Stare Conjugation

Stare Conjugation in the Indicative Present Tense

Stare is an intransitive verb, meaning that it does not take a direct object. It’s also an irregular verb and it does not follow the pattern of the verbs ending in “-are”. Here is how to form the present tense of stare.

Presente Present tense
io sto I stay
tu stai you stay
lui/lei sta he/she stay
noi stiamo we stay
voi state you stay
loro stanno they stay
  • Come stai?
    How are you?
  • In questi giorni sto a Roma.
    These days I’m staying in Rome.
  • Sto per uscire.
    I’m about to leave.

Stare is often used to form the Present Progressive tense, in order to talk about an action that is happening at the same time we are speaking. This construction is formed by stare + the gerund of the verb.

  • Sto mangiando.
    I’m eating.
  • Sto andando a lavoro.
    I’m going to work.

Stare Conjugation in the Indicative Past Tense

The indicative mood has two simple past tenses: imperfetto and passato remoto.

Imperfetto Imperfect
io stavo I stayed
tu stavi you stayed
lui/lei stava he/she stayed
noi stavamo we stayed
voi stavate you stayed
loro stavano they stayed
  • Stavo per uscire quando il telefono ha squillato.
    I was about to leave, when the phone rang.
  • Quando ho visto Paola, non stava facendo niente.
    When I saw Paola, she wasn’t doing anything.

While the imperfetto is used for recurring actions in the past or for events that happened not too long ago, the passato remoto is used to talk about something that took place months, or years ago. However, it’s rarely used in real life (with the exception of some regional uses, especially in Southern Italy).

Passato remoto Remote Past tense
io stetti I stayed
tu stesti you stayed
lui/lei stette he/she stayed
noi stemmo we stayed
voi steste you stayed
loro stettero they stayed
  • Ero così arrabbiato che non stetti nemmeno a sentirlo.
    I was so angry that I didn’t even stay to listen to him.

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Stare Conjugation to Talk about the Future

There are two tenses to express the future in Italian. We’ll see first the Future Simple of stare.

Futuro Semplice Future Simple
io starò I will stay
tu starai you will stay
lui/lei starà he/she will stay
noi staremo we will stay
voi starete you will stay
loro staranno they will stay
  • Ho sbagliato, ma in futuro starò più attento.
    I made a mistake; in the future, I’ll be more careful.
  • Starò a Parigi per due settimane.
    I’ll stay in Paris for two weeks.

Compound Tenses of Stare Conjugation

The indicative mood also has a few compound tenses. Since stare is an intransitive verb, its compound tenses are formed by adding the auxiliary essere (to be).

Stare Conjugation: Present Perfect Tense

The Present Perfect is the most used tense to talk about past actions. Here is how you form it.

Passato prossimo Present Perfect tense
io sono stato/a I have stayed
tu sei stato/a you have stayed
lui/lei è stato/a he/she has stayed
noi siamo stati/e we have stayed
voi siete stati/e you have stayed
loro sono stati/e they have stayed
  • Sono stato a Milano per una settimana.
    I’ve stayed in Milan for a week.
  • La spiegazione non è stata molto chiara.
    The explanation wasn’t very clear.

Remember that when essere is used as an auxiliary, you need to modify the acting verb according to the gender and number of the subject.

Stare Conjugation: Pluperfect and Preterite Perfect tense

The trapassato prossimo is normally used to talk about an action that happened in the past, before another action.

Trapassato prossimo Pluperfect
io ero stato/a I had stayed
tu eri stato/a you had stayed
lui/lei era stato/a he/she had stayed
noi eravamo stati/e we had stayed
voi eravate stati/e you had stayed
loro erano stati/e they had stayed
  • A quanto pare non ero stato chiaro, così gliel’ho rispiegato.
    Apparently, it wasn’t clear enough, so I explained it again.

The Trapassato remoto is formed with the Remote Past tense of essere + the past participle of stare.

Trapassato remoto Preterite Perfect tense
io fui stato/a I had stayed
tu fosti stato/a you had stayed
lui/lei fu stato/a he/she had stayed
noi fummo stati/e we had stayed
voi foste stati/e you had stayed
loro furono stati/e they had stayed

You will hardly encounter the trapassato remoto of stare, so don’t worry too much: it’s only used in complex structures in literature, hence, it’ll be quite weird to use it in spoken language.

Stare Conjugation: Future Perfect Tense

The futuro anteriore has no equivalent in English, and is mostly used for two purposes:

  • To indicate an action that will be finished before another one will take place.
  • To express an hypothesis or uncertainty, or when you’re not sure about whether something will take place.
Futuro anteriore Future Perfect tense
io sarò stato/a I will have stayed
tu sarai stato/a you will have stayed
lui/lei sarà stato/a he/she will have stayed
noi saremo stati/e we will have stayed
voi sarete stati/e you will have stayed
loro saranno stati/e they will have stayed
  • Se sarai stato promosso con buoni voti, ti farò un bel regalo.
    If you’ll pass this year with good marks, I’ll give you a nice present.
  • Perchè Marco non c’è? Sarà stato trattenuto a lavoro.
    Why is Marco not here? He must be stuck at work.

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Subjunctive Tense of Stare

The subjunctive is the mood of uncertainty and is often introduced in Italian by the conjunction “che” (that). It is often used to express opinions, hope, wishes, assumptions, feelings, doubts or hypotheses.

Present Subjunctive

The present subjunctive of stare conjugation has the same three endings for all singular persons. Therefore, it’s advisable to add a pronoun before the verb, to help distinguish among them.

Congiuntivo presente
(che) io stia
(che) tu stia
(che) lui/lei stia
(che) noi stiamo
(che) voi stiate
(che) loro stiano
  • Non credo che tu mi stia ascoltando.
    I believe you’re not listening to me.
  • Penso che Luca stia dicendo una bugia.
    I think that Luca is telling a lie.

Perfect Subjunctive

The Past Subjunctive is formed with the Present Subjunctive of essere + the Past Participle of stare.

Congiuntivo passato (essere auxiliary)
(che) io sia stato/a
(che) tu sia stato/a
(che) lui/lei sia stato/a
(che) noi siamo stati/e
(che) voi siate stati/e
(che) loro siano stati/e

It is used to express past actions and express hypothesis or doubts, as well as to formulate rhetorical questions.

  • Che sia stato lui a scrivere quella lettera?
    Perhaps it was him who wrote that letter?

Subjunctive Imperfect

The subjunctive imperfect of stare is another irregular tense and is formed by removing the verb ending -are and by adding the following endings: -essi, -essi, -esse, -essimo, -este, -essero.

Congiuntivo imperfetto
(che) io stessi
(che) tu stessi
(che) lui/lei stesse
(che) noi stessimo
(che) voi steste
(che) loro stessero
  • Non sapevo che Lucia stesse per partire, altrimenti l’avrei salutata.
    I didn’t know that Lucia was about to leave, otherwise I would say goodbye to her.
  • Se tu non stessi a casa così spesso, conosceresti più persone.
    If you didn’t stay home so often, you’ll get to know more people.

Pluperfect Subjunctive

The Pluperfect Subjunctive of stare is formed by the Present Subjunctive of essere + the past participle of stare. It is mostly used in hypothetical clauses, often introduced by “se” (if).

Congiuntivo trapassato Pluperfect Subjunctive (essere auxiliary)
io fossi stato/a I would have stayed
tu fossi stato/a you would have stayed
lui/lei fosse stato/a he/she would have stayed
noi fossimo stati/e we would have stayed
voi foste stati/e you would have stayed
loro fossero stati/e they would have stayed
  • Se fossi stato onesto, non avremmo litigato.
    If you were sincere, we wouldn’t have fought.
  • E se fosse stato lui a tradire la tua fiducia, che farai?
    What if it was him who betrayed you, what would you do?

Conditional Mood of Stare

The Conditional mood only has two tenses: present and past. This verbal mode is used to talk about actions or situations that are conditioned by other actions, or to express impossible situations, or an information that the speaker is unsure about. It is the equivalent of the English would + verb.

Condizionale presente Conditional present
io starei I would stay
tu staresti you would stay
lui/lei starebbe he/she would stay
noi staremmo we would stay
voi stareste you would stay
loro starebbero they would stay
  • Non starei mai con uno come te.
    I would never stay with someone like you.
  • Se foste arrivati prima ad aiutarci, non staremmo in questa situazione.
    If you came earlier to help us, we wouldn’t be in this situation.

The conditional past is used for the same purpose, but of course it is used to talk about past actions/information. It is formed by using the Conditional Present of essere + the past participle of stare.

Condizionale passato Conditional past
io sarei stato/a I would have stayed
tu saresti stato/a you would have stayed
lui/lei sarebbe stato/a he/she would have stayed
noi saremmo stati/e we would have stayed
voi sareste stati/e you would have stayed
loro sarebbero stati/e they would have stayed
  • Non sarei mai stato in grado di superare l’esame, senza il tuo aiuto.
    I would never be able to pass the exam without your help.
  • Non sarei stato così tanto a Roma, se non avessi amato la città.
    I would never have stayed so long in Rome if I hadn’t loved the city.

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Imperative Mood and Indefinite Moods of Stare

Finally, let’s end this overview of the stare conjugation by looking at the imperative mood (used to express orders or requests) and the indefinite moods.

Imperative Present
tu sta’/stai
lui/lei stia
noi stiamo
voi stiate
loro stiano
  • Sta’ zitto!
    Shut up!
  • Stai qui, mentre vado a fare la spesa.
    Stay here, while I go shopping.

Lastly, the indefinite moods of stare:

Infinito – Infinitive
Present tense Past tense
Stare (to stay) Esser stato (to have stayed)
Participio – Participle
Present tense Past tense
stante stato (stayed)
Gerundio – Gerundive
Present tense Past tense
Stando (Staying) Essendo stato (having stayed)

 

Power

But if a twin, called by the name of Castor & Pollux. Often, there is even more complex.
Meteors are parts of salt-peter and sulfur from the areas that are more heterogeneous.
Something of this kind tried in the fire meteor, is a lightning-bolt, which is, that the smoke of a nitrous lake, sulpherous, the clouds above A, great force into the lower B dropped, a falling, and the ends of the lands C and D, for the sake of the air presses, that place, out of the shortness of the ways of a more easily able to go forth, en-route the lower B running with them, was intercepted and concluded that the agitation intensity of the vapors are separated and then to a great crash out of the cavity E by the gap G or F breaks.

Sally

sin geminus, Castoris & Pollucis nomine appellatur. Saepe etiam est magis multiplex.
meteora partium nitrosarum & sulphur e arearum , magis est heterogeneus.
Ejusmodi ignitum meteorum eft fulmen: quod est fumus nitrosus, sulpherous, nubibus superioribus A, magno impetu in inferiores B delabentibus, & extremitatibus suis C & D, propter aerem preffum, ibi ob brevitatem viae facilius egredientem, vesus inferiores B concurrentibus, interceptus & conclusus, qui agitatione vehementia vaporibus separatus & incensus, magno fragore ex earum cavitate E per hiatum G vel F erumpit.

Eruptio

 

More Italian Pronouns

1  What are object pronouns?

  • Object pronouns are words such as me, him, us and them used instead of a noun
    to show who is affected by the action of the verb.
Do you like Claire? – Yes I like her a lot.
I’ve lost my purse, have you seen it?
He gave us a fantastic send-off.
Why don’t you send them a note?
  • In English we use object pronouns in two different ways:
  • when the person or thing is directly affected by the action:
I saw them yesterday.
They admire him immensely.
  • In the above examples, them and him are called direct objects.
  • when the person or thing is indirectly affected by the action. In English you often use to with the pronoun in such cases.
I sent it to them yesterday.
They awarded him a medal.
  • In the above examples, them and him are called indirect objects.
  • For both direct and indirect objects there is one form you use on most occasions. This is called the unstressed form.

2  Unstressed direct object pronouns

  • Here are the Italian unstressed object pronouns:
mi me
ti you (familiar singular)
lo him, it
la her, you (polite singular), it
ci us
vi you (plural)
li them (masculine)
le them (feminine)
  • Unlike English, you usually put them before the verb.
Ti amo. I love you.
Lo invito alla festa. I’m inviting him to the party.
Non lo mangio. I’m not going to eat it.
La guardava. He was looking at her.
Vi cercavo. I was looking for you.
Li conosciamo. We know them.
TipRemember that you use ti only when speaking to someone you know well.

3  Lolali and le

  • You need to pay particular attention to how lolali and le are used in Italian.
  • To translate it you need to choose between lo or la. Use lo if the noun referred
    to is masculine, and la if it’s feminine.
Ho un panino, lo vuoi? I’ve got a roll, do you want it?
Ho una mela, la vuoi? I’ve got an apple, do you want it?
  • To translate them you choose between li or le. Use li if the noun referred to is masculine, and le if it’s feminine.
Sto cercando i biglietti. I’m looking for the tickets, have
Li hai visti? you seen them?
Dove sono le caramelle?
Le hai mangiate?
Where are the sweets? Have you
eaten them?
  • When lo and la are followed by hohaihaabbiamoavete and hanno, they drop the vowel and are spelled l’.
Non l’ho visto ieri. I didn’t see it yesterday.
L’abbiamo portato con noi. We took it with us.
L’hanno cercato tutta la giornata. They looked for it all day.
Grammar Extra!When you are talking about the past and using the pronouns lolali and le you must make the past participle agree with the noun being referred to. Past participles are just like adjectives ending in –o. You change the –o to –a for the feminine singular, to –i for the masculine plural, and to –e for the feminine plural.
Il suo ultimo film? L’ho visto. His new film? I’ve seen it.
Silvia? L’ho incontrata ieri. Silvia? I met her yesterday.
I biglietti? Li ho già presi. The tickets? I’ve already got them.
Queste scarpe? Le ho comprate anni fa. These shoes? I bought them years ago.
Key points
  • You generally use the unstressed direct object pronoun.
  • Unstressed direct object pronouns usually come before the verb.
  • You need to pay special attention when translating it and them.

4  Unstressed indirect object pronouns

  • In English some verbs have to be followed by an indirect object pronoun – explain
    to himwrite to him – but other similar verbs do not: you say tell him, phone him.
  • In Italian you have to use indirect object pronouns with verbs such as dire (meaning to tell) and telefonare (meaning to phone).
  • As with direct object pronouns, there are unstressed and stressed indirect
    object pronouns.
  • You will generally need to use unstressed pronouns rather than stressed ones.
  • Here are the unstressed indirect pronouns.
mi to me, me
ti to you, you (familiar singular)
gli to him, him
le to her, her; to you, you (polite singular)
ci to us, us
vi to you, you (plural)
gli, loro to them, them
  • Unlike English, you usually put these pronouns before the verb.
  • Just as in English, when you are telling somebody something, giving somebody something and so on, you use an indirect pronoun for the person concerned.
Le ho detto la verità. I told her the truth.
Gli ho dato la cartina. I gave him the map.
  • Indirect pronouns are also generally used with verbs to do with communicating with people.
Gli chiederò il permesso. I’ll ask him for permission.
(literally, I’ll ask to him)
Gli ho telefonato. I phoned him. (literally, I phoned to him)
Le scriverò. I’ll write to her.
Se li vedi chiedigli di venire. If you see them ask them to come.
(literally, …ask to them…)
  • You use indirect object pronouns when you are using verbs such as piacereimportare, and interessare to talk about what people like, care about or are interested in.
Gli piace l’Italia. He likes Italy.
Le piacciono i gatti. She likes cats.
Non gli importa il prezzo, sono ricchi. They don’t care about the price, they’re rich.
Se gli interessa può venire con me. If he’s interested he can come with me.
TipIt is worth checking in your dictionary to see if a verb needs a direct or
an indirect object. If you look up the verb to give, for example, and find the example to give somebody something, the a in the translation (dare qualcosa a qualcuno) shows you that you use an indirect pronoun for the person you give something to.
Gli ho dato il mio numero di telefono. I gave him my phone number
Key points
  • You generally use the unstressed indirect object pronoun.
  • Unstressed indirect object pronouns are used with many verbs in Italian which do not use them in English such as chiedere (meaning to ask) and interessare (meaning to interest).
  • Unstressed indirect object pronouns usually come before the verb.

5  Stressed object pronouns

  • You use stressed pronouns for special emphasis. They generally go after the verb.
Cercavo proprio voi. You’re just the people I was looking for.
Invitano me e mio fratello. They’re inviting me and my brother.
  • They are exactly the same as the subject pronouns, except that me is used instead of io and te is used instead of tu.
  • You use the same words for stressed direct and indirect objects. When you use them as indirect objects you put the word a (meaning to) before them.
DIRECT  
me me
te you (familiar form)
lui him
lei/Lei her, you (polite singular)
noi us
voi you (plural)
loro them
INDIRECT  
a me (to) me
a te (to) you (familiar form)
a lui (to) him
a lei (to) her, you (polite singular)
a noi (to) us
a voi (to) you (plural)
a loro (to) them
  • You use stressed pronouns:
  • when you want to emphasize that you mean a particular person and not somebody else, and for contrast:
Amo solo te. I love only you.
Invito lui alla festa, ma lei no. I’m inviting him to the party but
not her.
Non guardava me, guardava lei. He wasn’t looking at me, he was
looking at her.
Ho scritto a leia lui no. I wrote to her, but not to him.
Questo piace a me, ma Luca
preferisce l’altro.
I like this one but Luca prefers the other one.
  • after a preposition
Vengo con te. I’ll come with you.
Sono arrivati dopo di noi. They arrived after us.
  • For more information about Prepositions, see Prepositions.
  • after di when you’re comparing one person with another
Sei più alto di me. You’re taller than me.
Sono più ricchi di lui. They’re richer than him.
Key points
  • Stressed object pronouns are nearly all the same as subject pronouns.
  • You use them for emphasis, after prepositions and in comparisons.
  • You generally put stressed object pronouns after the verb.
  • You use the same words for direct and indirect objects, but add a before them for indirect objects.

6  Before or after the verb?

  • Unstressed pronouns generally come before the verb.
Mi aiuti? Could you help me?
Ti piace? Do you like it?
Ci hanno visto. They saw us.
Vi ha salutato? Did he say hello to you?
  • In some cases, unstressed pronouns come after the verb:
  • when you are using the imperative to tell someone to do something. The pronoun is joined onto the verb.
Aiutami! Help me!
Lasciala stare. Leave her alone.
Daglielo. Give it to him (or her).
Arrivano. Non dirgli niente! They’re coming. Don’t tell them
anything!
  • Note that if the verb consists of just one syllable you double the consonant the pronoun starts with, except in the case of gli.
Fallo subito! Do it right away!
Dille la verità! Tell her the truth!
Dimmi dov’è. Tell me where it is.
Dacci una mano. Give us a hand.
Dagli una mano. Give him a hand.
  • when you are using a pronoun with the infinitive (the form of the verb ending in –re in Italian). The pronoun is joined onto the verb.
Potresti venire a prendermi? Could you come and get me?
Non posso aiutarvi. I can’t help you.
Devo farlo? Do I have to do it?
Dovresti scriverle. You ought to write to her.
Luigi? Non voglio parlargli. Luigi? I don’t want to talk to him.
  • Note that the final e of the infinitive is dropped: prendere + mi becomes prendermifare + ti becomes farti and so on.
  • Stressed pronouns often come after the verb.
Amo solo te. I love only you.
Invito lui alla festa, ma lei no. I’m inviting him to the party but
not her.

7  Using two pronouns together

  • In English you sometimes use two pronouns together, one referring to the indirect object and the other to the direct object, for example, I gave him it.
  • You often do the same kind of thing in Italian, and must always put the indirect object first.
  • When you use two pronouns together like this, some of them change:
mi becomes me
ti becomes te
ci becomes ce
vi becomes ve
Me li dai? Will you give me it?
È mia, non te la do. It’s mine, I’m not going to give it to
you.
Ce l’hanno promesso. They promised it to us.
Ve lo mando domani. I’ll send it to you tomorrow.
  • When you want to use gli (meaning to him or to them) and le (meaning to her) with lolali or le, you add an –e to gli and join it to lola, and so forth.
gli/le + lo → glielo
gli/le + la → gliela
gli/le + li → glieli
gli/le + le→ gliele
Glieli hai promessi. You promised them to her.
Gliele ha spedite. He sent them to them.
Carlo? Glielo dirò domani. Carlo? I’ll tell him tomorrow.
  • When you use two pronouns together to give an order or when using the infinitive (–re form of the verb), they join together and are added on to the verb.
Mi piacciono, ma non vuole comprarmeli. I like them but he won’t buy me them.
Ecco la lettera di Rita, puoi dargliela? Here’s Rita’s letter, can you give it to her?
Le chiavi? Dagliele. The keys? Give them to her.
Non abbiamo i biglietti – può mandarceli? We haven’t got the tickets – can you send us them?
  • Note that the final e of the infinitive is dropped: prendere + mi + li becomes prendermelimandare + ti + le becomes mandartele and so on.
Key points
  • When you use two pronouns together the indirect object comes first.
  • Some indirect objects change when used before a direct object.
  • After orders and the infinitive form, the two pronouns are written as one word and follow the verb.
Grammar Extra!In English you and one are used in general statements and questions such as You don’t do it like that; Can you park here?; One has to be careful.Use si and the reflexive form of the verb in Italian for these kinds of statements and questions.
Si fa così. This is how you do it.
Si può nuotare qui? Can you swim here?
Non si sa mai. You never know.

Italian Pronouns Again

For first and second person, direct and indirect are the same, so you only have to learn one set. Me is mi, you is ti, us is ci, you-plural is vi.

For the third-person ones is that direct objects are just as you'd want them to be lo is him, la is her, li is them, le is them-female. Indirect objects are all gli except single women, who're le.

a or di?

 

Italian Verbs That Demand A

The proposition a can link a verb to an object such as a noun or a pronoun, or a verb in the infinitive. For example: to get used to the weather; to get used to doing something.

 

Connecting to a Noun or Pronoun With A

These verbs connect through a to someone or something.

Abituarsi a to get used to  Ci si abitua a tutto. One gets used to anything. 
Assistere a to sit in/watch Ho assistito alla sua prova.  I sat in on his exam. 
Assomigliare a  to resemble  Assomiglia a sua sorella.  He resembles his sister. 
Credere a to believe  Non credo alle tue bugie. I don't believe your lies. 
Dare fastidio a  to bother  Non dare fastidio al cane.  Don't bother the dog. 
Fare un regalo a to give a gift to Ho fatto un regalo alla maestra.  I gave a gift to the teacher. 
Fermarsi a  to stop at  Luca non si ferma a nulla.  Luca will stop at nothing. 
Giocare a to play Giochiamo a tennis.  Let's play tennis. 
Insegnare a  to teach Lucia ha insegnato a mia figlia.  Lucia taught my daughter. 
Interessarsi a  to take an interest in Mi sono interessato alla tua famiglia.  I took an interest in your family. 
Partecipare a  to participate in Orazio non partecipa alla gara. Orazio is not participating in the race. 
Pensare a  to think about  Franco non pensa mai a nessuno. Franco never thinks about anyone. 
Ricordare a  to remind  Ti ricordo che domani andiamo al mare.  I remind you that tomorrow we are going to the sea. 
Rinunciare a  to renounce/give up Devo rinunciare a questa casa.  I must give up this house. 
Servire a  to serve a purpose Non serve a nulla piangere.  It serves no purpose to cry. 
Spedire a  to send to Spedisco il pacco a Carola domani.  I will send the package to Carola tomorrow. 
Tenere a  to care about  Tengo molto alle mie fotografie.  I care very much about my pictures. 

Connecting to an Infinitive With A

These are verbs that use a to connect to another verb: to begin to do something.

Abituarsi a  to get used to  Mi sono abituata a fare da sola.  I have gotten used to doing things on my own. 
Affrettarsi a to hurry to  Affrettati a portare il cane fuori.  Hurry to take the dog out. 
Aiutare a to help to  Ti aiuto a portare la torta alla nonna.  I'll help you take the cake to Grandma's.
Cominciare a  to begin to Oggi comincio a leggere il libro.  Today I'll begin reading the book. 
Continuare a  to continue to  Marco continua a fare errori nei compiti.  Marco continues to make mistakes in his homework. 
Convincersi a  to convince oneself to  Mi sono convinta ad andare.  I have convinced myself to go. 
Costringere a  to force someone to  Non puoi costringermi a stare in casa.  You cannot force me to stay home. 
Decidersi a to make up one's mind to  Luca si è deciso a studiare di più. Luca has made up his mind to study more. 
Divertirsi a  to have fun doing sth I bambini si divertono a tirare la coda al gatto.  The children have fun pulling the cat's tail. 
Fermarsi a  to stop to  Mi sono fermata a fare benzina.  I stopped to get gas. 
Insegnare a  to teach to  La nonna ci ha insegnato a fare i biscotti.  Grandma taught us to make cookies. 
Invitare a  to invite to  Ti voglio invitare a leggere un brano del tuo libro.  I want to invite you to read an excerpt of your book. 
Mandare a  to send to  Ho mandato Paolo a prendere il pane.  I sent Paolo to get the bread. 
Mettersi a  to set out/begin to  Ci siamo messi a guardare un film.  We began watching a film. 
Passare a to stop by to  Passo a prendere i bambini tra un ora.  I'll stop by to get the children in an hour. 
Pensare a  to take care of  Ci penso io ad aggiustare tutto.  I'll take care of fixing everything. 
Prepararsi a  to prepare to  Ci prepariamo a partire.  We are preparing to leave. 
Provare a to try to  Proviamo a parlare con la mamma.  Let's try to talk to mom. 
Rimanere a  to remain/
stay to 
Rimani a mangiare? Are you staying to eat? 
Rinunciare a  to give up  Dopo la guerra tutti i bambini dovettero rinunciare ad andare a scuola.  After the war all the children had to give up going to school. 
Riprendere a  to get back to Luca vuole riprendere a studiare il francese.  Luca wants to get back to studying French. 
Riuscire a  to succeed at Voglio riuscire a fare questa torta complicata.  I want to succeed at making this complicated cake. 
Sbrigarsi a  to hurry to  Sbrigati a lavare i piatti.  Hurry up to wash the dishes. 
Servire a  to serve to  Questo carrello serve a portare i libri di sotto.  This cart serves to take the books downstairs. 
Tenere a  to care to/about  Tengo a precisare che la mia posizione non è cambiata. I care to point out that my position has not changed. 

Verbs of Movement That Want by ABeforeObject or Infinitive

Verbs of movement use a to connect with a noun or a verb, except for a few that want dapartire da (to leave from), venire/provenire da (to come from), allontanarsi da (to distance oneself from).

Andare a   to go to 1. Vado a casa. 2. Vado a visitare il museo.  1. I'm going home. 2. I'm going to visit the museum. 
Correre a  to run to 1. Corriamo a cena. 2. Corriamo a vedere il film. 1. We are running to dinner. 2. We are running to see a movie. 
Fermarsi a  to stop to 1. Ci fermiamo al mercato. 2. Ci fermiamo a mangiare.  1. We are stopping at the market. 2. We are stopping to eat. 
Passare a  to stop by to Passo a prendere il cane.  I'll stop by to get the dog. 
Restare a  to stay to 1. Restiamo a casa. 2. Restiamo a mangiare. 1. We are staying home. 2. We are staying to eat. 
Tornare a  to return to  1. Torniamo a scuola. 2. Torniamo a prenderti alle due.  1. We are returning to school. 2. We are returning to get you at two.
Venire a  to come to 1. Venite alla festa? 2. Venite a mangiare all'una.  1. Are you coming to the party? 2. You are coming to eat at one. 
 

Italian Verbs That Demand Di

The preposition di can link a verb to an object such as a noun or a pronoun, or to another verb in the infinitive (or both, depending on the meaning).

 

Connecting to a Noun or Pronoun With Di

Accontentarsi di  to make do/
be happy with 
Mi accontento della mia vita.  I am happy with my life. 
Approfittarsi di to take advantage of  Voglio approfittare dell'occasione.  I want to take advantage of the occasion. 
Avere bisogno di  to need  Ho bisogno di acqua.  I need water. 
Avere paura di to be afraid of  Ho paura di te.  I am scared of you. 
Dimenticarsi di  to forget  Dimenticati di lui.  Forget him. 
Fidarsi di  to trust  Fidati di lui.  Trust him. 
Innamorarsi di  to fall in love with  Mi sono innamorata di lui.  I fell in love with him. 
Interessarsi di  to take an interest in Il prof si interessa dei miei studi.  The teacher takes an interest in my studies. 
Lamentarsi di  to complain about  Non mi lamento di niente.  I am not complaining about anything. 
Meravigliarsi di  to be amazed by  Mi meraviglio della bellezza dei colori.  I am amazed by the beauty of the colors. 
Occuparsi di  to take care of  Giulia si occupa della casa.  Giulia takes care of the house. 
Ricordarsi di  to remember  Non mi sono ricordata della festa.  I did not remember the party. 
Ringraziare di  to thank for Ti ringrazio del regalo.  I thank you for the gift. 
Scusarsi di to apologize for  Mi scuso del disturbo.  I apologize for my tardiness. 
Vivere di  to live of  Vivo di poco.  I live of little. 
 

Connecting toan Infinitive With Di

Accettare di  to accept  Accetto di dover partire. I accept having to leave. 
Accontentarsi di   to make do/be happy with Ci accontentiamo di avere questa casa.  We make do with this house. 
Accorgersi di  to notice  Ci siamo accorti di essere in ritardo.   We noticed we were late. 
Ammettere di  to admit to Il ladro ha ammesso di avere rubato la macchina.  The thief admitted having stolen the car. 
Aspettare di  to wait for  Aspetto di vedere cosa succede.  I'll wait to see what happens. 
Augurarsi di  to wish for  Ti auguro di guarire presto.  I wish/hope you get better soon. 
Avere bisogno di to need  Ho bisogno di vedere un dottore.  I need to see a doctor. 
Cercare di  to try to Cerco di capirti.  I try to understand you. 
Chiedere di  to ask Ho chiesto di poter uscire.  I asked to be allowed out. 
Confessare di  to confess Il ladro ha confessato di avere rubato la macchina.  The thief confessed to stealing the car. 
Consigliare di  to advise Ti consiglio di aspettare.  I advise you to wait. 
Contare di to count on Contiamo di poter venire.  We are counting on coming. 
Credere di  to believe that Credo di avere capito.  I think I have understood. 
Dispiacere di  to be sorry for  Mi dispiace di averti ferito.  I am sorry to have hurt you. 
Dimenticarsi di  to forget to Vi siete dimenticati di portare il pane.  You forgot to bring the bread. 
Decidere di  to decide to Ho deciso di andare a Berlino.  I decided to go to Berlin. 
Dire di  to tell/say Ho detto a Carlo di venire.  I told Carlo to come. 
Evitare di  to avoid Ho evitato di andare addosso al muro.  I avoided hitting the wall. 
Fingere di  to pretend that Andrea ha finto di sentirsi male.  Andrea pretended to be sick. 
Finire di  to finish Abbiamo finito di studiare.  We finished studying. 
Lamentarsi di to complain about Non mi lamento di essere qui.  I don't complain for being here. 
Occuparsi di to take care of  Ci siamo occupati di aggiustare tutto.  We took care of fixing everything. 
Parere di  to seem to Mi pare di aver fatto il possibile.  It seems to me to have done what was possible. 
Pensare di  to think Penso di venire oggi.  I think I'll come today. 
Pregare di  to pray Prego di avere la pazienza per aspettare.  I pray to have the patience to wait. 
Proibire di  to forbid  Ti proibisco di uscire!  I forbid you to go out!
Promettere di  to promise Ti prometto di aspettare.  I promise to wait. 
Ricordarsi di  to remember Ti ricordi di prendere il vino?  Will you remember to get the wine? 
Ringraziare di to thank for Ti ringrazio di averci aiutati.  I thank you for having helped us. 
Scusarsi di to apologize for Mi scuso di averti offeso.  I apologize for having offended you. 
Sembrare di  to seem to  Il cane sembra voler uscire.  The dog seems to want to go out. 
Smettere di  to quit Ho smesso di fumare.  I quit smoking. 
Sperare di  to hope Spero di vederti.  I hope to see you. 
Suggerire di  to suggest Ti suggerisco di aspettare.  I advise you to wait. 
Tentare di  to attempt to Tentiamo di parlare con Vanessa.  We'll attempt to speak to Vanessa. 
 

Italian Verbs That Demand Su

These verbs use su to connect to a noun or pronoun:

 
Contare su to count on Conto su di te.  I am counting on you. 
Giurare su to swear on Giuro sulla mia vita.  I swear on my life. 
Leggere su to read in  L'ho letto sul giornale. I read it in the paper. 
Riflettere su to reflect on  Ho riflettutto sul problema.  I have reflected upon the problem. 
Soffermarsi su  to linger on  Il professore si è soffermato sulla sua teoria.  The teacher lingered on his theory. 
 

Italian Verbs That Want Per

These verbs use per to connect to a noun or pronoun or another verb.

 
Dispiacere per  to be sorry for  1. Mi dispiace per la tua sofferenza. 2. Mi dispiace per averti ferito.  1. I am sorry for your suffering. 2. I am sorry for having hurt you. 
Finire per to end up Luca è finito per andare a scuola.  Luca ended up going to school. 
Prepararsi per  to prepare for  Mi sono preparato per il tuo arrivo.  I prepared for your arrival.
Ringraziare per to thank for  1. Ti ringrazio per la tua comprensione. 2. Ti ringrazio per avermi capita.  1. I thank you for your understanding. 2. I thank you for having understood me. 
Scusarsi per to apologize for  1. Mi scuso per il disturbo. 2. Mi scuso per averti disturbato.  1. I am sorry for the bother. 2. I am sorry for having bothered you.
Servire per  to need for  Non mi serve il tavolo per insegnare.  I don't need the table to teach. 
 

Verbs Without Preposition Before Another Verb

Of course, you know that helping verbs doverepotere, and volere do not need any preposition to connect to another verb: Devo andare (I must go); non posso parlare (I cannot speak). There are others:

 
amare  to love  Amo parlare di te.  I love to talk about you. 
desiderare  to desire  Desidero vedere Roma.  I desire to see Rome. 
fare (fare) to make someone do sth Oggi ti faccio lavorare.  Today I am going to make you work. 
lasciare  to work Domani ti lascio dormire.  Tomorrow I will let you sleep. 
odiare to hate Odio lasciarti.  I hate to leave you. 
piacere  to like Mi piace guardare il paesaggio.  I like to look at the countryside. 
preferire to prefer Preferisco ballare che studiare.  I prefer to dance than to study. 
sapere  to know Maria sa parlare il francese.  Maria knows how to speak French.

Italian Reflexive Verbs

In Italian, some verbs are reflexive, meaning that the person doing the action does it to him or herself. Examples of this would be “mettersi” (to put a piece of clothing on), “chiamarsi” (literally “to call oneself”), and “sentirsi” (to feel). In the dictionary, you may notice that the infinitive has “si” on the end to show the verb is reflexive.

Reflexive verbs have their own pronouns:

io - mi, tu - ti, lui/lei/Lei - si, noi - ci, voi - vi, loro - si

These pronouns match the verb (“mi” with the “io” form, “ti” with “tu,” etc.) and are usually placed before the verb:

Mi metto la giacca. I put on my coat." (from https://www.duolingo.com/skill/it/Clitic-Pronouns-1/tips-and-notes)

German Sex

 Is that man OK and what happened to the pilot of that small plane?

 

Masculine (der):

  • Male persons and animals
  • days of the week, months of the year
  • seasons, and most weather elements 
  • car makes
  • monetary units
  • non-German river names
  • rocks and minerals
  • mountains and mountain ranges
  • and alcoholic and plant-based drinks

Feminine (die):

  • Female persons and animals
  • Rivers within Germany, Austria, Switzerland
  • Airplanes, motorcycles, ships
  • Numbers used as nouns
  • Trees, fruits, and flowers
  • Nouns formed from measurement or size adjectives

Neuter (das):

  • Young persons and baby animals
  • metals and chemical elements
  • names of continents, cities, provinces, and most countries
  • scientific units & measurements
  • letters of the alphabet and music notes
  • hotels, cafes, restaurants, and movie theaters
  • other parts of speech used as nouns (gerunds, colors, languages, English -ing forms).

Masculine: -ant, -ast, -ich, -ig, -ismus, -ling, -or, -us

Feminine: -a, -anz, -enz, -ei, -ie, -heit, -keit, -ik, -sion, -tion, -sis, -tät, -ung, -ur, schaft

Neuter: -chen, -lein, -icht, -il, -it, -ma, -ment, -tel, -tum, -um

Prepositions after verbs

Prepositions after verbs - Easy Learning Grammar Italian

  • English verbs are often followed by prepositions, for example, I’m relying on you, They’ll write to him, He was accused of murder.
  • The same is true of Italian verbs, which are often followed by prepositions.
  • entrare in to go into
Siamo entrati in aula. We went into the classroom.
  • As in English, Italian verbs can be followed by two prepositions.
parlare a qualcuno di qualcosa to talk to someone about something
  • With some verbs the Italian preposition may not be the one you would expect. For example, to in English is not always a in Italian, di is not always translated by of and so forth. The most important ones of these are shown in the examples on the following pages.
  • For more information on Verbs used with a preposition and the infinitive, see The Infinitive.
TipWhen you learn a new verb, check if there’s a preposition that goes with it, and learn that too.

1  Verbs followed by a

  • a is used with the indirect object of verbs such as dire (meaning to say) and dare (meaning to give).
dare qualcosa a qualcuno to give something to someone
dire qualcosa a qualcuno to say something to someone
mandare qualcosa a qualcuno to send something to someone
scrivere qualcosa a qualcuno to write something to someone
mostrare qualcosa a qualcuno to show something to someone
TipIn English you can say to give someone something. In Italian you cannot leave out the preposition – you have to use a with the person who is the indirect object.
  • Here are some verbs taking a in Italian when you might not expect it, since the English equivalent either does not have the preposition to or has no preposition at all:
arrivare a (una città) to arrive at (a town)
avvicinarsi a qualcuno to approach someone
chiedere qualcosa a qualcuno to ask someone for something
far male a qualcuno to hurt someone
giocare a qualcosa to play something (game/sport)
insegnare qualcosa a qualcuno to teach somebody something
partecipare a qualcosa to take part in something
rispondere a qualcuno to answer someone
rivolgersi a qualcuno to ask someone
somigliare a qualcuno to look like someone
permettere a qualcuno di fare qualcosa to allow someone to do something
proibire a qualcuno di fare qualcosa to forbid someone to do something
rubare qualcosa a qualcuno to steal something from someone
ubbidire a qualcuno to obey someone
 
Chiedi a Lidia come si chiama il suo cane. Ask Lidia what her dog’s called.
Quando arrivi a Londra? When do you arrive in London?
Parteciperai alla gara? Are you going to take part in the competition?
Non permette a Luca di uscire. She doesn’t allow Luca to go out.
  • For verbs such as piaceremancare and rincrescere, see Verbal idioms on Verbal Idioms.
TipRemember that you often have to use a preposition with an Italian verb when there is no preposition in English.

2  Verbs followed by di

  • Here are some verbs taking di in Italian when the English verb is not followed by of:
accorgersi di qualcosa to realize something
aver bisogno di qualcosa to need something
aver voglia di qualcosa to want something
discutere di qualcosa to discuss something
fidarsi di qualcosa/qualcuno to trust something/someone
intendersi di qualcosa to know about something
interessarsi di qualcosa to be interested in something
lamentarsi di qualcosa to complain about something
ricordarsi di qualcosa/qualcuno to remember something/someone
ridere di qualcosa/qualcuno to laugh at something/someone
stufarsi di qualcosa/qualcuno to get fed up with something/someone
stupirsi di qualcosa to be amazed by something
trattare di qualcosa to be about something
vantarsi di qualcosa to boast about something
 
Non mi fido di lui. I don’t trust him.
Ho bisogno di soldi. I need money.
Discutono spesso di politica. They often discuss politics.
Mi sono stufato di loro. I got fed up with them.

3  Verbs followed by da

  • Here are some verbs taking da in Italian when the English verb is not followed
    by from:
dipendere da qualcosa/qualcuno to depend on something/someone
giudicare da qualcosa to judge by something
scendere da qualcosa to get off something (bus, train, plane)
sporgersi da qualcosa to lean out of something
 
Dipende dal tempo. It depends on the weather.

4  Verbs that are followed by a preposition in English but not in Italian

  • Although the English verb is followed by a preposition, you don’t use a preposition with the following Italian verbs:
guardare qualcosa/qualcuno to look at something/someone
ascoltare qualcosa/qualcuno to listen to something/someone
cercare qualcosa/qualcuno to look for something/someone
chiedere qualcosa to ask for something
aspettare qualcosa/qualcuno to wait for something/someone
pagare qualcosa to pay for something
Guarda la sua faccia. Look at his face.
Mi stai ascoltando? Are you listening to me?
Sto cercando la chiave. I’m looking for my key.
Ha chiesto qualcosa da mangiare. He asked for something to eat.
Aspettami! Wait for me!
Ho già pagato il biglietto. I’ve already paid for my ticket.