Diventare Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Italian

diventare — to become — 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 become something, and it takes essere in the passato prossimo. It is completely regular, and it is the verb for changes of state and profession, as in becoming a doctor. On this page you will find diventare 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 diventare conjugation page, and the deep dive into its most practised tense is on the diventare present tense page.

Example sentences with diventare

In the present tense

  • “Io divento medico.” — “I become a doctor”
  • “Tu diventi medico.” — “You become a doctor”
  • “Lui diventa medico.” — “He becomes a doctor”
  • “Noi diventiamo medico.” — “We become a doctor”
  • “Voi diventate medico.” — “You become a doctor”
  • “Loro diventano medico.” — “They become a doctor”

In the passato prossimo

  • “Io sono diventato medico questa settimana.” — “I have become a doctor”
  • “Tu sei diventato medico questa settimana.” — “You have become a doctor”
  • “Lui è diventato medico questa settimana.” — “He has become a doctor”
  • “Noi siamo diventato medico questa settimana.” — “We have become a doctor”
  • “Voi siete diventato medico questa settimana.” — “You have become a doctor”
  • “Loro sono diventato medico questa settimana.” — “They have become a doctor”

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 diventavo medico una volta.” — “I used to become a doctor”
  • “Tu diventerai medico domani.” — “You will become a doctor”
  • “Lui diventerebbe medico un giorno.” — “He would become a doctor”
  • “È importante che noi diventiamo medico.” — “It is important that we become a doctor”
  • “Diventa medico!” — “Become a doctor!”

How diventare is used

The first thing to know about diventare is its core meaning: to become. It means to become something, and it takes essere in the passato prossimo. It is completely regular, and it is the verb for changes of state and profession, as in becoming a doctor. 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 diventare keeps. The present io form is divento, 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 sono diventato, 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 diventare does not do. It never appears as a bare infinitive after a subject pronoun — after io you need divento, never diventare. It never takes the wrong auxiliary in the perfect tenses: the passato prossimo is sono diventato, built with essere, and the other auxiliary does not belong here. And its participle diventato is given in the masculine singular form in the tables, with agreement depending on the sentence, not on the verb table.

Diventare in context

Io divento medico. Tu diventi medico. Lui diventa medico. Noi diventiamo medico. That is a normal part of the routine, and that is why the present of diventare is the first form worth learning. Each sentence uses a different person, so read them aloud and notice how the form changes — divento, diventi, diventa, diventiamo — while the meaning stays the same: to become. Io sono diventato medico questa settimana. Tu sei diventato medico questa settimana. Lui è diventato medico questa settimana. Noi siamo diventato medico questa settimana. That was a normal day, but it is exactly on days like this that the passato prossimo of diventare 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 become — 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 diventare medico.”

✓ Right: “Io divento medico.”

The infinitive diventare never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form divento.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Io diventi medico.”

✓ Right: “Io divento medico.”

diventi is the tu form, not the io form. The io form is divento — check the person before you write the form.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Io divento medico ieri.”

✓ Right: “Io sono diventato medico questa settimana.”

Ieri points to the past, so use the passato prossimo sono diventato here, not the present divento.

4. Mixing up the auxiliary

✗ Wrong: “Io ho diventato medico.”

✓ Right: “Io sono diventato medico questa settimana.”

diventare takes essere in the passato prossimo. The io form is sono diventato — the other auxiliary never belongs with this verb.

Quiz: test yourself

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

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

    • A) divento
    • B) diventi
    • C) diventa
    • D) diventiamo

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

    • A) sei diventato
    • B) è diventato
    • C) sono diventato
    • D) siamo diventato

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

    • A) diventavo
    • B) diventavi
    • C) diventavamo
    • D) diventava

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

    • A) diventeremo
    • B) diventerò
    • C) diventerai
    • D) diventerà

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

    • A) diventerei
    • B) diventeresti
    • C) diventerebbe
    • D) diventeremmo

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

    • A) diventasti
    • B) diventò
    • C) diventai
    • D) diventammo

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

    • A) diventi
    • B) diventiate
    • C) diventino
    • D) diventiamo

  8. What is the gerund of diventare?

    • A) diventando
    • B) diventato
    • C) diventare
    • D) divento

  9. What is the past participle of diventare?

    • A) diventando
    • B) diventato
    • C) diventare
    • D) divento

  10. What does diventare mean in English?

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

Answer key

  1. B) diventi — the correct form is diventi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) sono diventato — the correct form is sono diventato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) diventava — the correct form is diventava. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) diventeremo — the correct form is diventeremo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) diventeresti — the correct form is diventeresti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) diventai — the correct form is diventai. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) diventiamo — the correct form is diventiamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) diventando — the correct form is diventando. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. B) diventato — the correct form is diventato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  10. C) to become — the correct form is to become. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does diventare mean in English?

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

Is diventare regular or irregular?

diventare is regular. diventare 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 diventare?

The gerund is diventando and the past participle is diventato. The perfect tenses use essere + diventato.

Where can I see the full conjugation of diventare?

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

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