Desiderare Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Italian

desiderare — to desire — 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 desiring or wishing for something, and it is completely regular in every tense. It is more formal than volere: use desiderare for a wish expressed politely, and volere for everyday wanting. On this page you will find desiderare 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 desiderare conjugation page, and the deep dive into its most practised tense is on the desiderare present tense page.

Example sentences with desiderare

In the present tense

  • “Io desidero un caffè ogni giorno.” — “I desire a coffee”
  • “Tu desideri un caffè ogni giorno.” — “You desire a coffee”
  • “Lui desidera un caffè ogni giorno.” — “He desires a coffee”
  • “Noi desideriamo un caffè ogni giorno.” — “We desire a coffee”
  • “Voi desiderate un caffè ogni giorno.” — “You desire a coffee”
  • “Loro desiderano un caffè ogni giorno.” — “They desire a coffee”

In the passato prossimo

  • “Io ho desiderato un caffè questa settimana.” — “I have desired a coffee”
  • “Tu hai desiderato un caffè questa settimana.” — “You have desired a coffee”
  • “Lui ha desiderato un caffè questa settimana.” — “He has desired a coffee”
  • “Noi abbiamo desiderato un caffè questa settimana.” — “We have desired a coffee”
  • “Voi avete desiderato un caffè questa settimana.” — “You have desired a coffee”
  • “Loro hanno desiderato un caffè questa settimana.” — “They have desired a coffee”

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 desideravo un caffè una volta.” — “I used to desire a coffee”
  • “Tu desidererai un caffè domani.” — “You will desire a coffee”
  • “Lui desidererebbe un caffè un giorno.” — “He would desire a coffee”
  • “È importante che noi desideriamo un caffè.” — “It is important that we desire a coffee”
  • “Desidera un caffè!” — “Desire a coffee!”

How desiderare is used

The first thing to know about desiderare is its core meaning: to desire. It is the verb for desiring or wishing for something, and it is completely regular in every tense. It is more formal than volere: use desiderare for a wish expressed politely, and volere for everyday wanting. 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 desiderare keeps. The present io form is desidero, 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 desiderato, 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 desiderare does not do. It never appears as a bare infinitive after a subject pronoun — after io you need desidero, never desiderare. It never takes the wrong auxiliary in the perfect tenses: the passato prossimo is ho desiderato, built with avere, and the other auxiliary does not belong here. And its participle desiderato is given in the masculine singular form in the tables, with agreement depending on the sentence, not on the verb table.

Desiderare in context

Io desidero un caffè ogni giorno. Tu desideri un caffè ogni giorno. Lui desidera un caffè ogni giorno. Noi desideriamo un caffè ogni giorno. That is a normal part of the routine, and that is why the present of desiderare is the first form worth learning. Each sentence uses a different person, so read them aloud and notice how the form changes — desidero, desideri, desidera, desideriamo — while the meaning stays the same: to desire. Io ho desiderato un caffè questa settimana. Tu hai desiderato un caffè questa settimana. Lui ha desiderato un caffè questa settimana. Noi abbiamo desiderato un caffè questa settimana. That was a normal day, but it is exactly on days like this that the passato prossimo of desiderare 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 desire — 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 desiderare un caffè.”

✓ Right: “Io desidero un caffè ogni giorno.”

The infinitive desiderare never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form desidero.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Io desideri un caffè.”

✓ Right: “Io desidero un caffè ogni giorno.”

desideri is the tu form, not the io form. The io form is desidero — check the person before you write the form.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Io desidero un caffè ieri.”

✓ Right: “Io ho desiderato un caffè questa settimana.”

Ieri points to the past, so use the passato prossimo ho desiderato here, not the present desidero.

4. Mixing up the auxiliary

✗ Wrong: “Io sono desiderato un caffè.”

✓ Right: “Io ho desiderato un caffè questa settimana.”

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

Quiz: test yourself

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

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

    • A) desidero
    • B) desideri
    • C) desidera
    • D) desideriamo

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

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

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

    • A) desideravo
    • B) desideravi
    • C) desideravamo
    • D) desiderava

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

    • A) desidereremo
    • B) desidererò
    • C) desidererai
    • D) desidererà

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

    • A) desidererei
    • B) desidereresti
    • C) desidererebbe
    • D) desidereremmo

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

    • A) desiderasti
    • B) desiderò
    • C) desiderai
    • D) desiderammo

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

    • A) desideri
    • B) desideriate
    • C) desiderino
    • D) desideriamo

  8. What is the gerund of desiderare?

    • A) desiderando
    • B) desiderato
    • C) desiderare
    • D) desidero

  9. What is the past participle of desiderare?

    • A) desiderando
    • B) desiderato
    • C) desiderare
    • D) desidero

  10. What does desiderare mean in English?

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

Answer key

  1. B) desideri — the correct form is desideri. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) ho desiderato — the correct form is ho desiderato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) desiderava — the correct form is desiderava. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) desidereremo — the correct form is desidereremo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) desidereresti — the correct form is desidereresti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) desiderai — the correct form is desiderai. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) desideriamo — the correct form is desideriamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) desiderando — the correct form is desiderando. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. B) desiderato — the correct form is desiderato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  10. C) to desire — the correct form is to desire. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does desiderare mean in English?

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

Is desiderare regular or irregular?

desiderare is regular. desiderare 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 desiderare?

The gerund is desiderando and the past participle is desiderato. The perfect tenses use avere + desiderato.

Where can I see the full conjugation of desiderare?

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

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