In this lesson, we’re going to learn how to conjugate Italian verbs in the present tense and the verb essere – to be. Also, we will learn question words (what, who, when, etc.), some very often used words, and then try to talk about ourselves by using all the words that we’re going to learn in this lesson.
There are verbs that end in –ARE, –ERE, –IRE in the Italian language. And they have a slight difference in conjugation. Let’s conjugate the three Italian verbs: Parlare – to speak, Dormire – to sleep, Rispondere – to answer
Parlare – to speak
| Io parlo | I speak |
| Tu parli | You speak |
| Lui parla | He speaks |
| Lei parla | She speaks |
| Lei parla | You (formal) speak |
| Noi parliamo | We speak |
| Voi parlate | You speak |
| Loro parlano | They speak |
And the verbs ending on -ERE and -IRE will have slightly different endings (-e for lui/lei, -ite for voi, -ono for loro)
Dormire – to sleep
| Io dormo | I sleep |
| Tu dormi | You sleep |
| Lui dorme | He sleeps |
| Lei dorme | She sleeps |
| Lei dorme | You (formal) sleep |
| Noi dormiamo | We sleep |
| Voi dormite | You sleep |
| Loro dormono | They sleep |
Rispondere – to answer
| Io rispondo | I answer |
| Tu rispondi | You answer |
| Lui risponde | He answers |
| Lei risponde | She answers |
| Lei risponde | You answer (formal) |
| Noi rispondiamo | We answer |
| Voi rispondite | You answer |
| Loro rispondono | They answer |
Conjugate the following verbs:
Abitare – to live
Lavorare – to work
Imparare – to learn
Amare – to love
Cercare – to look for/to search
Trovare – to find
Prendere – to take
Giocare – to play
Mangiare – to eat
Pensare – to think
Viaggiare – to travel
In order to form a negation, one must add NON before a verb:
Io non parlo – I don’t speak
Liu non lavora – He doesn’t work
Lei non cerca – She doesn’t search
Noi non troviamo – We don’t find
Voi non giocate – You don’t play
Loro non mangiano – They don’t play
The verb ESSERE – to be (irregular verb)
| Io sono | I am |
| Tu sei | You are |
| Lui è | He is |
| Lei è | She is |
| Lei è | You are (formal) |
| Noi siamo | We are |
| Voi siete | You are |
| Loro sono | They are |
Before we start practicing, let’s learn the question words:
Che? / Che Cosa? – what?
Chi? – Who?
Quando? – When?
Dove? – Where?
Quanto? – How much?
Perchè? – why?
Start talking about yourself, and whatever you can using the words you’ve just learned
Io sono di Stati Uniti d’America. Io abito e lavoro a Nuova York – I am from United States of America. I live and work in New York
Noi siamo di Roma ma adesso abitiamo a Firenze – We are from Rome but now we live in Florence
Eduardo e Laura sono di Piza ma lavorano a Milano – Eduardo and Laura are from Piza but they work in Milan
Che cosa pensi di questo? – What do you think about it?
Dove Lei abita? – Where do You live?
Perchè non impair l’Italiano? – Why don’t you learn Italian?
Che cosa mangi? – What do you eat?
Dove tu viaggi a Italia quando impari l’Italiano? – Where do you travel when you learn Italian?
Lei è di Germania ma abita a Italia – She is from Germany but lives in Italy