Imperfetto: The Italian Imperfect Tense
The Italian imperfetto (imperfect) tense can express actions that lasted an indefinite amount of time in the past, habitual actions in the past, or expressions of age, time, and weather in the past. Because of its wide range of uses, the imperfetto appears much more frequently in Italian than the imperfect does in English.
Conjugating the Imperfetto
The infinitives of regular Italian verbs end in either –ARE, –ERE, or –IRE. These are referred to as first, second, and third conjugation verbs, respectively. Similar to the present tense, you conjugate the imperfetto by removing the infinitive ending and replacing it with the appropriate subject pronoun ending.
First Conjugation: –ARE Verbs
| Subject Pronoun | Ending
|
Lavorare
to work |
Translation |
| io | -avo | lavoravo | I was working
|
| tu | -avi | lavoravi | you were working
|
| lui/lei | -ava | lavorava | he/she/it was working
|
| noi | -avamo | lavoravamo | we were working
|
| voi | -avate | lavoravate | of you were working
|
| loro | -avano | lavoravano | they were working
|
Second Conjugation: –ERE Verbs
| Subject Pronoun | Ending
|
Credere
to believe |
Translation |
| io | -evo | credevo
|
I believed |
| tu | -evi | credevi
|
you believed |
| lui/lei | -eva | credeva
|
he/she/it believed |
| noi | -evamo | credevamo
|
we believed |
| voi | -evate | credevate
|
all of you believed |
| loro | -evano | credevano
|
they believed |
Third Conjugation: –IRE Verb Conjugations
| Subject Pronoun | Ending
|
Partire
to leave |
Translation |
| io | -ivo | partivo | I was leaving
|
| tu | -ivi | partivi | you were leaving
|
| lui/lei | -iva | partiva | he/she/it was leaving
|
| noi | -ivamo | partivamo | we were leaving
|
| voi | -ivate | partivate | all of you were leaving
|
| loro | -ivano | partivano | they were leaving
|
The Imperfetto of Avere and Essere
The auxiliary verbs avere (to have, to own, or to wear) and essere (to be) are used in many grammatical constructions, including compound tenses. The trapassato prossimo (past perfect), for example, is formed by combining the imperfetto of avere or essere with the past participle of the main verb. As with all tenses, avere and essere are irregular in the imperfetto.
| Subject Pronoun | Avere
to have |
Essere
to be |
| io | avevo | ero
|
| tu | avevi | eri
|
| lui/lei | aveva | era
|
| noi | avevamo | eravamo
|
| voi | avevate | eravate
|
| loro | avevano | erano
|
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