Fermare Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Italian

fermare — to stop — 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 transitive verb for stopping something, such as a car, and it is completely regular in every tense. Its reflexive partner fermarsi means to stop oneself, as in stopping on the way home, and the two share the same stem and endings. On this page you will find fermare 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 fermare conjugation page, and the deep dive into its most practised tense is on the fermare present tense page.

Example sentences with fermare

In the present tense

  • “Io fermo la macchina ogni giorno.” — “I stop the car”
  • “Tu fermi la macchina ogni giorno.” — “You stop the car”
  • “Lui ferma la macchina ogni giorno.” — “He stops the car”
  • “Noi fermiamo la macchina ogni giorno.” — “We stop the car”
  • “Voi fermate la macchina ogni giorno.” — “You stop the car”
  • “Loro fermano la macchina ogni giorno.” — “They stop the car”

In the passato prossimo

  • “Io ho fermato la macchina questa settimana.” — “I have stopped the car”
  • “Tu hai fermato la macchina questa settimana.” — “You have stopped the car”
  • “Lui ha fermato la macchina questa settimana.” — “He has stopped the car”
  • “Noi abbiamo fermato la macchina questa settimana.” — “We have stopped the car”
  • “Voi avete fermato la macchina questa settimana.” — “You have stopped the car”
  • “Loro hanno fermato la macchina questa settimana.” — “They have stopped the car”

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 fermavo la macchina una volta.” — “I used to stop the car”
  • “Tu fermerai la macchina domani.” — “You will stop the car”
  • “Lui fermerebbe la macchina un giorno.” — “He would stop the car”
  • “È importante che noi fermiamo la macchina.” — “It is important that we stop the car”
  • “Ferma la macchina!” — “Stop the car!”

How fermare is used

The first thing to know about fermare is its core meaning: to stop. It is the transitive verb for stopping something, such as a car, and it is completely regular in every tense. Its reflexive partner fermarsi means to stop oneself, as in stopping on the way home, and the two share the same stem and endings. 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 fermare keeps. The present io form is fermo, 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 fermato, 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 fermare does not do. It never appears as a bare infinitive after a subject pronoun — after io you need fermo, never fermare. It never takes the wrong auxiliary in the perfect tenses: the passato prossimo is ho fermato, built with avere, and the other auxiliary does not belong here. And its participle fermato is given in the masculine singular form in the tables, with agreement depending on the sentence, not on the verb table.

Fermare in context

Io fermo la macchina ogni giorno. Tu fermi la macchina ogni giorno. Lui ferma la macchina ogni giorno. Noi fermiamo la macchina ogni giorno. That is a normal part of the routine, and that is why the present of fermare is the first form worth learning. Each sentence uses a different person, so read them aloud and notice how the form changes — fermo, fermi, ferma, fermiamo — while the meaning stays the same: to stop. Io ho fermato la macchina questa settimana. Tu hai fermato la macchina questa settimana. Lui ha fermato la macchina questa settimana. Noi abbiamo fermato la macchina questa settimana. That was a normal day, but it is exactly on days like this that the passato prossimo of fermare 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 stop — 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 fermare la macchina.”

✓ Right: “Io fermo la macchina ogni giorno.”

The infinitive fermare never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form fermo.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Io fermi la macchina.”

✓ Right: “Io fermo la macchina ogni giorno.”

fermi is the tu form, not the io form. The io form is fermo — check the person before you write the form.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Io fermo la macchina ieri.”

✓ Right: “Io ho fermato la macchina questa settimana.”

Ieri points to the past, so use the passato prossimo ho fermato here, not the present fermo.

4. Mixing up the auxiliary

✗ Wrong: “Io sono fermato la macchina.”

✓ Right: “Io ho fermato la macchina questa settimana.”

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

Quiz: test yourself

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

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

    • A) fermo
    • B) fermi
    • C) ferma
    • D) fermiamo

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

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

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

    • A) fermavo
    • B) fermavi
    • C) fermavamo
    • D) fermava

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

    • A) fermeremo
    • B) fermerò
    • C) fermerai
    • D) fermerà

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

    • A) fermerei
    • B) fermeresti
    • C) fermerebbe
    • D) fermeremmo

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

    • A) fermasti
    • B) fermò
    • C) fermai
    • D) fermammo

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

    • A) fermi
    • B) fermiate
    • C) fermino
    • D) fermiamo

  8. What is the gerund of fermare?

    • A) fermando
    • B) fermato
    • C) fermare
    • D) fermo

  9. What is the past participle of fermare?

    • A) fermando
    • B) fermato
    • C) fermare
    • D) fermo

  10. What does fermare mean in English?

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

Answer key

  1. B) fermi — the correct form is fermi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) ho fermato — the correct form is ho fermato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) fermava — the correct form is fermava. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) fermeremo — the correct form is fermeremo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) fermeresti — the correct form is fermeresti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) fermai — the correct form is fermai. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) fermiamo — the correct form is fermiamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) fermando — the correct form is fermando. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. B) fermato — the correct form is fermato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  10. C) to stop — the correct form is to stop. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does fermare mean in English?

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

Is fermare regular or irregular?

fermare is regular. fermare 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 fermare?

The gerund is fermando and the past participle is fermato. The perfect tenses use avere + fermato.

Where can I see the full conjugation of fermare?

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

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