How To Successfully Conjugate -ARE Verbs in Italian

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Italian -ARE verbs are a perfect place to start if you are approaching Italian verbs for the first time. This group of words includes most Italian verbs, and they’re basically all regular, meaning they follow predictable conjugation patterns. So start with this guide and keep practicing with Rosetta Stone because mastering -ARE verbs in Italian will bring you halfway to fluency—scout’s honor!

The three conjugations for all Italian verbs

All Italian verbs are divided into three main conjugation groups. To figure out which group a verb belongs to, you must look at the suffix at the end of the infinitive form:

• First conjugation: Italian -ARE verbs, like parlare (to speak)
• Second conjugation: Italian -ERE verbs, like vedere (to see)
• Third conjugation: Italian -IRE verbs, like dormire (to sleep)

Each group has both regular and irregular verbs. Regular verbs follow a consistent pattern, replacing -ARE, -ERE, or -IRE with specific endings that change based on tense, mood, and who is performing the action.

Irregular verbs, on the other hand, can vary significantly, with both their roots and endings changing. Fortunately, you’ll have mostly regular verbs to learn with -ARE endings!

Learn the seven moods of verbs

Italian verbs use seven different moods, each designed to express actions with different meanings.

Modi finiti (finite moods) reflect actions and opinions and are conjugated depending on the person doing the action. They include:

• Indicativo (indicative): Used for facts and statements
• Congiuntivo (subjunctive): Used for doubts, wishes, and hypothetical situations
• Condizionale (conditional): Used for conditional statements or polite requests
• Imperativo (Imperative): Used to give commands or requests

Each mood has specific tenses to clarify whether the action happens in the past, present, or future. For example, let’s look at the present tense of amare (to love) in the indicative mood:

• io amo = I love
• tu ami = you love
• lui/lei ama = he/she loves
• noi amiamo = we love
• voi amate = you all love (or formal you)
• loro amano = they love

This system of having different verb forms (or conjugations) for each personal pronoun can be handy in Italian. Why? Because the consistency allows you to omit the subject from sentences when you can derive it from the verb form. (Io mangio una mela. vs. Mangio una mela.)

Modi indefiniti (non-finite moods) don’t change based on the subject and help form compound tenses. They are:

• Infinito (infinitive)
• Participio (participle)
• Gerundio (gerund)

These forms are exceptionally straightforward since they don’t conjugate for different subjects.

How to conjugate -ARE verbs in Italian

The -ARE verbs in Italian make up the largest group of verbs, covering essential actions like amare (to love), mangiare (to eat), sognare (to dream), and viaggiare (to travel). You’ll use these verbs in almost every Italian conversation, so it is vital to learn how to conjugate them correctly in different moods, tenses, and persons.

The good news? Almost all -ARE verbs follow regular patterns. There are only four irregular -ARE verbs in Italian: dare (to give), fare (to do/make), stare (to stay), and andare (to go).

So, once you learn the Italian -ARE verb endings in the following charts, you’ll be ready to handle the vast majority of Italian verbs with confidence. How great is that?

Infinitive, participle, and gerund: Italian non-finite verb moods

Before diving into finite moods and their many tenses, let’s look at the non-finite forms, which don’t change based on the subject.

Infinito (infinitive) 

The infinitive form is the basic form of the verb and corresponds to “to” + [verb] in English:

• parlare = to speak
• amare = to love

It can also be used to create compound tenses.

Participio (participle) 

The participle has two tenses: present and past. The past participle is used to form compound tenses and the passive voice. It ends in “-ato” for all -ARE regular verbs:

• parlato = spoken
• amato = loved

The Italian present participle, on the other hand, ends in “-ante” and creates mainly nouns or adjectives:

• parlante = speaker
• amante = lover

Gerundio (gerund)

The gerund corresponds to the English verb form that ends in “-ing.” Like in English, it describes actions in progress. Its suffix is -ando for all regular Italian -ARE verbs:

• parlando = speaking
• amando = loving

A trick to master these three moods across all conjugations: Their suffixes are almost identical for every conjugation. The only thing that changes is the vowel at the beginning of the suffix, which is “a” for -ARE verbs, “e” for -ERE verbs, and “i” for -IRE verbs.

Modo indicativo (indicative) of -ARE verbs in Italian

The indicative mood is by far the most commonly used in Italian. It helps you talk about things that have happened or are expected to happen rather than hypothetical, wished-for, or imagined events.

What’s unique about the indicative mood is that it gives you plenty of ways to pinpoint exactly when something happened or will happen. It has eight tenses, including the present tense, several ways to talk about the past, and even two forms to describe future actions. To help you see how this works, the charts below will show you how the conjugation works in each tense.

Presente (simple present)

This tense can describe actions happening in the present moment or repeated actions. To conjugate the present indicative, remove -ARE from the infinitive and add one of the suffixes in the following table.

Imperfetto (imperfect)

The imperfect describes ongoing or habitual actions in the past. Although it is technically a past tense in Italian grammar, the imperfect also admits a temporal interpretation of the present and future, like the past perfect.

In spoken Italian, for example, it can sometimes replace the conditional:

• Mi ha detto che sarebbe andato in ferie domani. = He told me that he would be going on vacation tomorrow.

The conditional sarebbe andato (would be going) expresses an intention with a slightly more formal or specific tone.

• Mi ha detto che andava in ferie domani. = He told me that he was going on vacation tomorrow.

The imperfect andava (was going) makes it feel more conversational and uses the past to describe an action that will happen in the future (domani = tomorrow).

Passato prossimo (compound past)

It’s used for actions that started and finished in the past.

The formula to use compound past is essere (to be) or avere (avere) in the present tense + the past participle.

The passato prossimo refers to recent past actions. However, it can also be used with expressions that clarify the time, making it suitable even for distant past actions.

• Ho parlato con lui due anni fa. = I had spoken with him two years ago.

It can also overlap with the present tense:

• Adesso ho parlato con lui. = I’ve just spoken with him now.

Trapassato prossimo (past perfect)

This tense describes actions that happened before another past event.

• Avevano parlato prima della riunione. = They had spoken before the meeting.

The formula to use the past perfect is the imperfect form of essere (to be) or avere (to have) + the past participle.

Passato remoto (simple past/remote past)

Along with the remote past perfect, it’s a verbal form that refers exclusively to situations that precede the moment when you are speaking. It’s the correct verbal tense for talking about something that happened in a distant past. 

However, especially in spoken Italian, it’s usually replaced by the other verbal forms of the past indicative. You can totally use it, but it sounds pretty posh and a little archaic.

Trapassato remoto (remote past perfect)

The trapassato remoto is rare, and it mainly appears in literary contexts for actions completed before another past event.

Create it by using the remote past of essere (to be) or avere (to have) + the past participle.

Futuro semplice (future simple)

The simple form of future tense is perfect for talking about future actions.

Futuro anteriore (future perfect)

The future perfect tense indicates that something will be done before something else happens. It’s often used with expressions like prima di (before), quando (when), or dopo che (after) to clarify the order of events.

The formula is to use the future tense of avere (to have) or essere (essere) + past participle.

Modo congiuntivo (subjunctive mood) of -ARE verbs

The congiuntivo (subjunctive) expresses a desire or implies something that is not yet certain and depends on a condition or a subjective opinion. It’s typically introduced by che (that), and it’s the verb tense used to connect subordinate clauses to the main sentence:

• Spero che parlino italiano. = I hope (that) they speak Italian.

Presente (present)

The peculiarity of the present subjunctive is that it keeps the same ending for all persons in the singular, so make sure to specify the subject or the pronoun when you use it in a sentence!

Imperfetto (imperfect)

You can use the imperfect tense when speaking of possible or impossible hypotheses, introduced by se (if) and coordinated with the conditional:

• Se parlassi italiano, andrei subito in Italia. = If I spoke Italian, I would go to Italy right away.

You can also combine it with the imperfect indicative in the main sentence:

• Pensavo che non parlasse italiano. = I thought he/she didn’t speak Italian.

Passato (past)

The past tense also depends on the main sentence. It expresses events that may have happened before the action in the main sentence.

• Penso che Marta abbia parlato con lui. = I think Marta talked to him.

You can create it with the present subjunctive of avere (to have) or essere (to be) + the past participle.

Trapassato (past perfect subjunctive)

The past perfect subjunctive expresses a hypothetical action that could have occurred in the past but didn’t, and it’s no longer possible. It can express regret, too.

• Se avessi saputo, avrei parlato prima. = If I had known, I would have spoken earlier.

The formula to use it is the past subjunctive of avere (to have) or essere (to be) + the past participle.

Modo condizionale (conditional mood) of -ARE Italian verbs

The condizionale (conditional) is comparable to the English “would” or “could.” It has two tenses, the present and the past, each with a specific use.

Presente (present)

The present conditional is used to make polite requests, give advice, express wishes, or discuss hypothetical actions that would occur under a specific condition.

• Parlerebbe con te se avesse tempo. = He/she would speak with you if they had time.
• Parleremmo volentieri con il direttore. = We would gladly speak with the manager.

Passato (past)

The past conditional expresses a desire, a personal opinion, or the impossibility of doing something. In English, this is usually translated as “would have.”

As explained in the imperfect indicative, the past conditional can also express the future in the past tense, which is unique to the Italian language.

• Mi ha detto che sarebbe andato in ferie domani. = He told me that he would be going on vacation tomorrow.

Create this verb with the present conditional of avere (to have) or essere (to be) + the past participle.

Modo imperativo (imperative) of -ARE verbs

The imperative is for commands or requests. It works with only three types of pronouns: you (singular you), we (we), you (plural you).

• Canta! = Sing!
• Cantiamo! = Let’s sing! Let’s sing!
• Cantate! = Sing!

In the following chart, we have also included the Italian pronoun lei (formal you). This forms the so-called formal imperative, which you can use when using a formal register.

• Per cortesia, canti una canzone. = Please sing a song.

To remember it easily: The imperative is the same as the present indicative for noi (we) and voi (plural you). The formal imperative is the same as the present subjunctive.

Key takeaways for -ARE verbs in Italian

Now it’s time to put these rules into practice! Testing your skills in real Italian conversations is the most effective (and fun) way to master these grammar rules. Here are some quick tips to keep in mind as you go:

• Inizia con il piede giusto (start off on the right foot): -ARE verbs are a great entry point because most follow predictable patterns. Use the charts in this article, but watch out for the four irregular -ARE verbs: fare (to do), stare (to stay), andare (to go), and dare (to give).
• Think about what you’re trying to say: If it’s a fact or statement, use the indicativo (indicative); for wishes or hypotheticals, the condizionale (conditional) is your friend. Giving a command? Go for the imperativo (imperative).
• Practice pronunciation: While most -ARE verb endings have a natural emphasis, some verbs shift the emphasis to the root. To perfect your pronunciation, try the Rosetta Stone TruAccent speech recognition tool—you’ll speak Italian confidently in the blink of an eye.