Lasciare Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Italian

lasciare — to leave — 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 leave something behind and to let someone do something, and it is completely regular. Do not confuse it with partire, which means to leave in the sense of departing on a journey. On this page you will find lasciare 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 lasciare conjugation page, and the deep dive into its most practised tense is on the lasciare present tense page.

Example sentences with lasciare

In the present tense

  • “Io lascio un messaggio ogni giorno.” — “I leave a message”
  • “Tu lasci un messaggio ogni giorno.” — “You leave a message”
  • “Lui lascia un messaggio ogni giorno.” — “He leaves a message”
  • “Noi lasciamo un messaggio ogni giorno.” — “We leave a message”
  • “Voi lasciate un messaggio ogni giorno.” — “You leave a message”
  • “Loro lasciano un messaggio ogni giorno.” — “They leave a message”

In the passato prossimo

  • “Io ho lasciato un messaggio questa settimana.” — “I have left a message”
  • “Tu hai lasciato un messaggio questa settimana.” — “You have left a message”
  • “Lui ha lasciato un messaggio questa settimana.” — “He has left a message”
  • “Noi abbiamo lasciato un messaggio questa settimana.” — “We have left a message”
  • “Voi avete lasciato un messaggio questa settimana.” — “You have left a message”
  • “Loro hanno lasciato un messaggio questa settimana.” — “They have left a message”

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 lasciavo un messaggio una volta.” — “I used to leave a message”
  • “Tu lascerai un messaggio domani.” — “You will leave a message”
  • “Lui lascerebbe un messaggio un giorno.” — “He would leave a message”
  • “È importante che noi lasciamo un messaggio.” — “It is important that we leave a message”
  • “Lascia un messaggio!” — “Leave a message!”

How lasciare is used

The first thing to know about lasciare is its core meaning: to leave. It means to leave something behind and to let someone do something, and it is completely regular. Do not confuse it with partire, which means to leave in the sense of departing on a journey. 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 lasciare keeps. The present io form is lascio, 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 lasciato, 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 lasciare does not do. It never appears as a bare infinitive after a subject pronoun — after io you need lascio, never lasciare. It never takes the wrong auxiliary in the perfect tenses: the passato prossimo is ho lasciato, built with avere, and the other auxiliary does not belong here. And its participle lasciato is given in the masculine singular form in the tables, with agreement depending on the sentence, not on the verb table.

Lasciare in context

Io lascio un messaggio ogni giorno. Tu lasci un messaggio ogni giorno. Lui lascia un messaggio ogni giorno. Noi lasciamo un messaggio ogni giorno. That is a normal part of the routine, and that is why the present of lasciare is the first form worth learning. Each sentence uses a different person, so read them aloud and notice how the form changes — lascio, lasci, lascia, lasciamo — while the meaning stays the same: to leave. Io ho lasciato un messaggio questa settimana. Tu hai lasciato un messaggio questa settimana. Lui ha lasciato un messaggio questa settimana. Noi abbiamo lasciato un messaggio questa settimana. That was a normal day, but it is exactly on days like this that the passato prossimo of lasciare 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 leave — 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 lasciare un messaggio.”

✓ Right: “Io lascio un messaggio ogni giorno.”

The infinitive lasciare never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form lascio.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Io lasci un messaggio.”

✓ Right: “Io lascio un messaggio ogni giorno.”

lasci is the tu form, not the io form. The io form is lascio — check the person before you write the form.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Io lascio un messaggio ieri.”

✓ Right: “Io ho lasciato un messaggio questa settimana.”

Ieri points to the past, so use the passato prossimo ho lasciato here, not the present lascio.

4. Mixing up the auxiliary

✗ Wrong: “Io sono lasciato un messaggio.”

✓ Right: “Io ho lasciato un messaggio questa settimana.”

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

Quiz: test yourself

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

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

    • A) lascio
    • B) lasci
    • C) lascia
    • D) lasciamo

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

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

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

    • A) lasciavo
    • B) lasciavi
    • C) lasciavamo
    • D) lasciava

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

    • A) lasceremo
    • B) lascerò
    • C) lascerai
    • D) lascerà

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

    • A) lascerei
    • B) lasceresti
    • C) lascerebbe
    • D) lasceremmo

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

    • A) lasciasti
    • B) lasciò
    • C) lasciai
    • D) lasciammo

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

    • A) lasci
    • B) lasciate
    • C) lascino
    • D) lasciamo

  8. What is the gerund of lasciare?

    • A) lasciando
    • B) lasciato
    • C) lasciare
    • D) lascio

  9. What is the past participle of lasciare?

    • A) lasciando
    • B) lasciato
    • C) lasciare
    • D) lascio

  10. What does lasciare mean in English?

  • A) to be
  • B) to have
  • C) to leave
  • D) to do, to make

Answer key

  1. B) lasci — the correct form is lasci. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) ho lasciato — the correct form is ho lasciato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) lasciava — the correct form is lasciava. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) lasceremo — the correct form is lasceremo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) lasceresti — the correct form is lasceresti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) lasciai — the correct form is lasciai. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) lasciamo — the correct form is lasciamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) lasciando — the correct form is lasciando. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. B) lasciato — the correct form is lasciato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  10. C) to leave — the correct form is to leave. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does lasciare mean in English?

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

Is lasciare regular or irregular?

lasciare is regular. lasciare 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 lasciare?

The gerund is lasciando and the past participle is lasciato. The perfect tenses use avere + lasciato.

Where can I see the full conjugation of lasciare?

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

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