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What is the most important grammar to know in Italian

Italian

asked by
bUSTA
published
over 4 years ago
Hi! I would like to know what is the most important grammar to know above everything else!
1 answer
answered by
Davi
published
over 4 years ago

Ciao! 😀 let me try to give you an overview of the most important grammar without making this answer too long.

Italian is a SVO language. Subject, Verb and Object

Play audio (Io) parlo italiano I speak Italian

Personal pronouns are omitted most of the time. Parlo italiano, without "Io" is correct.

The negative form is formed with "Non" before the verb.

Play audio Non parlo italiano I don't speak Italian

"In" is used for big places like a country or continent, "a" is used for smaller ones ranging from a "house" to a "city". There are exceptions!

Play audio A Roma In Rome

Play audio In Italia In Italy

The feminine article (noun ending with "a") = LA

Play audio La casa The house

The masculine article (noun ending with "o") = IL

Play audio Il libro The book


Present simple Present perfect Imperfect
(Io) parlo(Io) ho parlato(Io) parlavo
(Tu) parli(Tu) hai parlato(Tu) parlavi
(Lui/Lei) parla(Lui/Lei) ha parlato(Lui/Lei) parlava
(Noi) parliamo(Noi) abbiamo parlato(Noi) parlavamo
(Voi) parlate(Voi) avete parlato(Voi) parlavate
(Loro) parlano(Loro) hanno parlato(Loro) parlavano

The present simple

In Italian the present simple can be used both for the present and for the future.

Play audio Penso a cosa posso fare I think about what I can do

Play audio Domani lo faccio. Tomorrow I'll do it.

The present perfect

In Italian the present perfect is used for expressing the past in most cases as long as the action is not a continuous one.

Play audio Ho studiato all'università a Roma I've studied at university in Rome / I studied at university in Rome

Another important thing to keep in mind is that contrary to English, we don't use the verb "to have" (avere) in all cases. When it comes to a movement verb we use the verb "to be" (essere)

Play audio Sono andato in Italia I've gone to Italy / I went to Italy

Play audio Ieri ho studiato molto Yesterday I've studied a lot / Yesterday I studied a lot

The imperfect

In Italian the imperfect form is similar to the past continuous. It's used for actions in the past that lasted over time.

Play audio Parlavo ma nessuno mi ascoltava I was speaking but no one was listening to me

Play audio Stavo pensando di uscire I was thinking about going out

Feel free to practice even more with the exercises below!

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