Imparare Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Italian

imparare — to learn — 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 learn something new, and it is completely regular. Do not confuse it with insegnare, which means to teach: imparare is what the student does, insegnare is what the teacher does. On this page you will find imparare 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 imparare conjugation page, and the deep dive into its most practised tense is on the imparare present tense page.

Example sentences with imparare

In the present tense

  • “Io imparo l'italiano ogni giorno.” — “I learn Italian”
  • “Tu impari l'italiano ogni giorno.” — “You learn Italian”
  • “Lui impara l'italiano ogni giorno.” — “He learns Italian”
  • “Noi impariamo l'italiano ogni giorno.” — “We learn Italian”
  • “Voi imparate l'italiano ogni giorno.” — “You learn Italian”
  • “Loro imparano l'italiano ogni giorno.” — “They learn Italian”

In the passato prossimo

  • “Io ho imparato l'italiano questa settimana.” — “I have learned Italian”
  • “Tu hai imparato l'italiano questa settimana.” — “You have learned Italian”
  • “Lui ha imparato l'italiano questa settimana.” — “He has learned Italian”
  • “Noi abbiamo imparato l'italiano questa settimana.” — “We have learned Italian”
  • “Voi avete imparato l'italiano questa settimana.” — “You have learned Italian”
  • “Loro hanno imparato l'italiano questa settimana.” — “They have learned Italian”

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 imparavo l'italiano una volta.” — “I used to learn Italian”
  • “Tu imparerai l'italiano domani.” — “You will learn Italian”
  • “Lui imparerebbe l'italiano un giorno.” — “He would learn Italian”
  • “È importante che noi impariamo l'italiano.” — “It is important that we learn Italian”
  • “Impara l'italiano!” — “Learn Italian!”

How imparare is used

The first thing to know about imparare is its core meaning: to learn. It means to learn something new, and it is completely regular. Do not confuse it with insegnare, which means to teach: imparare is what the student does, insegnare is what the teacher does. 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 imparare keeps. The present io form is imparo, 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 imparato, 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 imparare does not do. It never appears as a bare infinitive after a subject pronoun — after io you need imparo, never imparare. It never takes the wrong auxiliary in the perfect tenses: the passato prossimo is ho imparato, built with avere, and the other auxiliary does not belong here. And its participle imparato is given in the masculine singular form in the tables, with agreement depending on the sentence, not on the verb table.

Imparare in context

Io imparo l'italiano ogni giorno. Tu impari l'italiano ogni giorno. Lui impara l'italiano ogni giorno. Noi impariamo l'italiano ogni giorno. That is a normal part of the routine, and that is why the present of imparare is the first form worth learning. Each sentence uses a different person, so read them aloud and notice how the form changes — imparo, impari, impara, impariamo — while the meaning stays the same: to learn. Io ho imparato l'italiano questa settimana. Tu hai imparato l'italiano questa settimana. Lui ha imparato l'italiano questa settimana. Noi abbiamo imparato l'italiano questa settimana. That was a normal day, but it is exactly on days like this that the passato prossimo of imparare 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 learn — 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 imparare l'italiano.”

✓ Right: “Io imparo l'italiano ogni giorno.”

The infinitive imparare never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form imparo.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Io impari l'italiano.”

✓ Right: “Io imparo l'italiano ogni giorno.”

impari is the tu form, not the io form. The io form is imparo — check the person before you write the form.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Io imparo l'italiano ieri.”

✓ Right: “Io ho imparato l'italiano questa settimana.”

Ieri points to the past, so use the passato prossimo ho imparato here, not the present imparo.

4. Mixing up the auxiliary

✗ Wrong: “Io sono imparato l'italiano.”

✓ Right: “Io ho imparato l'italiano questa settimana.”

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

Quiz: test yourself

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

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

    • A) imparo
    • B) impari
    • C) impara
    • D) impariamo

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

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

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

    • A) imparavo
    • B) imparavi
    • C) imparavamo
    • D) imparava

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

    • A) impareremo
    • B) imparerò
    • C) imparerai
    • D) imparerà

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

    • A) imparerei
    • B) impareresti
    • C) imparerebbe
    • D) impareremmo

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

    • A) imparasti
    • B) imparò
    • C) imparai
    • D) imparammo

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

    • A) impari
    • B) impariate
    • C) imparino
    • D) impariamo

  8. What is the gerund of imparare?

    • A) imparando
    • B) imparato
    • C) imparare
    • D) imparo

  9. What is the past participle of imparare?

    • A) imparando
    • B) imparato
    • C) imparare
    • D) imparo

  10. What does imparare mean in English?

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

Answer key

  1. B) impari — the correct form is impari. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) ho imparato — the correct form is ho imparato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) imparava — the correct form is imparava. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) impareremo — the correct form is impareremo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) impareresti — the correct form is impareresti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) imparai — the correct form is imparai. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) impariamo — the correct form is impariamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) imparando — the correct form is imparando. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. B) imparato — the correct form is imparato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  10. C) to learn — the correct form is to learn. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does imparare mean in English?

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

Is imparare regular or irregular?

imparare is regular. imparare 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 imparare?

The gerund is imparando and the past participle is imparato. The perfect tenses use avere + imparato.

Where can I see the full conjugation of imparare?

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

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