How to Conjugate Essere (To Be) In Italian

When it comes to learning Italian, “essere” (to be) is the most essential verb you’ll encounter. Not only is it the most frequently used verb in the Italian language, but it’s also an auxiliary verb, like “avere” (to have). This means that “essere” is a key component for forming different verbal tenses when combined with other verbs.

 

In this article, we will explore the conjugation of “essere” in Italian, providing you with all the tenses and moods, along with practical examples to help you grasp its usage.

Present Tense

The present tense, known as “presente,” is the fundamental tense to learn in Italian. Here’s the conjugation of “essere” in the present tense:

Pronoun	Italian	English
Io	sono	I am
Tu	sei	You are
Egli/Ella (Lui/Lei)	è	He/She is
Noi	siamo	We are
Voi	siete	You are
Essi/Esse (Loro)	sono	They are

Example sentences:

• Sei la mia migliore amica. (You’re my best friend.)
• Marco è proprio un bel ragazzo. (Marco really is a good-looking guy.)

Present Perfect (Passato Prossimo)

The present perfect, or “passato prossimo,” is used to describe an action in the past with ongoing relevance. Here’s the conjugation of “essere” in the present perfect tense:

Pronoun	Italian	English
Io	sono stato/a	I have been
Tu	sei stato/a	You have been
Egli/Ella (Lui/Lei)	è stato/a	He/She has been
Noi	siamo stati/e	We have been
Voi	siete stati/e	You have been
Essi/Esse (Loro)	sono stati/e	They have been

Example sentences:

• Sono stato a Venezia tre volte. (I’ve been to Venice three times.)
• La Sig.ra Rossi è stata la mia insegnante. (Mrs. Rossi was my teacher.)

Imperfect (Imperfetto)

The imperfect tense, or “imperfetto,” is used to describe past actions or habits. Here’s the conjugation of “essere” in the imperfect tense:

Pronoun	Italian	English
Io	ero	I was
Tu	eri	You were
Egli/Ella (Lui/Lei)	era	He/She was
Noi	eravamo	We were
Voi	eravate	You were
Essi/Esse (Loro)	erano	They were

Example sentences:

• Da bambino ero molto vivace. (As a child, I was very lively.)
• Eravate a casa ieri? (Were you at home yesterday?)

Pluperfect (Trapassato Prossimo)

The pluperfect, or “trapassato prossimo,” is used to describe actions that occurred before a main past event. Here’s the conjugation of “essere” in the pluperfect tense:

Pronoun	Italian	English
Io	ero stato/a	I had been
Tu	eri stato/a	You had been
Egli/Ella (Lui/Lei)	era stato/a	He/She had been
Noi	eravamo stati/e	We had been
Voi	eravate stati/e	You had been
Essi/Esse (Loro)	erano stati/e	They had been

Example sentences:

• Ho visitato Venezia nel 2021, ma ci ero già stato nel 2003. (I visited Venice in 2021, but I had already been there in 2003.)
• I miei due cani erano stati maltrattati dal precedente padrone. (My two dogs had been mistreated by their previous owner.)

Past Remote (Passato Remoto)

The past remote, or “passato remoto,” is typically used in literature and less often in spoken language. Here’s the conjugation of “essere” in the past remote tense:

Pronoun	Italian	English
Io	fui	I was
Tu	fosti	You were
Egli/Ella (Lui/Lei)	fu	He/She was
Noi	fummo	We were
Voi	foste	You were
Essi/Esse (Loro)	furono	They were

Example sentences:

• Fu mio nonno a costruire questa casa. (It was my grandfather who built this house.)
• I Romani furono feroci conquistatori. (The Romans were ferocious conquerors.)

Future Tense (Futuro Semplice)

The future tense, or “futuro,” is used to express future actions or possibilities. Here’s the conjugation of “essere” in the future tense:

Pronoun	Italian	English
Io	sarò	I will be
Tu	sarai	You will be
Egli/Ella (Lui/Lei)	sarà	He/She will be
Noi	saremo	We will be
Voi	sarete	You will be
Essi/Esse (Loro)	saranno	They will be

Example sentences:

• Sarò sempre al tuo fianco. (I’ll always be on your side.)
• Laura sarà alla tua festa? (Will Laura be at your party?)

Future Perfect (Futuro Anteriore)

The future perfect, or “futuro anteriore,” is used to describe actions that will be completed before a future point in time. Here’s the conjugation of “essere” in the future perfect tense:

Pronoun	Italian	English
Io	sarò stato/a	I will have been
Tu	sarai stato/a	You will have been
Egli/Ella (Lui/Lei)	sarà stato/a	He/She will have been
Noi	saremo stati/e	We will have been
Voi	sarete stati/e	You will have been
Essi/Esse (Loro)	saranno stati/e	They will have been

Example sentences:

• Quando sarai stato a Roma, saprai quanto è bella. (When you’ve been in Rome, you’ll know how beautiful it is.)
• Mario non era alla festa, sarà stato impegnato. (Mario wasn’t at the party, he must have been busy.)

Conditional Tense (Condizionale)

The conditional tense is used to express actions that depend on certain conditions or desires. It has both a present and past tense.

Present Conditional

The present conditional, or “condizionale presente,” is used to express hypothetical or polite requests. Here’s the conjugation of “essere” in the present conditional:

Pronoun	Italian	English
Io	sarei	I would be
Tu	saresti	You would be
Egli/Ella (Lui/Lei)	sarebbe	He/She would be
Noi	saremmo	We would be
Voi	sareste	You would be
Essi/Esse (Loro)	sarebbero	They would be

Example sentences:

• Lo sarei disponibile, se lei me lo chiedesse. (I would be available if she asked me.)
• Sarebbero davvero una bella coppia. (They would really be a nice couple.)

Past Conditional

The past conditional, or “condizionale passato,” is used to express hypothetical events in the past. Here’s the conjugation of “essere” in the past conditional:

Pronoun	Italian	English
Io	sarei stato/a	I would have been
Tu	saresti stato/a	You would have been
Egli/Ella (Lui/Lei)	sarebbe stato/a	He/She would have been
Noi	saremmo stati/e	We would have been
Voi	sareste stati/e	You would have been
Essi/Esse (Loro)	sarebbero stati/e	They would have been

Example sentences:

• Saresti stata tanto buona con me, se non avessi conosciuto mia madre? (Would you have been so good to me if you hadn’t met my mother?)
• Saremmo stati meglio in una stanza più grande. (We would have been better in a bigger room.)

Subjunctive Mood (Congiuntivo)

The subjunctive mood, or “congiuntivo,” is used to express doubt, uncertainty, possibility, invitations, or hypotheses. It includes several tenses.

Present Subjunctive

The present subjunctive is used when the main sentence is in the present tense.

Pronoun	Italian	English
Che io	sia	–
Che tu	sia	–
Che egli/ella (Lui/Lei)	sia	–
Che noi	siamo	–
Che voi	siate	–
Che essi/esse (Loro)	siano	–

Example sentences:

• Sono felice che tu sia qui. (I’m happy you’re here.)
• Spero che siate felici insieme. (I hope you’re happy together.)

Past Subjunctive

The past subjunctive is used after a main sentence expressing insecurity or a hypothesis in the past.

Pronoun	Italian	English
Che io	sia stato/a	–
Che tu	sia stato/a	–
Che egli/ella (Lui/Lei)	sia stata	–
Che noi	siamo stati/e	–
Che voi	siate stati/e	–
Che essi/esse (Loro)	siano stati/e	–

Example sentences:

• È incredibile che sia stato tanto stupido. (I can’t believe that I’ve been that stupid.)
• Mia mamma è contenta che siamo stati con lei tutto il weekend. (My mother is happy that we’ve been with her all weekend.)

Imperfect Subjunctive

The imperfect subjunctive is used after a main sentence expressing insecurity or a hypothesis in the past.

Pronoun	Italian	English
Che io	fossi	–
Che tu	fossi	–
Che egli/ella (Lui/Lei)	fosse	–
Che noi	fossimo	–
Che voi	foste	–
Che essi/esse (Loro)	fossero	–

Example sentences:

• Non credevo che Palermo fosse così bella. (I didn’t think Palermo was so beautiful.)
• Pensavate che fossi stupido? (Did you think I was stupid?)

Past Perfect Subjunctive

The past perfect subjunctive is used to describe a fact that might have happened before a past action.

Pronoun	Italian	English
Che io	fossi stato/a	–
Che tu	fossi stato/a	–
Che egli/ella (Lui/Lei)	fosse stato/a	–
Che noi	fossimo stati/e	–
Che voi	foste stati/e	–
Che essi/esse (Loro)	fossero stati/e	–

Example sentences:

• Se fossi stato più attento, non sarei caduto. (If I had been more careful, I wouldn’t have fallen.)
• Se voi foste stati con lei, si sarebbe divertita di più. (If you had been with her, she would have had more fun.)

Imperative Mood (Imperativo)

The imperative mood is used to give direct commands or make requests.

Pronoun	Italian	English
Tu	sii	Be!
Voi	siate	Be!

Example sentences:

• Sii felice! (Be happy!)
• Siate fieri di voi! (Be proud of yourselves!)

Gerund

The gerund is used to express ongoing actions.

Tense	Italian	English
Present	essendo	Being
Past	essendo stato/a	Having been

Example sentences:

• Essendo domenica, i negozi sono chiusi. (Being it Sunday, the shops are closed.)
• Essendo stato due anni in Francia, parlo il francese. (Having been two years in France, I speak French.)

Learning to conjugate “essere” in Italian is a crucial step in mastering the language. With these conjugations and examples, you can confidently navigate different tenses and moods to express yourself accurately in various situations.

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