Aiutare Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Italian

aiutare — to help — is one of the verbs you will use every day in Italian. It is a non-reflexive, regular -are verb, and it comes up in conversation, at work and at home. It means to help someone, and it is completely regular. It takes a direct object in Italian — aiuto Maria — and it is the verb behind offers of help in shops, offices and everyday conversation. On this page you will find aiutare in real sentences, grouped by meaning and tense, two short texts that show it in context, the mistakes learners actually make with it, and a ten-question quiz with explained answers. Start with the examples, say them aloud, and then test yourself. The full conjugation tables are on the aiutare conjugation page, and the deep dive into its most practised tense is on the aiutare present tense page.

Example sentences with aiutare

In the present tense

  • “Io aiuto Maria ogni giorno.” — “I help Maria”
  • “Tu aiuti Maria ogni giorno.” — “You help Maria”
  • “Lui aiuta Maria ogni giorno.” — “He helps Maria”
  • “Noi aiutiamo Maria ogni giorno.” — “We help Maria”
  • “Voi aiutate Maria ogni giorno.” — “You help Maria”
  • “Loro aiutano Maria ogni giorno.” — “They help Maria”

In the passato prossimo

  • “Io ho aiutato Maria questa settimana.” — “I have helped Maria”
  • “Tu hai aiutato Maria questa settimana.” — “You have helped Maria”
  • “Lui ha aiutato Maria questa settimana.” — “He has helped Maria”
  • “Noi abbiamo aiutato Maria questa settimana.” — “We have helped Maria”
  • “Voi avete aiutato Maria questa settimana.” — “You have helped Maria”
  • “Loro hanno aiutato Maria questa settimana.” — “They have helped Maria”

In other tenses

The same verb in the imperfect, the future, the conditional, the present subjunctive and the imperative — the tenses that complete the picture. All forms come from the verified tables.

  • “Io aiutavo Maria una volta.” — “I used to help Maria”
  • “Tu aiuterai Maria domani.” — “You will help Maria”
  • “Lui aiuterebbe Maria un giorno.” — “He would help Maria”
  • “È importante che noi aiutiamo Maria.” — “It is important that we help Maria”
  • “Aiuta Maria!” — “Help Maria!”

How aiutare is used

The first thing to know about aiutare is its core meaning: to help. It means to help someone, and it is completely regular. It takes a direct object in Italian — aiuto Maria — and it is the verb behind offers of help in shops, offices and everyday conversation. In everyday speech it appears most often in the present and the passato prossimo, the two tenses on this page, because most of what we say is either what we do every day or what we have just done. Learn those two tenses first and the rest of the conjugation becomes a matter of adding forms one at a time. The second thing to know is the company aiutare keeps. The present io form is aiuto, and it pairs naturally with the time words ogni giorno and sempre for habits, and with adesso for what is happening right now. The passato prossimo io form is ho aiutato, and it pairs with ieri and questa settimana for finished actions. When you learn a verb form, learn its time words with it, and choosing the tense becomes automatic. The third thing to know is what aiutare does not do. It never appears as a bare infinitive after a subject pronoun — after io you need aiuto, never aiutare. It never takes the wrong auxiliary in the perfect tenses: the passato prossimo is ho aiutato, built with avere, and the other auxiliary does not belong here. And its participle aiutato is given in the masculine singular form in the tables, with agreement depending on the sentence, not on the verb table.

Aiutare in context

Io aiuto Maria ogni giorno. Tu aiuti Maria ogni giorno. Lui aiuta Maria ogni giorno. Noi aiutiamo Maria ogni giorno. That is a normal part of the routine, and that is why the present of aiutare is the first form worth learning. Each sentence uses a different person, so read them aloud and notice how the form changes — aiuto, aiuti, aiuta, aiutiamo — while the meaning stays the same: to help. Io ho aiutato Maria questa settimana. Tu hai aiutato Maria questa settimana. Lui ha aiutato Maria questa settimana. Noi abbiamo aiutato Maria questa settimana. That was a normal day, but it is exactly on days like this that the passato prossimo of aiutare appears constantly: a finished action, a precise moment, and the story goes on. Compare these sentences with the present ones above: the verb changes tense, but the basic meaning — to help — does not change. That is the difference between a habit and a finished event.

Common mistakes

1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

✗ Wrong: “Io aiutare Maria.”

✓ Right: “Io aiuto Maria ogni giorno.”

The infinitive aiutare never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form aiuto.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Io aiuti Maria.”

✓ Right: “Io aiuto Maria ogni giorno.”

aiuti is the tu form, not the io form. The io form is aiuto — check the person before you write the form.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Io aiuto Maria ieri.”

✓ Right: “Io ho aiutato Maria questa settimana.”

Ieri points to the past, so use the passato prossimo ho aiutato here, not the present aiuto.

4. Mixing up the auxiliary

✗ Wrong: “Io sono aiutato Maria.”

✓ Right: “Io ho aiutato Maria questa settimana.”

aiutare takes avere in the passato prossimo. The io form is ho aiutato — the other auxiliary never belongs with this verb.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on aiutare across the tenses. Answers with explanations follow each question.

  1. What is the tu form of aiutare in the Present indicative?

    • A) aiuto
    • B) aiuti
    • C) aiuta
    • D) aiutiamo

  2. What is the io form of aiutare in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

    • A) hai aiutato
    • B) ha aiutato
    • C) ho aiutato
    • D) abbiamo aiutato

  3. What is the lui/lei form of aiutare in the Imperfect?

    • A) aiutavo
    • B) aiutavi
    • C) aiutavamo
    • D) aiutava

  4. What is the noi form of aiutare in the Future?

    • A) aiuteremo
    • B) aiuterò
    • C) aiuterai
    • D) aiuterà

  5. What is the tu form of aiutare in the Conditional?

    • A) aiuterei
    • B) aiuteresti
    • C) aiuterebbe
    • D) aiuteremmo

  6. What is the io form of aiutare in the Passato remoto?

    • A) aiutasti
    • B) aiutò
    • C) aiutai
    • D) aiutammo

  7. What is the noi form of aiutare in the Present subjunctive?

    • A) aiuti
    • B) aiutiate
    • C) aiutino
    • D) aiutiamo

  8. What is the gerund of aiutare?

    • A) aiutando
    • B) aiutato
    • C) aiutare
    • D) aiuto

  9. What is the past participle of aiutare?

    • A) aiutando
    • B) aiutato
    • C) aiutare
    • D) aiuto

  10. What does aiutare mean in English?

  • A) to sit down
  • B) to get dressed
  • C) to help
  • D) to call

Answer key

  1. B) aiuti — the correct form is aiuti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) ho aiutato — the correct form is ho aiutato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) aiutava — the correct form is aiutava. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) aiuteremo — the correct form is aiuteremo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) aiuteresti — the correct form is aiuteresti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) aiutai — the correct form is aiutai. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) aiutiamo — the correct form is aiutiamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) aiutando — the correct form is aiutando. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. B) aiutato — the correct form is aiutato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  10. C) to help — the correct form is to help. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does aiutare mean in English?

aiutare means “to help”. You use it whenever you talk about to help in Italian, in the present, the past and the future.

Is aiutare regular or irregular?

aiutare is regular. aiutare is regular: every form follows the standard -are endings, so once you know the pattern you can build every tense from the stem.

What are the gerund and past participle of aiutare?

The gerund is aiutando and the past participle is aiutato. The perfect tenses use avere + aiutato.

Where can I see the full conjugation of aiutare?

On the aiutare conjugation page — every tense, every person, with tables. The aiutare present tense page goes deeper into its most practised tense.

Pronunciation

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for aiutare, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

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