Introduction
Morire means “to die”, and this page covers exactly one thing: morire in the passato prossimo. The passato prossimo is the tense Italian speakers reach for when they talk about one finished action in the past, especially in conversation. On this page you will find the full passato prossimo table for morire, how the tense is formed for this verb, the situations where it is used, how it differs from the imperfect, worked examples, the mistakes learners make most often, an eight-question quiz with explained answers, and answers to the questions students ask about morire in the passato prossimo. It means to die, and it takes essere in the passato prossimo, with the past participle agreeing with the subject. Its present has a stem change in the singular and third-person plural, and its participle is irregular. For example: “Lui è morto questa settimana.” — “He has died.” Everything on this page uses the forms of morire exactly as they are conjugated in the passato prossimo, so you can trust every form you see here.
Morire in the Passato prossimo — full table
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | sono morto |
| tu | sei morto |
| lui/lei | è morto |
| noi | siamo morto |
| voi | siete morto |
| loro | sono morto |
| Gerund: morendo · Past participle: morto | |
| The gerund is morendo, which you use with stare to say what is happening at the same time as the main action: “Morendo, imparo molto.” — “While dying, I learn a lot.” The past participle is morto, which you use with essere in the perfect tenses: sono morto is the passato prossimo, used for a completed action. Keep both forms in mind as you read the examples below, because the passato prossimo is only one part of how morire is used. | |
| Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for morire, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. |
How the passato prossimo of morire is formed
The passato prossimo of morire is formed with the auxiliary essere in the present plus the past participle morto: io sono morto, tu sei morto, lui è morto, noi siamo morto, voi siete morto, loro sono morto. The participle is given here 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.
Two things about the passato prossimo of morire are worth noticing. First, the auxiliary is the whole decision: once you know that morire takes essere, the rest is the present of essere plus one participle, and the same participle serves all four perfect tenses. Second, the passato prossimo is the tense of finished events with a clear result, so it pairs naturally with time words such as ieri, questa settimana and l'anno scorso — those time words are your best clue when you are choosing a tense.
Because the participle morto never changes in the tables, the passato prossimo of morire is cheap to learn once the auxiliary is fixed. Learn the six auxiliary forms, add the participle, and the whole tense is yours.
When to use the passato prossimo of morire
The passato prossimo is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use morire in the passato prossimo most often. Each one comes with a real example, so read the rule, then say the example out loud.
1. One finished action
The passato prossimo describes a single action that is finished, especially in spoken Italian. When the action has a clear end, the passato prossimo is the natural choice. Example: “Io sono morto questa settimana.” — “I have died.”
2. Recent events
Use the passato prossimo for things that happened recently — today, this week, this morning — where the result is still visible in the present. Example: “Lui è morto questa settimana.” — “He has died.”
3. A sequence of events
When you tell what happened first, second and third, each step takes the passato prossimo. The tense moves the story forward one finished action at a time. Example: “Noi siamo morto questa settimana.” — “We have died.”
4. An experience in your life
Use the passato prossimo for things you have done in your life, with or without a time expression. It is the tense of experience as much as of yesterday. Example: “Tu sei morto questa settimana.” — “You have died.”
5. News and results
When you report news or a result, the passato prossimo carries it: something happened, and now the situation is different. The result matters more than the process. Example: “Loro sono morto questa settimana.” — “They have died.”
Passato Prossimo vs Imperfect: how to choose
The closest tense to the passato prossimo is the imperfect, and learners mix them up constantly. The rule is simple: the passato prossimo describes one finished action, while the imperfect describes an ongoing or habitual action in the past, or the background of a scene. The three pairs below use the same verb, so the only thing that changes is the time frame — and with it, the tense. Notice how the passato prossimo sentences use words such as ieri or questa settimana, while the imperfect sentences use una volta or ogni giorno.
- Passato Prossimo: “Lui è morto questa settimana.” — “He has died”
- Imperfect: “Lui moriva una volta.” — “He used to die”
- The passato prossimo sentence is one finished event; the imperfect sentence is an ongoing or habitual past action. Ieri points to the passato prossimo, una volta points to the imperfect.
- Passato Prossimo: “Io sono morto questa settimana.” — “I have died”
- Imperfect: “Io morivo una volta.” — “I used to die”
- The passato prossimo sentence is one finished event; the imperfect sentence is an ongoing or habitual past action. Ieri points to the passato prossimo, una volta points to the imperfect.
- Passato Prossimo: “Tu sei morto questa settimana.” — “You have died”
- Imperfect: “Tu morivi una volta.” — “You used to die”
- The passato prossimo sentence is one finished event; the imperfect sentence is an ongoing or habitual past action. Ieri points to the passato prossimo, una volta points to the imperfect.
Example sentences: morire in the passato prossimo
Read these eight sentences out loud. They cover all six persons, so by the end you will have seen every form in the table used in a real sentence. Pay attention to the words around the verb — the time expressions and the objects — because those are what make each sentence sound natural.
- “Io sono morto questa settimana.” — “I have died”
- “Tu sei morto questa settimana.” — “You have died”
- “Lui è morto questa settimana.” — “He has died”
- “Noi siamo morto questa settimana.” — “We have died”
- “Voi siete morto questa settimana.” — “You have died”
- “Loro sono morto questa settimana.” — “They have died”
- “Io sono morto questa settimana.” — “I have died”
- “Lui è morto questa settimana.” — “He has died”
Common mistakes
These are the errors learners actually make with this verb in this tense. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.
- Wrong: “Io ho morto.” Right: “Io sono morto questa settimana.” Why: morire takes essere in the passato prossimo, not the other auxiliary. The io form is sono morto — check the auxiliary before you build the tense.
- Wrong: “Io muoio ieri.” Right: “Io sono morto questa settimana.” Why: Ieri points to the past, so the present is wrong here. Use the passato prossimo sono morto for a finished action yesterday.
- Wrong: “Io sono morendo.” Right: “Io sono morto questa settimana.” Why: The passato prossimo needs the past participle morto, not the gerund morendo. The gerund belongs in progressive constructions, never after an auxiliary.
- Wrong: “Io morire.” Right: “Io sono morto questa settimana.” Why: The infinitive morire never takes a subject and never forms a past tense on its own. After io you need the conjugated passato prossimo form sono morto.
Quiz: test yourself
Choose the correct answer for each question, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained, so a wrong answer still teaches you something.
What is the io form of morire in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?
- A) sei morto
- B) sono morto
- C) è morto
- D) siamo morto
What is the tu form of morire in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?
- A) sono morto
- B) è morto
- C) sei morto
- D) siamo morto
What is the lui/lei form of morire in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?
- A) sono morto
- B) sei morto
- C) siamo morto
- D) è morto
What is the noi form of morire in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?
- A) siamo morto
- B) sono morto
- C) sei morto
- D) è morto
What is the voi form of morire in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?
- A) sono morto
- B) siete morto
- C) sei morto
- D) è morto
What is the loro form of morire in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?
- A) sei morto
- B) è morto
- C) sono morto
- D) siamo morto
What is the io form of morire in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?
- A) sei morto
- B) è morto
- C) siamo morto
- D) sono morto
What is the tu form of morire in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?
- A) sei morto
- B) sono morto
- C) è morto
- D) siamo morto
Answer key
- B) sono morto — the correct form is sono morto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) sei morto — the correct form is sei morto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) è morto — the correct form is è morto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) siamo morto — the correct form is siamo morto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) siete morto — the correct form is siete morto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) sono morto — the correct form is sono morto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) sono morto — the correct form is sono morto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) sei morto — the correct form is sei morto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
Frequently asked questions
What does morire mean in English?
morire means “to die”. It is a non-reflexive, irregular -ire verb.
How is the passato prossimo of morire formed?
With the auxiliary essere in the present plus the past participle morto: io sono morto, tu sei morto, lui è morto, noi siamo morto, voi siete morto, loro sono morto.
When do I use the passato prossimo instead of the imperfect?
Use the passato prossimo for one finished action in the past. Use the imperfect for an ongoing or habitual past action, or for background description. The time words are your best clue: ieri points to the passato prossimo, una volta points to the imperfect.
What are the gerund and past participle of morire?
The gerund is morendo and the past participle is morto. The perfect tenses use essere + morto.
Related pages
- morire conjugation — full tables
- morire examples and quiz
- Italian passato prossimo tense guide — the full guide to the passato prossimo tense in Italian.
- Italian irregular verbs — every common irregular Italian verb, grouped by pattern.
- Dire conjugation — another Italian verb in this batch.
- Venire conjugation — another Italian verb in this batch.
- Italian verbs — the full hub of Italian conjugation pages.
- VerbFlow home — all languages, tools and verb lists.
- Present Tense Conjugator — practise morire with the interactive tool.
- Verb Quiz — practise morire with the interactive tool.
- Tense Finder — practise morire with the interactive tool.