III) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| io | parlo | rido | dormo |
| tu | parli | ridi | dormi |
| lui | parla | ride | dorme |
| noi | parliamo | ridiamo | dormiamo |
| voi | parlate | ridete | dormite |
| loro | parlano | ridono | dormono |
All the desinenze marked in bold show the differences induced by each class of conjugation.
As you progress through more complex tenses, you will find out that these differences grow much bigger along the way.
Before you start learning the Italian verbs thoroughly, we suggest you try out the first (audio) exercise on the Italian verb conjugations!
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Hi everyone!
My name is Daniela and I am a qualified Italian language teacher! I teach Italian and English at school, and Spanish and French as a freelancer. I love foreign languages, translating, reading and listening to music. Are you ready to start your language learning path with me? We are going to learn many things and to talk a lot! Don’t worry if you’ve never studied the language before: everyone can attend my classes – from beginner to advanced students. You just need passion for what you're going to do and... a good Internet connection. Materials are provided by me!
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My name is Alice and I was born and raised in a small village in the North of Italy, near Venice. My passion for languages started at high school, when I learned English, French and Spanish. Then I decided to focus on my second passion, that is literature, so I got a bachelor degree in Italian Literature. After my degree I moved to Berlin, where I learned German for a year. In Berlin I also understood that I wanted to become an Italian teacher, in order to combine my passion for languages with my interest for literature!So I moved back to Venice and now I’m attending a master degree in language sciences with a focus on language teaching, but I’m first of all myself a language learner, as I study German, which I can speak quite fluently now.
If you are looking for a friendly and calm teacher that knows the struggle of communicating in a foreign language, you have found the right person! During my carrier as a language learner, I have acquired some skills that I can teach you, with a focus on overcoming the fear of speaking in a foreign language and I can also help you feel more confident when interacting with Italian native speakers.
I can deal with different topics, but my main interests remain culture, literature, dialects and, naturally!, food.
After a first free trial lesson, in which we would get to know each other, I can offer you a structured learning path, according to your needs, interests, learning objectives and learning style. The lessons will be mainly in Italian, but if some more explanations are needed, I can speak English, German and Spanish as well.
I am a certified examiner for CELI, I can prepare you for this test.
If you are interested or if you have any question, please don't hesitate to contact me, I can't wait to meet you!
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