Imparare Conjugation in Italian
imparare means “to learn” in English, and it is one of the first verbs Italian learners meet — it sits at number 24 in VerbFlow’s frequency list for Italian verbs. 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. This page gives you the complete conjugation of imparare — 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 imparo l'italiano ogni giorno.” — “I learn Italian.”
Quick facts
- Infinitive: imparare
- English: to learn
- Verb type: Regular -are verb
- Irregular in: none — regular in every tense
- Gerund: imparando
- Present participle: imparante
- Past participle: imparato
- Auxiliary: avere (all perfect tenses are formed with avere + the past participle)
- Ending: -are verbs; pattern are in the verified tables
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. 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 imparare in every tense, you can recognise it in speech even before you can pronounce every form perfectly.
Three things to remember about imparare
- It is regular: every form follows the ordinary -are pattern, so once you know the stem you can build the whole table. The only work is learning the endings, not memorising exceptions.
- The perfect tenses use avere: the passato prossimo is formed with avere in the present plus the past participle imparato. 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 imparante and imparato: 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 imparare. 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 | imparo |
| tu | impari |
| lui/lei | impara |
| noi | impariamo |
| voi | imparate |
| loro | imparano |
The present indicative is used for habits, facts and things happening now. For example: “Io imparo l'italiano ogni giorno.” — “I learn Italian”
Passato remoto
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | imparai |
| tu | imparasti |
| lui/lei | imparò |
| noi | imparammo |
| voi | imparaste |
| loro | impararono |
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 imparai l'italiano ieri.” — “I learned Italian”
Imperfect (imperfetto)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | imparavo |
| tu | imparavi |
| lui/lei | imparava |
| noi | imparavamo |
| voi | imparavate |
| loro | imparavano |
The imperfect is used for ongoing or habitual actions in the past, and for background description. For example: “Io imparavo l'italiano una volta.” — “I used to learn Italian”
Future (futuro semplice)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | imparerò |
| tu | imparerai |
| lui/lei | imparerà |
| noi | impareremo |
| voi | imparerete |
| loro | impareranno |
The future is used for what will happen, for predictions and for probability. For example: “Io imparerò l'italiano domani.” — “I will learn Italian”
Conditional (condizionale)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | imparerei |
| tu | impareresti |
| lui/lei | imparerebbe |
| noi | impareremmo |
| voi | imparereste |
| loro | imparerebbero |
The conditional is used for what would happen, for polite requests and for hypothetical situations. For example: “Io imparerei l'italiano un giorno.” — “I would learn Italian”
Present perfect (passato prossimo)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | ho imparato |
| tu | hai imparato |
| lui/lei | ha imparato |
| noi | abbiamo imparato |
| voi | avete imparato |
| loro | hanno imparato |
The passato prossimo is used for completed actions in the past, especially in spoken Italian. For example: “Lui ha imparato l'italiano questa settimana.” — “He has learned Italian”
Pluperfect (trapassato prossimo)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | avevo imparato |
| tu | avevi imparato |
| lui/lei | aveva imparato |
| noi | avevamo imparato |
| voi | avevate imparato |
| loro | avevano imparato |
The pluperfect is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “Io avevo imparato l'italiano prima della festa.” — “I had learned Italian”
Future perfect (futuro anteriore)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | avrò imparato |
| tu | avrai imparato |
| lui/lei | avrà imparato |
| noi | avremo imparato |
| voi | avrete imparato |
| loro | avranno imparato |
The future perfect is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “Io avrò imparato l'italiano per domani.” — “I will have learned Italian”
Conditional perfect (condizionale passato)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | avrei imparato |
| tu | avresti imparato |
| lui/lei | avrebbe imparato |
| noi | avremmo imparato |
| voi | avreste imparato |
| loro | avrebbero imparato |
The conditional perfect is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “Io avrei imparato l'italiano ieri.” — “I would have learned Italian”
Present subjunctive (congiuntivo presente)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | impari |
| tu | impari |
| lui/lei | impari |
| noi | impariamo |
| voi | impariate |
| loro | imparino |
The present subjunctive is used for wishes, doubts, emotions and opinions after che. For example: “È importante che io impari l'italiano.” — “It is important that I learn Italian”
Imperfect subjunctive (congiuntivo imperfetto)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | imparassi |
| tu | imparassi |
| lui/lei | imparasse |
| noi | imparassimo |
| voi | imparaste |
| loro | imparassero |
The imperfect subjunctive is used in the past for wishes and hypotheticals after che, and in if-clauses. For example: “Era importante che io imparassi l'italiano.” — “It was important that I learn Italian”
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | impara |
| lui/lei | impari |
| noi | impariamo |
| voi | imparate |
| loro | imparino |
The affirmative imperative is used for direct commands and instructions. For example: “Impara l'italiano!” — “Learn Italian!”
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | imparare |
| lui/lei | impari |
| noi | impariamo |
| voi | impariate |
| loro | imparino |
The negative imperative is used for prohibitions and negative commands. For example: “Non imparare l'italiano.” — “Do not learn Italian.”
Gerund
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Gerund | imparando |
The gerund is used for an action happening at the same time as another action, often with stare for the progressive. For example: “Imparando l'italiano, imparo molto.” — “While learning Italian, I learn a lot.”
Present participle
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Present participle | imparante |
The present participle is used as an adjective, describing an ongoing action. For example, the participle imparante 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 | imparato |
The past participle is used with an auxiliary to form the perfect tenses, and as an adjective. For example: “Io ho imparato l'italiano questa settimana.” — “I have learned Italian.”
Example sentences
Ten natural sentences with imparare, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the Italian and try to produce it from the English.
- “Io imparo l'italiano ogni giorno.” — “I learn Italian”
- “Tu imparasti l'italiano ieri.” — “You learned Italian”
- “Lui imparava l'italiano una volta.” — “He used to learn Italian”
- “Io imparerò l'italiano domani.” — “I will learn Italian”
- “Tu impareresti l'italiano un giorno.” — “You would learn Italian”
- “Lui ha imparato l'italiano questa settimana.” — “He has learned Italian”
- “Io avevo imparato l'italiano prima della festa.” — “I had learned Italian”
- “Tu avrai imparato l'italiano per domani.” — “You will have learned Italian”
- “È importante che io impari l'italiano.” — “It is important that I learn Italian”
- “Impara l'italiano!” — “Learn Italian!”
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’s form
✗ Wrong: “Io impari l'italiano.”
✓ Right: “Io imparo l'italiano ogni giorno.”
impari is the tu form, not the io form. Match the verb to the subject every time: io goes with imparo.
3. Using the present for a finished past action
✗ Wrong: “Io imparo l'italiano ieri.”
✓ Right: “Io ho imparato l'italiano questa settimana.”
Yesterday points to the past, so the present is wrong here. Use the passato prossimo ho imparato for a finished action yesterday.
4. Using the wrong auxiliary in the passato prossimo
✗ Wrong: “Io sono imparato l'italiano.”
✓ Right: “Io ho imparato l'italiano questa settimana.”
The passato prossimo of imparare is formed with avere plus the past participle imparato: the io form is ho imparato. 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 imparo l'italiano.”
✓ Right: “È importante che io impari l'italiano.”
After è importante che Italian needs the subjunctive, so use impari here, not the indicative imparo.
6. Using the gerund instead of the past participle in a perfect tense
✗ Wrong: “Io ho imparando l'italiano.”
✓ Right: “Io ho imparato l'italiano questa settimana.”
The perfect tenses need the past participle imparato, not the gerund imparando. The gerund belongs in progressive constructions, never after an auxiliary in a perfect tense.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on imparare. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
What is the io form of imparare in the Present indicative?
- A) impari
- B) imparo
- C) impara
- D) impariamo
What is the lui/lei form of imparare in the Passato remoto?
- A) imparai
- B) imparasti
- C) imparò
- D) imparammo
What is the noi form of imparare in the Imperfect?
- A) imparavo
- B) imparavi
- C) imparava
- D) imparavamo
What is the tu form of imparare in the Future?
- A) imparerai
- B) imparerò
- C) imparerà
- D) impareremo
What is the io form of imparare in the Conditional?
- A) impareresti
- B) imparerei
- C) imparerebbe
- D) impareremmo
What is the lui/lei form of imparare in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?
- A) ho imparato
- B) hai imparato
- C) ha imparato
- D) abbiamo imparato
What is the lui/lei form of imparare in the Present subjunctive?
- A) impariamo
- B) impariate
- C) imparino
- D) impari
What is the io form of imparare in the Imperfect subjunctive?
- A) imparassi
- B) imparasse
- C) imparassimo
- D) imparaste
What is the gerund of imparare?
- A) imparato
- B) imparando
- C) imparare
- D) imparo
What does imparare mean in English?
- A) to sit down
- B) to get dressed
- C) to learn
- D) to call
Answer key
- B) imparo — the correct form is imparo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) imparò — the correct form is imparò. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) imparavamo — the correct form is imparavamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) imparerai — the correct form is imparerai. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) imparerei — the correct form is imparerei. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) ha imparato — the correct form is ha imparato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) impari — the correct form is impari. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) imparassi — the correct form is imparassi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) imparando — the correct form is imparando. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- 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”. It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.
Is imparare regular or irregular?
imparare is regular: it follows the ordinary -are pattern in every tense. The gerund is imparando and the past participle is imparato.
What are the gerund and past participle of imparare?
The gerund is imparando — use it with stare for the progressive. The past participle is imparato — use it with avere for the perfect tenses, as in ho imparato.
Which auxiliary does imparare take in the passato prossimo?
imparare takes avere in the passato prossimo: the io form is ho imparato. All four perfect tenses on this page are built with avere plus the past participle imparato.
How do I say “I learn” in Italian?
Say “Io imparo l'italiano ogni giorno.” — “I learn Italian” The io form of the present is imparo, and it is the form you will use most often.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of imparare — every tense of imparare in one place.
- Imparare in the present tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Imparare examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- Italian present tense guide — the full guide to the present tense in Italian.
- Chiamare conjugation — another everyday Italian verb.
- Cercare 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 imparare with the interactive tool.
- Conjugation Chart Printer — practise imparare with the interactive tool.
- Tense Finder — practise imparare with the interactive tool.