Cantare Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Italian

cantare — to sing — 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 sing a song, and it is completely regular. It is one of the model -are verbs, so its tables show the plain -are endings in every tense. On this page you will find cantare 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 cantare conjugation page, and the deep dive into its most practised tense is on the cantare present tense page.

Example sentences with cantare

In the present tense

  • “Io canto una canzone ogni giorno.” — “I sing a song”
  • “Tu canti una canzone ogni giorno.” — “You sing a song”
  • “Lui canta una canzone ogni giorno.” — “He sings a song”
  • “Noi cantiamo una canzone ogni giorno.” — “We sing a song”
  • “Voi cantate una canzone ogni giorno.” — “You sing a song”
  • “Loro cantano una canzone ogni giorno.” — “They sing a song”

In the passato prossimo

  • “Io ho cantato una canzone questa settimana.” — “I have sung a song”
  • “Tu hai cantato una canzone questa settimana.” — “You have sung a song”
  • “Lui ha cantato una canzone questa settimana.” — “He has sung a song”
  • “Noi abbiamo cantato una canzone questa settimana.” — “We have sung a song”
  • “Voi avete cantato una canzone questa settimana.” — “You have sung a song”
  • “Loro hanno cantato una canzone questa settimana.” — “They have sung a song”

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 cantavo una canzone una volta.” — “I used to sing a song”
  • “Tu canterai una canzone domani.” — “You will sing a song”
  • “Lui canterebbe una canzone un giorno.” — “He would sing a song”
  • “È importante che noi cantiamo una canzone.” — “It is important that we sing a song”
  • “Canta una canzone!” — “Sing a song!”

How cantare is used

The first thing to know about cantare is its core meaning: to sing. It means to sing a song, and it is completely regular. It is one of the model -are verbs, so its tables show the plain -are endings in every tense. 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 cantare keeps. The present io form is canto, 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 cantato, 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 cantare does not do. It never appears as a bare infinitive after a subject pronoun — after io you need canto, never cantare. It never takes the wrong auxiliary in the perfect tenses: the passato prossimo is ho cantato, built with avere, and the other auxiliary does not belong here. And its participle cantato is given in the masculine singular form in the tables, with agreement depending on the sentence, not on the verb table.

Cantare in context

Io canto una canzone ogni giorno. Tu canti una canzone ogni giorno. Lui canta una canzone ogni giorno. Noi cantiamo una canzone ogni giorno. That is a normal part of the routine, and that is why the present of cantare is the first form worth learning. Each sentence uses a different person, so read them aloud and notice how the form changes — canto, canti, canta, cantiamo — while the meaning stays the same: to sing. Io ho cantato una canzone questa settimana. Tu hai cantato una canzone questa settimana. Lui ha cantato una canzone questa settimana. Noi abbiamo cantato una canzone questa settimana. That was a normal day, but it is exactly on days like this that the passato prossimo of cantare 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 sing — 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 cantare una canzone.”

✓ Right: “Io canto una canzone ogni giorno.”

The infinitive cantare never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form canto.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Io canti una canzone.”

✓ Right: “Io canto una canzone ogni giorno.”

canti is the tu form, not the io form. The io form is canto — check the person before you write the form.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Io canto una canzone ieri.”

✓ Right: “Io ho cantato una canzone questa settimana.”

Ieri points to the past, so use the passato prossimo ho cantato here, not the present canto.

4. Mixing up the auxiliary

✗ Wrong: “Io sono cantato una canzone.”

✓ Right: “Io ho cantato una canzone questa settimana.”

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

Quiz: test yourself

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

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

    • A) canto
    • B) canti
    • C) canta
    • D) cantiamo

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

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

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

    • A) cantavo
    • B) cantavi
    • C) cantavamo
    • D) cantava

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

    • A) canteremo
    • B) canterò
    • C) canterai
    • D) canterà

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

    • A) canterei
    • B) canteresti
    • C) canterebbe
    • D) canteremmo

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

    • A) cantasti
    • B) cantò
    • C) cantai
    • D) cantammo

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

    • A) canti
    • B) cantiate
    • C) cantino
    • D) cantiamo

  8. What is the gerund of cantare?

    • A) cantando
    • B) cantato
    • C) cantare
    • D) canto

  9. What is the past participle of cantare?

    • A) cantando
    • B) cantato
    • C) cantare
    • D) canto

  10. What does cantare mean in English?

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

Answer key

  1. B) canti — the correct form is canti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) ho cantato — the correct form is ho cantato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) cantava — the correct form is cantava. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) canteremo — the correct form is canteremo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) canteresti — the correct form is canteresti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) cantai — the correct form is cantai. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) cantiamo — the correct form is cantiamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) cantando — the correct form is cantando. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. B) cantato — the correct form is cantato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  10. C) to sing — the correct form is to sing. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does cantare mean in English?

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

Is cantare regular or irregular?

cantare is regular. cantare 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 cantare?

The gerund is cantando and the past participle is cantato. The perfect tenses use avere + cantato.

Where can I see the full conjugation of cantare?

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

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