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The Italian present tense

The single most important tense in Italian, and the first one to master. Here's what you need.

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How regular verbs work

Italian verbs fall into three families based on their infinitive ending: -are, -ere, -ire. In the present tense, drop the ending and add the personal endings.

parlare (to speak) →︎ parlo, parli, parla, parliamo, parlate, parlano
prendere (to take) →︎ prendo, prendi, prende, prendiamo, prendete, prendono
dormire (to sleep) →︎ dormo, dormi, dorme, dormiamo, dormite, dormono

Some -ire verbs add "isc" in the singular and 3rd plural: capire (to understand) →︎ capisco, capisci, capisce, capiamo, capite, capiscono.

The essential irregulars

You'll use these constantly from day one:

essere (to be): sono, sei, è, siamo, siete, sono
avere (to have): ho, hai, ha, abbiamo, avete, hanno
andare (to go): vado, vai, va, andiamo, andate, vanno
fare (to do/make): faccio, fai, fa, facciamo, fate, fanno
venire (to come): vengo, vieni, viene, veniamo, venite, vengono

Memorise these six and you can build most everyday sentences.

When to use it

The Italian present covers three English tenses:

Present simple: "I speak Italian" →︎ Parlo italiano
Present continuous: "I'm speaking Italian" →︎ Parlo italiano (also: Sto parlando italiano)
Near future: "I'm leaving tomorrow" →︎ Parto domani