- Passato Prossimo (Past Perfect)
- Imperfetto (Imperfect)
Passato Prossimo
Passato Prossimo or past perfect is the most widely used past tense in Italian. It corresponds with both the simple past (“I did”) and the present perfect (“I have done”) in English.Passato prossimo indicates an action that happened in the past but is still relevant. It also signals that the action has started and finished by the time of speaking.
Time adjectives that signal the passato prossimo:
- Ieri (yesterday)
- Ieri sera (last night)
- Recentemente (recently)
- Due ore fa (two hours ago)
- La settimana scorsa (last week)
- Un mese fa (a month ago)
- Un anno fa (a year ago)
How to Form the Passato Prossimo
The passato prossimo is a compound tense made up of two parts: an auxiliary verb (either essere or avere) and a past participle.Here’s an example:
Ho visto. (I saw / I have seen.)
In the case above, ho is the auxiliary conjugated for I, while visto is the past participle of vedere (to see).
The Auxillary
The auxilary verb can be either formed with avere or essere.| Pronoun | Verb | English Translation |
|---|---|---|
| (Io) | ho | I have |
| (Tu) | hai | You have (informal) |
| (Lui/Lei) | ha | He/She has |
| (Noi) | abbiamo | We have |
| (Voi) | avete | You have (plural / informal) |
| (Loro) | hanno | They have |
Past Participle
To form the past participle take off the last three letters of any Italian verb ending in (-are, -ere or -ire) and replace it with the following endings: -ato, -uto or -ito.Regular Verbs That Take Avere
- mangiare -> mangiato (to eat)
- parlare -> parlato (to speak)
- dormire -> dormito (to sleep)
- sentire -> sentito (to hear)
Irregular Verbs That Take Avere
- vedere -> visto (to see)
- fare -> fatto (to do/make)
- dire -> detto (to say)
- leggere -> letto (to read)
With the Auxiliary Avere
The form of the auxiliary used changes according to the subject doing the action. The past participle remains the same regardless of the subject when using the auxiliary avere. Here are some examples:- Ho mangiato una mela. (I ate an apple)
- Che cosa hai mangiato? (What did you eat?)
- Ha mangiato la pasta. (She ate the pasta.)
- Abbiamo mangiato al ristorante. (We ate at the restaurant)
- Quando avete mangiato? (When did you all eat?)
- Sara e Andrea hanno mangiato a casa. (Sara and Andrea ate at home.)
With the Auxiliary Essere
While most Italian verbs take avere as the auxiliary verb there are exceptions to this rule. Verbs related to movement or a state of being often take essere instead. The formula to conjugate is the same: auxiliary (conjugated in the present tense of essere) + the past participle of the verb.| Pronoun | Verb | English Translation |
|---|---|---|
| (Io) | sono | I am |
| (Tu) | sei | You are (informal) |
| (Lui/Lei) | è | He/She is |
| (Noi) | siamo | We are |
| (Voi) | siete | You are (plural / informal) |
| (Loro) | sono | They are |
Regular Verbs That Take Essere
- andare -> andato (to go)
- cadere -> caduto (to fall)
- uscire -> uscito (to go out)
Irregular Verbs That Take Essere
- essere -> stato (to be)
- nascere -> nato (to be born)
- scendere -> sceso (to go down)
- venire -> venuto (to come)
Here is a list of common verbs that use the auxiliary essere:
- andare (to go)
- arrivare (to arrive)
- diventare (to become)
- essere (to be)
- entrare (to enter)
- nascere (to be born)
- partire (to leave for)
- salire (to go up) (when used intransitively)
- scendere (to go down) (when used intransitively)
- stare (to stay)
- tornare (to return)
- uscire (to go out/to leave)
- venire (to come)
Rule with Essere
If a past tense verb takes essere as its auxiliary, no matter whether it’s regular or irregular, it must agree in number (plural or singular) and gender (masculine or feminine) of the subject.- Sono stato = (I have been, masculine singular)
- Sono stata = (I have been, feminine singular)
- Siamo stati = (We have been, masculine plural )
- Siamo state = (We have been, feminine plural )
Here are some example sentences that demonstrate this rule:
- Io sono stato in Italia. (I have been to Italy.) (masc singular)
- Maria è stata in Italia. (Maria has been to Italy.) (fem singular)
- Siete andati in questo ristorante? (Have you gone to this restaurant?)(all male group or mixed gender group)
- Siete venuti in piscina. (You have come to the pool.) (all male group or mixed gender group)
- Le ragazze sono andate a scuola a piedi. (The girls went to school on foot.) (all female group)
Source: Summarized from Busuu: Master the Passato Prossimo in Italian
Quick Rule Recap - Passato Prossimo with "Essere"
When using essere as the auxiliary verb in passato prossimo, the past participle must agree with the subject in gender and number.
| Subject | Agreement Example |
|---|---|
| io (feminine) | sono andata |
| io (masculine) | sono andato |
| noi (feminine) | siamo andate |
| noi (masculine/mixed) | siamo andati |
| tu (masculine) | sei arrivato |
| tu (feminine) | sei arrivata |
| loro (masculine) | sono partiti |
| loro (feminine) | sono partite |
Note: The past participle must agree in gender and number, meaning you must use the masculine singular, feminine singular, masculine plural, or feminine plural form depending on the subject.
Passato Prossimo with Essere – Fill in the Blanks
Fill in the blanks with the correct form of the verb in passato prossimo. Make sure to adjust for gender and number!
Fill in each blank with the correct form of the verb in passato prossimo. Adjust for the subject's gender and number.
Answer Key - Passato Prossimo with Essere
Here are the correct answers for the Passato Prossimo quiz:
1. (Andare – tu, femmina) Tu sei andata al negozio ieri.
2. (Partire – io, maschio) Io sono partito presto questa mattina.
3. (Arrivare – noi, femmine) Noi siamo arrivate a casa dopo le 10.
4. (Venire – Luca) Luca è venuto alla festa ieri sera.
5. (Uscire – voi, maschi) Voi siete usciti con gli amici ieri.
6. (Scendere – Maria) Maria è scesa dalle scale velocemente.
7. (Tornare – noi, misto) Noi siamo tornati a casa dopo la partita.
8. (Cadere – io, femmina) Io sono caduta dalla bicicletta ieri.
9. (Restare – le ragazze) Le ragazze sono restate in città tutto il weekend.
10. (Diventare – tu, maschio) Tu sei diventato molto bravo in italiano!
Remember: The past participle in passato prossimo with "essere" agrees in gender and number with the subject. "Maria went down the stairs quickly." "Scendere" is an intransitive verb (it doesn’t take a direct object).
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