My Italian

Posts Tagged ‘italian verbs’

Learn some basic verbs in Italian

Here are some basic verbs and examples on how to use them in a simple sentence:

Click here for grammar rules

Learn how to express the verb ‘can’ in Italian

‘Can’ seems a very simple word in English, but it actually has a number of different meanings which are expressed differently in Italian:
Permission:
use the verb potere
posso aprire la finestra? (can I open the window?)
lei non puo’ venire (she can’t come)
loro possono arrivare alle 8 (they can arrive at 8pm)
Ability
use the verb sapere (to [...]

Learn how to use the verb ‘go’ in Italian

The verb andare (to go) is probably one of the most common you will use when speaking. It is an irregular verb, but it is definitely worth learning how to conjugate it in different tenses:
Present simple:  (io) vado, (tu) vai, (lui/lei) va, (noi) andiamo, (voi) andate, (loro) vanno
Present continuous: verb stare + andando, eg sto [...]

Learn how to use the present simple in Italian

The Italian present simple is quite a handy tense to know as not only is it used in the same way as the English tense, but it can also substitute the near future and the present continuous.
eg. I make the tea (faccio il te)
I’ll make the tea (faccio il te)
I’m making the tea (faccio il [...]

Learn how to express the verb ‘to be’ in Italian

Where English uses a universal verb ‘to be’, Italian has two verbs: essere and stare. It also uses the verb avere (have) in some cases.
Essere is used as a main verb to express simple ideas such as ‘the grass is green’- ‘L’erba è verde’ or ‘I’m Italian’ - sono italiano.
It is also used as an [...]