Chiedere Conjugation in Italian
chiedere means “to ask for” in English, and it is one of the first verbs Italian learners meet — it sits at number 47 in VerbFlow’s frequency list for Italian verbs. It means to ask for something and to ask someone a question, and it is the verb for requests in shops, offices and everyday conversation. Its passato remoto and past participle are irregular, while the present is regular. This page gives you the complete conjugation of chiedere — 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 chiedo un favore a Maria ogni giorno.” — “I ask Maria for a favour.”
Quick facts
- Infinitive: chiedere
- English: to ask for
- Verb type: Irregular -ere verb
- Irregular in: passato-remoto, past-participle, present-perfect, pluperfect
- Gerund: chiedendo
- Present participle: chiedente
- Past participle: chiesto
- Auxiliary: avere (all perfect tenses are formed with avere + the past participle)
- Ending: -ere verbs; pattern ere in the verified tables
Pronunciation
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for chiedere, 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 chiedere in every tense, you can recognise it in speech even before you can pronounce every form perfectly.
Three things to remember about chiedere
- It is irregular in 4 tense(s): passato-remoto, past-participle, present-perfect, pluperfect. Learn those forms as a set instead of guessing them from the infinitive, because the stem changes in ways no rule predicts.
- The perfect tenses use avere: the passato prossimo is formed with avere in the present plus the past participle chiesto. 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 chiedente and chiesto: 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 chiedere. 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 | chiedo |
| tu | chiedi |
| lui/lei | chiede |
| noi | chiediamo |
| voi | chiedete |
| loro | chiedono |
The present indicative is used for habits, facts and things happening now. For example: “Io chiedo un favore a Maria ogni giorno.” — “I ask Maria for a favour”
Passato remoto
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | chiesi |
| tu | chiedesti |
| lui/lei | chiese |
| noi | chiedemmo |
| voi | chiedeste |
| loro | chiesero |
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 chiesi un favore a Maria ieri.” — “I asked Maria for a favour”
Imperfect (imperfetto)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | chiedevo |
| tu | chiedevi |
| lui/lei | chiedeva |
| noi | chiedevamo |
| voi | chiedevate |
| loro | chiedevano |
The imperfect is used for ongoing or habitual actions in the past, and for background description. For example: “Io chiedevo un favore a Maria una volta.” — “I used to ask Maria for a favour”
Future (futuro semplice)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | chiederò |
| tu | chiederai |
| lui/lei | chiederà |
| noi | chiederemo |
| voi | chiederete |
| loro | chiederanno |
The future is used for what will happen, for predictions and for probability. For example: “Io chiederò un favore a Maria domani.” — “I will ask Maria for a favour”
Conditional (condizionale)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | chiederei |
| tu | chiederesti |
| lui/lei | chiederebbe |
| noi | chiederemmo |
| voi | chiedereste |
| loro | chiederebbero |
The conditional is used for what would happen, for polite requests and for hypothetical situations. For example: “Io chiederei un favore a Maria un giorno.” — “I would ask Maria for a favour”
Present perfect (passato prossimo)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | ho chiesto |
| tu | hai chiesto |
| lui/lei | ha chiesto |
| noi | abbiamo chiesto |
| voi | avete chiesto |
| loro | hanno chiesto |
The passato prossimo is used for completed actions in the past, especially in spoken Italian. For example: “Lui ha chiesto un favore a Maria questa settimana.” — “He has asked Maria for a favour”
Pluperfect (trapassato prossimo)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | avevo chiesto |
| tu | avevi chiesto |
| lui/lei | aveva chiesto |
| noi | avevamo chiesto |
| voi | avevate chiesto |
| loro | avevano chiesto |
The pluperfect is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “Io avevo chiesto un favore a Maria prima della festa.” — “I had asked Maria for a favour”
Future perfect (futuro anteriore)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | avrò chiesto |
| tu | avrai chiesto |
| lui/lei | avrà chiesto |
| noi | avremo chiesto |
| voi | avrete chiesto |
| loro | avranno chiesto |
The future perfect is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “Io avrò chiesto un favore a Maria per domani.” — “I will have asked Maria for a favour”
Conditional perfect (condizionale passato)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | avrei chiesto |
| tu | avresti chiesto |
| lui/lei | avrebbe chiesto |
| noi | avremmo chiesto |
| voi | avreste chiesto |
| loro | avrebbero chiesto |
The conditional perfect is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “Io avrei chiesto un favore a Maria ieri.” — “I would have asked Maria for a favour”
Present subjunctive (congiuntivo presente)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | chieda |
| tu | chieda |
| lui/lei | chieda |
| noi | chiediamo |
| voi | chiediate |
| loro | chiedano |
The present subjunctive is used for wishes, doubts, emotions and opinions after che. For example: “È importante che io chieda un favore a Maria.” — “It is important that I ask Maria for a favour”
Imperfect subjunctive (congiuntivo imperfetto)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | chiedessi |
| tu | chiedessi |
| lui/lei | chiedesse |
| noi | chiedessimo |
| voi | chiedeste |
| loro | chiedessero |
The imperfect subjunctive is used in the past for wishes and hypotheticals after che, and in if-clauses. For example: “Era importante che io chiedessi un favore a Maria.” — “It was important that I ask Maria for a favour”
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | chiedi |
| lui/lei | chieda |
| noi | chiediamo |
| voi | chiedete |
| loro | chiedano |
The affirmative imperative is used for direct commands and instructions. For example: “Chiedi un favore a Maria!” — “Ask Maria for a favour!”
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | chiedere |
| lui/lei | chieda |
| noi | chiediamo |
| voi | chiediate |
| loro | chiedano |
The negative imperative is used for prohibitions and negative commands. For example: “Non chiedere un favore a Maria.” — “Do not ask Maria for a favour.”
Gerund
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Gerund | chiedendo |
The gerund is used for an action happening at the same time as another action, often with stare for the progressive. For example: “Chiedendo un favore a Maria, imparo molto.” — “While asking Maria for a favour, I learn a lot.”
Present participle
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Present participle | chiedente |
The present participle is used as an adjective, describing an ongoing action. For example, the participle chiedente 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 | chiesto |
The past participle is used with an auxiliary to form the perfect tenses, and as an adjective. For example: “Io ho chiesto un favore a Maria questa settimana.” — “I have asked Maria for a favour.”
Example sentences
Ten natural sentences with chiedere, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the Italian and try to produce it from the English.
- “Io chiedo un favore a Maria ogni giorno.” — “I ask Maria for a favour”
- “Tu chiedesti un favore a Maria ieri.” — “You asked Maria for a favour”
- “Lui chiedeva un favore a Maria una volta.” — “He used to ask Maria for a favour”
- “Io chiederò un favore a Maria domani.” — “I will ask Maria for a favour”
- “Tu chiederesti un favore a Maria un giorno.” — “You would ask Maria for a favour”
- “Lui ha chiesto un favore a Maria questa settimana.” — “He has asked Maria for a favour”
- “Io avevo chiesto un favore a Maria prima della festa.” — “I had asked Maria for a favour”
- “Tu avrai chiesto un favore a Maria per domani.” — “You will have asked Maria for a favour”
- “È importante che io chieda un favore a Maria.” — “It is important that I ask Maria for a favour”
- “Chiedi un favore a Maria!” — “Ask Maria for a favour!”
Common mistakes
1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form
✗ Wrong: “Io chiedere un favore a Maria.”
✓ Right: “Io chiedo un favore a Maria ogni giorno.”
The infinitive chiedere never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form chiedo.
2. Using the wrong person’s form
✗ Wrong: “Io chiedi un favore a Maria.”
✓ Right: “Io chiedo un favore a Maria ogni giorno.”
chiedi is the tu form, not the io form. Match the verb to the subject every time: io goes with chiedo.
3. Using the present for a finished past action
✗ Wrong: “Io chiedo un favore a Maria ieri.”
✓ Right: “Io ho chiesto un favore a Maria questa settimana.”
Yesterday points to the past, so the present is wrong here. Use the passato prossimo ho chiesto for a finished action yesterday.
4. Using the wrong auxiliary in the passato prossimo
✗ Wrong: “Io sono chiesto un favore a Maria.”
✓ Right: “Io ho chiesto un favore a Maria questa settimana.”
The passato prossimo of chiedere is formed with avere plus the past participle chiesto: the io form is ho chiesto. 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 chiedo un favore a Maria.”
✓ Right: “È importante che io chieda un favore a Maria.”
After è importante che Italian needs the subjunctive, so use chieda here, not the indicative chiedo.
6. Using the gerund instead of the past participle in a perfect tense
✗ Wrong: “Io ho chiedendo un favore a Maria.”
✓ Right: “Io ho chiesto un favore a Maria questa settimana.”
The perfect tenses need the past participle chiesto, not the gerund chiedendo. The gerund belongs in progressive constructions, never after an auxiliary in a perfect tense.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on chiedere. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
What is the io form of chiedere in the Present indicative?
- A) chiedi
- B) chiedo
- C) chiede
- D) chiediamo
What is the lui/lei form of chiedere in the Passato remoto?
- A) chiesi
- B) chiedesti
- C) chiese
- D) chiedemmo
What is the noi form of chiedere in the Imperfect?
- A) chiedevo
- B) chiedevi
- C) chiedeva
- D) chiedevamo
What is the tu form of chiedere in the Future?
- A) chiederai
- B) chiederò
- C) chiederà
- D) chiederemo
What is the io form of chiedere in the Conditional?
- A) chiederesti
- B) chiederei
- C) chiederebbe
- D) chiederemmo
What is the lui/lei form of chiedere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?
- A) ho chiesto
- B) hai chiesto
- C) ha chiesto
- D) abbiamo chiesto
What is the lui/lei form of chiedere in the Present subjunctive?
- A) chiediamo
- B) chiediate
- C) chiedano
- D) chieda
What is the io form of chiedere in the Imperfect subjunctive?
- A) chiedessi
- B) chiedesse
- C) chiedessimo
- D) chiedeste
What is the gerund of chiedere?
- A) chiesto
- B) chiedendo
- C) chiedere
- D) chiedo
What does chiedere mean in English?
- A) to be
- B) to have
- C) to ask for
- D) to do, to make
Answer key
- B) chiedo — the correct form is chiedo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) chiese — the correct form is chiese. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) chiedevamo — the correct form is chiedevamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) chiederai — the correct form is chiederai. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) chiederei — the correct form is chiederei. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) ha chiesto — the correct form is ha chiesto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) chieda — the correct form is chieda. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) chiedessi — the correct form is chiedessi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) chiedendo — the correct form is chiedendo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) to ask for — the correct form is to ask for. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
Frequently asked questions
What does chiedere mean in English?
chiedere means “to ask for”. It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.
Is chiedere regular or irregular?
chiedere is irregular: it is irregular in passato-remoto, past-participle, present-perfect, pluperfect. The gerund is chiedendo and the past participle is chiesto.
What are the gerund and past participle of chiedere?
The gerund is chiedendo — use it with stare for the progressive. The past participle is chiesto — use it with avere for the perfect tenses, as in ho chiesto.
Which auxiliary does chiedere take in the passato prossimo?
chiedere takes avere in the passato prossimo: the io form is ho chiesto. All four perfect tenses on this page are built with avere plus the past participle chiesto.
How do I say “I ask” in Italian?
Say “Io chiedo un favore a Maria ogni giorno.” — “I ask Maria for a favour” The io form of the present is chiedo, and it is the form you will use most often.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of chiedere — every tense of chiedere in one place.
- Chiedere in the passato prossimo tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Chiedere examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- Italian passato prossimo tense guide — the full guide to the passato prossimo tense in Italian.
- Italian irregular verbs — every common irregular Italian verb, grouped by pattern.
- Essere conjugation — another everyday Italian verb.
- Avere 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 chiedere with the interactive tool.
- Conjugation Chart Printer — practise chiedere with the interactive tool.
- Tense Finder — practise chiedere with the interactive tool.