Italian verbs for beginners: essere, avere and andare
Three verbs carry a huge share of everyday Italian: essere (to be), avere (to have) and andare (to go). They are irregular, so you have to learn them by heart. This guide gives you the full tables for the present, the past and the future, with English and audio.
First, how to read the tables
Each table lists the six persons: io (I), tu (you), lui/lei (he/she), noi (we), voi (you all) and loro (they). Italian often leaves out the subject pronoun (sono stanco, not io sono stanco), because the verb ending already tells you who is speaking. Press the speaker to hear a form.
Memvark uses four tenses, which we label in plain English: Now (presente), Past, finished (passato prossimo), Past, ongoing (imperfetto) and Future (futuro).
Essere – to be
The most important Italian verb. You use it for identity, origin, description, and as a helper verb in the past tense.
Now (presente)
What is true now, and what you do regularly.
| io | sono | I am |
| tu | sei | you are |
| lui/lei | è | he/she is |
| noi | siamo | we are |
| voi | siete | you (all) are |
| loro | sono | they are |
Past, finished (passato prossimo)
Something that happened and is finished.
| io | sono stato/a | I was |
| tu | sei stato/a | you were |
| lui/lei | è stato/a | he/she was |
| noi | siamo stati/e | we were |
| voi | siete stati/e | you (all) were |
| loro | sono stati/e | they were |
Past, ongoing (imperfetto)
What used to happen, or was happening.
| io | ero | I used to be |
| tu | eri | you used to be |
| lui/lei | era | he/she used to be |
| noi | eravamo | we used to be |
| voi | eravate | you (all) used to be |
| loro | erano | they used to be |
Future (futuro)
What will happen.
| io | sarò | I will be |
| tu | sarai | you will be |
| lui/lei | sarà | he/she will be |
| noi | saremo | we will be |
| voi | sarete | you (all) will be |
| loro | saranno | they will be |
Examples: Sono Nojus. (I am Nojus.) · Sono di Vilnius. (I am from Vilnius.) · Lei è stanca. (She is tired.) · Dove sei? (Where are you?) · Siamo a casa. (We are at home.) · Ieri sono stato a Roma. (Yesterday I was in Rome. Said by a man; a woman says sono stata.)
Note on the past tense: with essere the ending of the participle matches the subject: stato (man), stata (woman), stati (several men or mixed), state (several women). That is the “(m) / (f)” you see in Memvark’s tables.
Avere – to have
Used for possession, and in many expressions where English uses “to be”: ho fame (I am hungry), literally “I have hunger”.
Now (presente)
What is true now, and what you do regularly.
| io | ho | I have |
| tu | hai | you have |
| lui/lei | ha | he/she has |
| noi | abbiamo | we have |
| voi | avete | you (all) have |
| loro | hanno | they have |
Past, finished (passato prossimo)
Something that happened and is finished.
| io | ho avuto | I had |
| tu | hai avuto | you had |
| lui/lei | ha avuto | he/she had |
| noi | abbiamo avuto | we had |
| voi | avete avuto | you (all) had |
| loro | hanno avuto | they had |
Past, ongoing (imperfetto)
What used to happen, or was happening.
| io | avevo | I used to have |
| tu | avevi | you used to have |
| lui/lei | aveva | he/she used to have |
| noi | avevamo | we used to have |
| voi | avevate | you (all) used to have |
| loro | avevano | they used to have |
Future (futuro)
What will happen.
| io | avrò | I will have |
| tu | avrai | you will have |
| lui/lei | avrà | he/she will have |
| noi | avremo | we will have |
| voi | avrete | you (all) will have |
| loro | avranno | they will have |
Examples: Ho una sorella. (I have a sister.) · Hai tempo? (Do you have time?) · Abbiamo una casa. (We have a house.) · Hanno due figli. (They have two children.) · Ho avuto un problema. (I had a problem.)
Expressions with avere
- avere fame – to be hungry
- avere sete – to be thirsty
- avere caldo / freddo – to be hot / cold
- avere sonno – to be sleepy
- avere paura – to be afraid
- avere fretta – to be in a hurry
- avere ragione – to be right
- avere trent’anni – to be thirty years old
Tip: the h in ho, hai, ha, hanno is silent. Say it as o, ai, a, anno.
Andare – to go
Irregular in the present (vado, vai, va, andiamo, andate, vanno), but regular in the imperfect and the future endings.
Now (presente)
What is true now, and what you do regularly.
| io | vado | I go |
| tu | vai | you go |
| lui/lei | va | he/she goes |
| noi | andiamo | we go |
| voi | andate | you (all) go |
| loro | vanno | they go |
Past, finished (passato prossimo)
Something that happened and is finished.
| io | sono andato/a | I went |
| tu | sei andato/a | you went |
| lui/lei | è andato/a | he/she went |
| noi | siamo andati/e | we went |
| voi | siete andati/e | you (all) went |
| loro | sono andati/e | they went |
Past, ongoing (imperfetto)
What used to happen, or was happening.
| io | andavo | I was going |
| tu | andavi | you were going |
| lui/lei | andava | he/she was going |
| noi | andavamo | we were going |
| voi | andavate | you (all) were going |
| loro | andavano | they were going |
Future (futuro)
What will happen.
| io | andrò | I will go |
| tu | andrai | you will go |
| lui/lei | andrà | he/she will go |
| noi | andremo | we will go |
| voi | andrete | you (all) will go |
| loro | andranno | they will go |
Examples: Vado a Roma. (I am going to Rome.) · Vai a scuola? (Do you go to school?) · Andiamo al mare. (We are going to the seaside.) · Ieri siamo andati al cinema. (Yesterday we went to the cinema.) · Da bambino andavo al mare ogni estate. (As a child I used to go to the seaside every summer.) · Domani andrò a Napoli. (Tomorrow I will go to Naples.)
Useful phrases: Come va? (How is it going?) · Va bene. (Okay.) · Andiamo! (Let’s go!)
Past tense reminder: andare takes essere, so you say sono andato (man) or sono andata (woman), not ho andato.
How to practise these verbs
- Start with the present tense only. Say each form aloud with the audio.
- Cover the Italian column and try to produce each form from the English.
- Add the past tense after a few days, then the future.
- Practise one short sentence for each verb every day.
Memvark’s Verbs tab lets you do exactly this: pick a verb, choose one tense at a time, hear every form, then test yourself with a practice mode. The first three verbs (essere, avere and fare) are free.
Frequently asked questions
Why are essere and avere irregular?
They are among the oldest and most frequent verbs in the language, and frequent verbs often keep irregular forms. The practical answer is to memorise them, which is why they are worth learning first.
When do I use essere and when avere in the past?
Most verbs take avere (ho mangiato). Verbs of movement and change, such as andare, venire and arrivare, take essere, and so do reflexive verbs.
Is the imperfect translated as “was going”?
Often, yes, or as “used to go”. The English in the tables is a guide, because the imperfect has several uses.