Amare Conjugation in Italian
amare means “to love” in English, and it is one of the first verbs Italian learners meet — it sits at number 50 in VerbFlow’s frequency list for Italian verbs. It is the verb of loving a person, a place or an activity, and it is completely regular. It is the model verb many textbooks use for the -are conjugation because every form follows the pattern exactly. This page gives you the complete conjugation of amare — every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle — with notes, examples, common mistakes and a quiz. Here is the verb in a natural sentence: “Io amo Maria ogni giorno.” — “I love Maria.”
Quick facts
- Infinitive: amare
- English: to love
- Verb type: Regular -are verb
- Irregular in: none — regular in every tense
- Gerund: amando
- Present participle: amante
- Past participle: amato
- Auxiliary: avere (all perfect tenses are formed with avere + the past participle)
- Ending: -are verbs; pattern are in the verified tables
Pronunciation
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for amare, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. Learn the spelling of the forms first, and listen to a native speaker for the sounds rather than trusting an invented transcription. The forms below are the ones that matter: once you can read amare in every tense, you can recognise it in speech even before you can pronounce every form perfectly.
Three things to remember about amare
- It is regular: every form follows the ordinary -are pattern, so once you know the stem you can build the whole table. The only work is learning the endings, not memorising exceptions.
- The perfect tenses use avere: the passato prossimo is formed with avere in the present plus the past participle amato. The tables on this page give the participle in the masculine singular form, exactly as it appears in the verified dump; agreement with the subject is a separate step that depends on the sentence, not on the verb table.
- The participles are amante and amato: keep both in mind as you read the tables, because the present participle appears as an adjective and the past participle appears in every perfect tense. If you know those two forms and the present tense, you already know the skeleton of the whole conjugation.
Full conjugation tables
Every form below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for amare. Learn the present tense first, then the passato prossimo and the imperfect, and add the remaining tenses one at a time.
Present indicative (presente)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | amo |
| tu | ami |
| lui/lei | ama |
| noi | amiamo |
| voi | amate |
| loro | amano |
The present indicative is used for habits, facts and things happening now. For example: “Io amo Maria ogni giorno.” — “I love Maria”
Passato remoto
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | amai |
| tu | amasti |
| lui/lei | amò |
| noi | amammo |
| voi | amaste |
| loro | amarono |
The passato remoto is used for completed actions in the distant past, mostly in written and literary Italian and in the south of Italy. For example: “Io amai Maria ieri.” — “I loved Maria”
Imperfect (imperfetto)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | amavo |
| tu | amavi |
| lui/lei | amava |
| noi | amavamo |
| voi | amavate |
| loro | amavano |
The imperfect is used for ongoing or habitual actions in the past, and for background description. For example: “Io amavo Maria una volta.” — “I used to love Maria”
Future (futuro semplice)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | amerò |
| tu | amerai |
| lui/lei | amerà |
| noi | ameremo |
| voi | amerete |
| loro | ameranno |
The future is used for what will happen, for predictions and for probability. For example: “Io amerò Maria domani.” — “I will love Maria”
Conditional (condizionale)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | amerei |
| tu | ameresti |
| lui/lei | amerebbe |
| noi | ameremmo |
| voi | amereste |
| loro | amerebbero |
The conditional is used for what would happen, for polite requests and for hypothetical situations. For example: “Io amerei Maria un giorno.” — “I would love Maria”
Present perfect (passato prossimo)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | ho amato |
| tu | hai amato |
| lui/lei | ha amato |
| noi | abbiamo amato |
| voi | avete amato |
| loro | hanno amato |
The passato prossimo is used for completed actions in the past, especially in spoken Italian. For example: “Lui ha amato Maria questa settimana.” — “He has loved Maria”
Pluperfect (trapassato prossimo)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | avevo amato |
| tu | avevi amato |
| lui/lei | aveva amato |
| noi | avevamo amato |
| voi | avevate amato |
| loro | avevano amato |
The pluperfect is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “Io avevo amato Maria prima della festa.” — “I had loved Maria”
Future perfect (futuro anteriore)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | avrò amato |
| tu | avrai amato |
| lui/lei | avrà amato |
| noi | avremo amato |
| voi | avrete amato |
| loro | avranno amato |
The future perfect is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “Io avrò amato Maria per domani.” — “I will have loved Maria”
Conditional perfect (condizionale passato)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | avrei amato |
| tu | avresti amato |
| lui/lei | avrebbe amato |
| noi | avremmo amato |
| voi | avreste amato |
| loro | avrebbero amato |
The conditional perfect is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “Io avrei amato Maria ieri.” — “I would have loved Maria”
Present subjunctive (congiuntivo presente)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | ami |
| tu | ami |
| lui/lei | ami |
| noi | amiamo |
| voi | amiate |
| loro | amino |
The present subjunctive is used for wishes, doubts, emotions and opinions after che. For example: “È importante che io ami Maria.” — “It is important that I love Maria”
Imperfect subjunctive (congiuntivo imperfetto)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | amassi |
| tu | amassi |
| lui/lei | amasse |
| noi | amassimo |
| voi | amaste |
| loro | amassero |
The imperfect subjunctive is used in the past for wishes and hypotheticals after che, and in if-clauses. For example: “Era importante che io amassi Maria.” — “It was important that I love Maria”
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | ama |
| lui/lei | ami |
| noi | amiamo |
| voi | amate |
| loro | amino |
The affirmative imperative is used for direct commands and instructions. For example: “Ama Maria!” — “Love Maria!”
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | amare |
| lui/lei | ami |
| noi | amiamo |
| voi | amiate |
| loro | amino |
The negative imperative is used for prohibitions and negative commands. For example: “Non amare Maria.” — “Do not love Maria.”
Gerund
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Gerund | amando |
The gerund is used for an action happening at the same time as another action, often with stare for the progressive. For example: “Amando Maria, imparo molto.” — “While loving Maria, I learn a lot.”
Present participle
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Present participle | amante |
The present participle is used as an adjective, describing an ongoing action. For example, the participle amante is used to describe something that is happening at the same time as the main action, much like an English -ing adjective.
Past participle
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Past participle | amato |
The past participle is used with an auxiliary to form the perfect tenses, and as an adjective. For example: “Io ho amato Maria questa settimana.” — “I have loved Maria.”
Example sentences
Ten natural sentences with amare, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the Italian and try to produce it from the English.
- “Io amo Maria ogni giorno.” — “I love Maria”
- “Tu amasti Maria ieri.” — “You loved Maria”
- “Lui amava Maria una volta.” — “He used to love Maria”
- “Io amerò Maria domani.” — “I will love Maria”
- “Tu ameresti Maria un giorno.” — “You would love Maria”
- “Lui ha amato Maria questa settimana.” — “He has loved Maria”
- “Io avevo amato Maria prima della festa.” — “I had loved Maria”
- “Tu avrai amato Maria per domani.” — “You will have loved Maria”
- “È importante che io ami Maria.” — “It is important that I love Maria”
- “Ama Maria!” — “Love Maria!”
Common mistakes
1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form
✗ Wrong: “Io amare Maria.”
✓ Right: “Io amo Maria ogni giorno.”
The infinitive amare never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form amo.
2. Using the wrong person’s form
✗ Wrong: “Io ami Maria.”
✓ Right: “Io amo Maria ogni giorno.”
ami is the tu form, not the io form. Match the verb to the subject every time: io goes with amo.
3. Using the present for a finished past action
✗ Wrong: “Io amo Maria ieri.”
✓ Right: “Io ho amato Maria questa settimana.”
Yesterday points to the past, so the present is wrong here. Use the passato prossimo ho amato for a finished action yesterday.
4. Using the wrong auxiliary in the passato prossimo
✗ Wrong: “Io sono amato Maria.”
✓ Right: “Io ho amato Maria questa settimana.”
The passato prossimo of amare is formed with avere plus the past participle amato: the io form is ho amato. Check the auxiliary in the table above before you build a perfect tense.
5. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger
✗ Wrong: “È importante che io amo Maria.”
✓ Right: “È importante che io ami Maria.”
After è importante che Italian needs the subjunctive, so use ami here, not the indicative amo.
6. Using the gerund instead of the past participle in a perfect tense
✗ Wrong: “Io ho amando Maria.”
✓ Right: “Io ho amato Maria questa settimana.”
The perfect tenses need the past participle amato, not the gerund amando. The gerund belongs in progressive constructions, never after an auxiliary in a perfect tense.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on amare. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
What is the io form of amare in the Present indicative?
- A) ami
- B) amo
- C) ama
- D) amiamo
What is the lui/lei form of amare in the Passato remoto?
- A) amai
- B) amasti
- C) amò
- D) amammo
What is the noi form of amare in the Imperfect?
- A) amavo
- B) amavi
- C) amava
- D) amavamo
What is the tu form of amare in the Future?
- A) amerai
- B) amerò
- C) amerà
- D) ameremo
What is the io form of amare in the Conditional?
- A) ameresti
- B) amerei
- C) amerebbe
- D) ameremmo
What is the lui/lei form of amare in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?
- A) ho amato
- B) hai amato
- C) ha amato
- D) abbiamo amato
What is the lui/lei form of amare in the Present subjunctive?
- A) amiamo
- B) amiate
- C) amino
- D) ami
What is the io form of amare in the Imperfect subjunctive?
- A) amassi
- B) amasse
- C) amassimo
- D) amaste
What is the gerund of amare?
- A) amato
- B) amando
- C) amare
- D) amo
What does amare mean in English?
- A) to be
- B) to have
- C) to love
- D) to do, to make
Answer key
- B) amo — the correct form is amo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) amò — the correct form is amò. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) amavamo — the correct form is amavamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) amerai — the correct form is amerai. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) amerei — the correct form is amerei. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) ha amato — the correct form is ha amato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) ami — the correct form is ami. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) amassi — the correct form is amassi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) amando — the correct form is amando. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) to love — the correct form is to love. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
Frequently asked questions
What does amare mean in English?
amare means “to love”. It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.
Is amare regular or irregular?
amare is regular: it follows the ordinary -are pattern in every tense. The gerund is amando and the past participle is amato.
What are the gerund and past participle of amare?
The gerund is amando — use it with stare for the progressive. The past participle is amato — use it with avere for the perfect tenses, as in ho amato.
Which auxiliary does amare take in the passato prossimo?
amare takes avere in the passato prossimo: the io form is ho amato. All four perfect tenses on this page are built with avere plus the past participle amato.
How do I say “I love” in Italian?
Say “Io amo Maria ogni giorno.” — “I love Maria” The io form of the present is amo, and it is the form you will use most often.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of amare — every tense of amare in one place.
- Amare in the present tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Amare examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- Italian present tense guide — the full guide to the present tense in Italian.
- Fare conjugation — another everyday Italian verb.
- Andare conjugation — another everyday Italian verb.
- Italian verbs — the full hub of Italian conjugation pages.
- VerbFlow home — all languages, tools and verb lists.
- Verb Conjugator — practise amare with the interactive tool.
- Conjugation Chart Printer — practise amare with the interactive tool.
- Tense Finder — practise amare with the interactive tool.