Insegnare Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Italian

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

Example sentences with insegnare

In the present tense

  • “Io insegno l'italiano ogni giorno.” — “I teach Italian”
  • “Tu insegni l'italiano ogni giorno.” — “You teach Italian”
  • “Lui insegna l'italiano ogni giorno.” — “He teaches Italian”
  • “Noi insegniamo l'italiano ogni giorno.” — “We teach Italian”
  • “Voi insegnate l'italiano ogni giorno.” — “You teach Italian”
  • “Loro insegnano l'italiano ogni giorno.” — “They teach Italian”

In the passato prossimo

  • “Io ho insegnato l'italiano questa settimana.” — “I have taught Italian”
  • “Tu hai insegnato l'italiano questa settimana.” — “You have taught Italian”
  • “Lui ha insegnato l'italiano questa settimana.” — “He has taught Italian”
  • “Noi abbiamo insegnato l'italiano questa settimana.” — “We have taught Italian”
  • “Voi avete insegnato l'italiano questa settimana.” — “You have taught Italian”
  • “Loro hanno insegnato l'italiano questa settimana.” — “They have taught 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 insegnavo l'italiano una volta.” — “I used to teach Italian”
  • “Tu insegnerai l'italiano domani.” — “You will teach Italian”
  • “Lui insegnerebbe l'italiano un giorno.” — “He would teach Italian”
  • “È importante che noi insegniamo l'italiano.” — “It is important that we teach Italian”
  • “Insegna l'italiano!” — “Teach Italian!”

How insegnare is used

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

Insegnare in context

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

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

The infinitive insegnare never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form insegno.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Io insegni l'italiano.”

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

insegni is the tu form, not the io form. The io form is insegno — check the person before you write the form.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Io insegno l'italiano ieri.”

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

Ieri points to the past, so use the passato prossimo ho insegnato here, not the present insegno.

4. Mixing up the auxiliary

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

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

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

Quiz: test yourself

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

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

    • A) insegno
    • B) insegni
    • C) insegna
    • D) insegniamo

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

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

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

    • A) insegnavo
    • B) insegnavi
    • C) insegnavamo
    • D) insegnava

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

    • A) insegneremo
    • B) insegnerò
    • C) insegnerai
    • D) insegnerà

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

    • A) insegnerei
    • B) insegneresti
    • C) insegnerebbe
    • D) insegneremmo

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

    • A) insegnasti
    • B) insegnò
    • C) insegnai
    • D) insegnammo

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

    • A) insegni
    • B) insegniate
    • C) insegnino
    • D) insegniamo

  8. What is the gerund of insegnare?

    • A) insegnando
    • B) insegnato
    • C) insegnare
    • D) insegno

  9. What is the past participle of insegnare?

    • A) insegnando
    • B) insegnato
    • C) insegnare
    • D) insegno

  10. What does insegnare mean in English?

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

Answer key

  1. B) insegni — the correct form is insegni. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) ho insegnato — the correct form is ho insegnato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) insegnava — the correct form is insegnava. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) insegneremo — the correct form is insegneremo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) insegneresti — the correct form is insegneresti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) insegnai — the correct form is insegnai. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) insegniamo — the correct form is insegniamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) insegnando — the correct form is insegnando. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. B) insegnato — the correct form is insegnato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  10. C) to teach — the correct form is to teach. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does insegnare mean in English?

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

Is insegnare regular or irregular?

insegnare is regular. insegnare 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 insegnare?

The gerund is insegnando and the past participle is insegnato. The perfect tenses use avere + insegnato.

Where can I see the full conjugation of insegnare?

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

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