Cambiare Conjugation in Italian
cambiare means “to change” in English, and it is one of the first verbs Italian learners meet — it sits at number 253 in VerbFlow’s frequency list for Italian verbs. 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. This page gives you the complete conjugation of cambiare — 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 cambio il piano ogni giorno.” — “I change the plan.”
Quick facts
- Infinitive: cambiare
- English: to change
- Verb type: Regular -are verb
- Irregular in: none — regular in every tense
- Gerund: cambiando
- Present participle: cambiante
- Past participle: cambiato
- 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 cambiare, 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 cambiare in every tense, you can recognise it in speech even before you can pronounce every form perfectly.
Three things to remember about cambiare
- 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 stem-final i drops before an i-initial ending, so the tu form is cambi and the noi form is cambiamo.
- The perfect tenses use avere: the passato prossimo is formed with avere in the present plus the past participle cambiato. 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 cambiante and cambiato: 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 cambiare. 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 | cambio |
| tu | cambi |
| lui/lei | cambia |
| noi | cambiamo |
| voi | cambiate |
| loro | cambiano |
The present indicative is used for habits, facts and things happening now. For example: “Io cambio il piano ogni giorno.” — “I change the plan”
Passato remoto
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | cambiai |
| tu | cambiasti |
| lui/lei | cambiò |
| noi | cambiammo |
| voi | cambiaste |
| loro | cambiarono |
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 cambiai il piano ieri.” — “I changed the plan”
Imperfect (imperfetto)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | cambiavo |
| tu | cambiavi |
| lui/lei | cambiava |
| noi | cambiavamo |
| voi | cambiavate |
| loro | cambiavano |
The imperfect is used for ongoing or habitual actions in the past, and for background description. For example: “Io cambiavo il piano una volta.” — “I used to change the plan”
Future (futuro semplice)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | cambierò |
| tu | cambierai |
| lui/lei | cambierà |
| noi | cambieremo |
| voi | cambierete |
| loro | cambieranno |
The future is used for what will happen, for predictions and for probability. For example: “Io cambierò il piano domani.” — “I will change the plan”
Conditional (condizionale)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | cambierei |
| tu | cambieresti |
| lui/lei | cambierebbe |
| noi | cambieremmo |
| voi | cambiereste |
| loro | cambierebbero |
The conditional is used for what would happen, for polite requests and for hypothetical situations. For example: “Io cambierei il piano un giorno.” — “I would change the plan”
Present perfect (passato prossimo)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | ho cambiato |
| tu | hai cambiato |
| lui/lei | ha cambiato |
| noi | abbiamo cambiato |
| voi | avete cambiato |
| loro | hanno cambiato |
The passato prossimo is used for completed actions in the past, especially in spoken Italian. For example: “Lui ha cambiato il piano questa settimana.” — “He has changed the plan”
Pluperfect (trapassato prossimo)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | avevo cambiato |
| tu | avevi cambiato |
| lui/lei | aveva cambiato |
| noi | avevamo cambiato |
| voi | avevate cambiato |
| loro | avevano cambiato |
The pluperfect is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “Io avevo cambiato il piano prima della festa.” — “I had changed the plan”
Future perfect (futuro anteriore)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | avrò cambiato |
| tu | avrai cambiato |
| lui/lei | avrà cambiato |
| noi | avremo cambiato |
| voi | avrete cambiato |
| loro | avranno cambiato |
The future perfect is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “Io avrò cambiato il piano per domani.” — “I will have changed the plan”
Conditional perfect (condizionale passato)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | avrei cambiato |
| tu | avresti cambiato |
| lui/lei | avrebbe cambiato |
| noi | avremmo cambiato |
| voi | avreste cambiato |
| loro | avrebbero cambiato |
The conditional perfect is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “Io avrei cambiato il piano ieri.” — “I would have changed the plan”
Present subjunctive (congiuntivo presente)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | cambi |
| tu | cambi |
| lui/lei | cambi |
| noi | cambiamo |
| voi | cambiate |
| loro | cambino |
The present subjunctive is used for wishes, doubts, emotions and opinions after che. For example: “È importante che io cambi il piano.” — “It is important that I change the plan”
Imperfect subjunctive (congiuntivo imperfetto)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | cambiassi |
| tu | cambiassi |
| lui/lei | cambiasse |
| noi | cambiassimo |
| voi | cambiaste |
| loro | cambiassero |
The imperfect subjunctive is used in the past for wishes and hypotheticals after che, and in if-clauses. For example: “Era importante che io cambiassi il piano.” — “It was important that I change the plan”
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | cambia |
| lui/lei | cambi |
| noi | cambiamo |
| voi | cambiate |
| loro | cambino |
The affirmative imperative is used for direct commands and instructions. For example: “Cambia il piano!” — “Change the plan!”
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | cambiare |
| lui/lei | cambi |
| noi | cambiamo |
| voi | cambiate |
| loro | cambino |
The negative imperative is used for prohibitions and negative commands. For example: “Non cambiare il piano.” — “Do not change the plan.”
Gerund
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Gerund | cambiando |
The gerund is used for an action happening at the same time as another action, often with stare for the progressive. For example: “Cambiando il piano, imparo molto.” — “While changing the plan, I learn a lot.”
Present participle
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Present participle | cambiante |
The present participle is used as an adjective, describing an ongoing action. For example, the participle cambiante 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 | cambiato |
The past participle is used with an auxiliary to form the perfect tenses, and as an adjective. For example: “Io ho cambiato il piano questa settimana.” — “I have changed the plan.”
Example sentences
Ten natural sentences with cambiare, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the Italian and try to produce it from the English.
- “Io cambio il piano ogni giorno.” — “I change the plan”
- “Tu cambiasti il piano ieri.” — “You changed the plan”
- “Lui cambiava il piano una volta.” — “He used to change the plan”
- “Io cambierò il piano domani.” — “I will change the plan”
- “Tu cambieresti il piano un giorno.” — “You would change the plan”
- “Lui ha cambiato il piano questa settimana.” — “He has changed the plan”
- “Io avevo cambiato il piano prima della festa.” — “I had changed the plan”
- “Tu avrai cambiato il piano per domani.” — “You will have changed the plan”
- “È importante che io cambi il piano.” — “It is important that I change the plan”
- “Cambia il piano!” — “Change the plan!”
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’s form
✗ Wrong: “Io cambi il piano.”
✓ Right: “Io cambio il piano ogni giorno.”
cambi is the tu form, not the io form. Match the verb to the subject every time: io goes with cambio.
3. Using the present for a finished past action
✗ Wrong: “Io cambio il piano ieri.”
✓ Right: “Io ho cambiato il piano questa settimana.”
Yesterday points to the past, so the present is wrong here. Use the passato prossimo ho cambiato for a finished action yesterday.
4. Using the wrong auxiliary in the passato prossimo
✗ Wrong: “Io sono cambiato il piano.”
✓ Right: “Io ho cambiato il piano questa settimana.”
The passato prossimo of cambiare is formed with avere plus the past participle cambiato: the io form is ho cambiato. 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 cambio il piano.”
✓ Right: “È importante che io cambi il piano.”
After è importante che Italian needs the subjunctive, so use cambi here, not the indicative cambio.
6. Using the gerund instead of the past participle in a perfect tense
✗ Wrong: “Io ho cambiando il piano.”
✓ Right: “Io ho cambiato il piano questa settimana.”
The perfect tenses need the past participle cambiato, not the gerund cambiando. The gerund belongs in progressive constructions, never after an auxiliary in a perfect tense.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on cambiare. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
What is the io form of cambiare in the Present indicative?
- A) cambi
- B) cambio
- C) cambia
- D) cambiamo
What is the lui/lei form of cambiare in the Passato remoto?
- A) cambiai
- B) cambiasti
- C) cambiò
- D) cambiammo
What is the noi form of cambiare in the Imperfect?
- A) cambiavo
- B) cambiavi
- C) cambiava
- D) cambiavamo
What is the tu form of cambiare in the Future?
- A) cambierai
- B) cambierò
- C) cambierà
- D) cambieremo
What is the io form of cambiare in the Conditional?
- A) cambieresti
- B) cambierei
- C) cambierebbe
- D) cambieremmo
What is the lui/lei form of cambiare in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?
- A) ho cambiato
- B) hai cambiato
- C) ha cambiato
- D) abbiamo cambiato
What is the lui/lei form of cambiare in the Present subjunctive?
- A) cambiamo
- B) cambiate
- C) cambino
- D) cambi
What is the io form of cambiare in the Imperfect subjunctive?
- A) cambiassi
- B) cambiasse
- C) cambiassimo
- D) cambiaste
What is the gerund of cambiare?
- A) cambiato
- B) cambiando
- C) cambiare
- D) cambio
What does cambiare mean in English?
- A) to explain
- B) to answer
- C) to change
- D) to ask
Answer key
- B) cambio — the correct form is cambio. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) cambiò — the correct form is cambiò. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) cambiavamo — the correct form is cambiavamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) cambierai — the correct form is cambierai. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) cambierei — the correct form is cambierei. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) ha cambiato — the correct form is ha cambiato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) cambi — the correct form is cambi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) cambiassi — the correct form is cambiassi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) cambiando — the correct form is cambiando. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- 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”. It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.
Is cambiare regular or irregular?
cambiare is regular: it follows the ordinary -are pattern in every tense. The gerund is cambiando and the past participle is cambiato.
What are the gerund and past participle of cambiare?
The gerund is cambiando — use it with stare for the progressive. The past participle is cambiato — use it with avere for the perfect tenses, as in ho cambiato.
Which auxiliary does cambiare take in the passato prossimo?
cambiare takes avere in the passato prossimo: the io form is ho cambiato. All four perfect tenses on this page are built with avere plus the past participle cambiato.
How do I say “I change” in Italian?
Say “Io cambio il piano ogni giorno.” — “I change the plan” The io form of the present is cambio, and it is the form you will use most often.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of cambiare — every tense of cambiare in one place.
- Cambiare in the present tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Cambiare 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.
- Spiegare conjugation — another everyday Italian verb.
- Domandare 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 cambiare with the interactive tool.
- Conjugation Chart Printer — practise cambiare with the interactive tool.
- Tense Finder — practise cambiare with the interactive tool.