Cambiare Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Italian

cambiare — to change — 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 is the verb for changing a plan, a habit or a thing, and it is completely regular in every tense. Because it ends in -iare, the stem-final i drops before an i-initial ending, so the io form is cambio and the tu form is cambi. On this page you will find cambiare 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 cambiare conjugation page, and the deep dive into its most practised tense is on the cambiare present tense page.

Example sentences with cambiare

In the present tense

  • “Io cambio il piano ogni giorno.” — “I change the plan”
  • “Tu cambi il piano ogni giorno.” — “You change the plan”
  • “Lui cambia il piano ogni giorno.” — “He changes the plan”
  • “Noi cambiamo il piano ogni giorno.” — “We change the plan”
  • “Voi cambiate il piano ogni giorno.” — “You change the plan”
  • “Loro cambiano il piano ogni giorno.” — “They change the plan”

In the passato prossimo

  • “Io ho cambiato il piano questa settimana.” — “I have changed the plan”
  • “Tu hai cambiato il piano questa settimana.” — “You have changed the plan”
  • “Lui ha cambiato il piano questa settimana.” — “He has changed the plan”
  • “Noi abbiamo cambiato il piano questa settimana.” — “We have changed the plan”
  • “Voi avete cambiato il piano questa settimana.” — “You have changed the plan”
  • “Loro hanno cambiato il piano questa settimana.” — “They have changed the plan”

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 cambiavo il piano una volta.” — “I used to change the plan”
  • “Tu cambierai il piano domani.” — “You will change the plan”
  • “Lui cambierebbe il piano un giorno.” — “He would change the plan”
  • “È importante che noi cambiamo il piano.” — “It is important that we change the plan”
  • “Cambia il piano!” — “Change the plan!”

How cambiare is used

The first thing to know about cambiare is its core meaning: to change. It is the verb for changing a plan, a habit or a thing, and it is completely regular in every tense. Because it ends in -iare, the stem-final i drops before an i-initial ending, so the io form is cambio and the tu form is cambi. 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 cambiare keeps. The present io form is cambio, 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 cambiato, 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 cambiare does not do. It never appears as a bare infinitive after a subject pronoun — after io you need cambio, never cambiare. It never takes the wrong auxiliary in the perfect tenses: the passato prossimo is ho cambiato, built with avere, and the other auxiliary does not belong here. And its participle cambiato is given in the masculine singular form in the tables, with agreement depending on the sentence, not on the verb table.

Cambiare in context

Io cambio il piano ogni giorno. Tu cambi il piano ogni giorno. Lui cambia il piano ogni giorno. Noi cambiamo il piano ogni giorno. That is a normal part of the routine, and that is why the present of cambiare is the first form worth learning. Each sentence uses a different person, so read them aloud and notice how the form changes — cambio, cambi, cambia, cambiamo — while the meaning stays the same: to change. Io ho cambiato il piano questa settimana. Tu hai cambiato il piano questa settimana. Lui ha cambiato il piano questa settimana. Noi abbiamo cambiato il piano questa settimana. That was a normal day, but it is exactly on days like this that the passato prossimo of cambiare 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 change — 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 cambiare il piano.”

✓ Right: “Io cambio il piano ogni giorno.”

The infinitive cambiare never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form cambio.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Io cambi il piano.”

✓ Right: “Io cambio il piano ogni giorno.”

cambi is the tu form, not the io form. The io form is cambio — check the person before you write the form.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Io cambio il piano ieri.”

✓ Right: “Io ho cambiato il piano questa settimana.”

Ieri points to the past, so use the passato prossimo ho cambiato here, not the present cambio.

4. Mixing up the auxiliary

✗ Wrong: “Io sono cambiato il piano.”

✓ Right: “Io ho cambiato il piano questa settimana.”

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

Quiz: test yourself

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

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

    • A) cambio
    • B) cambi
    • C) cambia
    • D) cambiamo

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

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

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

    • A) cambiavo
    • B) cambiavi
    • C) cambiavamo
    • D) cambiava

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

    • A) cambieremo
    • B) cambierò
    • C) cambierai
    • D) cambierà

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

    • A) cambierei
    • B) cambieresti
    • C) cambierebbe
    • D) cambieremmo

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

    • A) cambiasti
    • B) cambiò
    • C) cambiai
    • D) cambiammo

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

    • A) cambi
    • B) cambiate
    • C) cambino
    • D) cambiamo

  8. What is the gerund of cambiare?

    • A) cambiando
    • B) cambiato
    • C) cambiare
    • D) cambio

  9. What is the past participle of cambiare?

    • A) cambiando
    • B) cambiato
    • C) cambiare
    • D) cambio

  10. What does cambiare mean in English?

  • A) to explain
  • B) to answer
  • C) to change
  • D) to ask

Answer key

  1. B) cambi — the correct form is cambi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) ho cambiato — the correct form is ho cambiato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) cambiava — the correct form is cambiava. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) cambieremo — the correct form is cambieremo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) cambieresti — the correct form is cambieresti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) cambiai — the correct form is cambiai. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) cambiamo — the correct form is cambiamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) cambiando — the correct form is cambiando. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. B) cambiato — the correct form is cambiato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  10. C) to change — the correct form is to change. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does cambiare mean in English?

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

Is cambiare regular or irregular?

cambiare is regular. cambiare 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 cambiare?

The gerund is cambiando and the past participle is cambiato. The perfect tenses use avere + cambiato.

Where can I see the full conjugation of cambiare?

On the cambiare conjugation page — every tense, every person, with tables. The cambiare 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 cambiare, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

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