Perdere Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Italian

perdere — to lose — is one of the verbs you will use every day in Italian. It is a non-reflexive, irregular -ere verb, and it comes up in conversation, at work and at home. It means to lose something and to miss a train or a chance, and it is irregular in the passato remoto and the past participle: the participle is perso, while the present is regular. On this page you will find perdere 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 perdere conjugation page, and the deep dive into its most practised tense is on the perdere passato prossimo tense page.

Example sentences with perdere

In the present tense

  • “Io perdo le chiavi ogni giorno.” — “I lose the keys”
  • “Tu perdi le chiavi ogni giorno.” — “You lose the keys”
  • “Lui perde le chiavi ogni giorno.” — “He loses the keys”
  • “Noi perdiamo le chiavi ogni giorno.” — “We lose the keys”
  • “Voi perdete le chiavi ogni giorno.” — “You lose the keys”
  • “Loro perdono le chiavi ogni giorno.” — “They lose the keys”

In the passato prossimo

  • “Io ho perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “I have lost the keys”
  • “Tu hai perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “You have lost the keys”
  • “Lui ha perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “He has lost the keys”
  • “Noi abbiamo perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “We have lost the keys”
  • “Voi avete perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “You have lost the keys”
  • “Loro hanno perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “They have lost the keys”

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 perdevo le chiavi una volta.” — “I used to lose the keys”
  • “Tu perderai le chiavi domani.” — “You will lose the keys”
  • “Lui perderebbe le chiavi un giorno.” — “He would lose the keys”
  • “È importante che noi perdiamo le chiavi.” — “It is important that we lose the keys”
  • “Perdi le chiavi!” — “Lose the keys!”

How perdere is used

The first thing to know about perdere is its core meaning: to lose. It means to lose something and to miss a train or a chance, and it is irregular in the passato remoto and the past participle: the participle is perso, while the present is regular. 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 perdere keeps. The present io form is perdo, 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 perso, 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 perdere does not do. It never appears as a bare infinitive after a subject pronoun — after io you need perdo, never perdere. It never takes the wrong auxiliary in the perfect tenses: the passato prossimo is ho perso, built with avere, and the other auxiliary does not belong here. And its participle perso is given in the masculine singular form in the tables, with agreement depending on the sentence, not on the verb table.

Perdere in context

Io perdo le chiavi ogni giorno. Tu perdi le chiavi ogni giorno. Lui perde le chiavi ogni giorno. Noi perdiamo le chiavi ogni giorno. That is a normal part of the routine, and that is why the present of perdere is the first form worth learning. Each sentence uses a different person, so read them aloud and notice how the form changes — perdo, perdi, perde, perdiamo — while the meaning stays the same: to lose. Io ho perso le chiavi questa settimana. Tu hai perso le chiavi questa settimana. Lui ha perso le chiavi questa settimana. Noi abbiamo perso le chiavi questa settimana. That was a normal day, but it is exactly on days like this that the passato prossimo of perdere 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 lose — 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 perdere le chiavi.”

✓ Right: “Io perdo le chiavi ogni giorno.”

The infinitive perdere never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form perdo.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Io perdi le chiavi.”

✓ Right: “Io perdo le chiavi ogni giorno.”

perdi is the tu form, not the io form. The io form is perdo — check the person before you write the form.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Io perdo le chiavi ieri.”

✓ Right: “Io ho perso le chiavi questa settimana.”

Ieri points to the past, so use the passato prossimo ho perso here, not the present perdo.

4. Mixing up the auxiliary

✗ Wrong: “Io sono perso le chiavi.”

✓ Right: “Io ho perso le chiavi questa settimana.”

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

Quiz: test yourself

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

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

    • A) perdo
    • B) perdi
    • C) perde
    • D) perdiamo

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

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

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

    • A) perdevo
    • B) perdevi
    • C) perdevamo
    • D) perdeva

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

    • A) perderemo
    • B) perderò
    • C) perderai
    • D) perderà

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

    • A) perderei
    • B) perderesti
    • C) perderebbe
    • D) perderemmo

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

    • A) perdesti
    • B) perse
    • C) persi
    • D) perdemmo

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

    • A) perda
    • B) perdiate
    • C) perdano
    • D) perdiamo

  8. What is the gerund of perdere?

    • A) perdendo
    • B) perso
    • C) perdere
    • D) perdo

  9. What is the past participle of perdere?

    • A) perdendo
    • B) perso
    • C) perdere
    • D) perdo

  10. What does perdere mean in English?

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

Answer key

  1. B) perdi — the correct form is perdi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) ho perso — the correct form is ho perso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) perdeva — the correct form is perdeva. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) perderemo — the correct form is perderemo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) perderesti — the correct form is perderesti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) persi — the correct form is persi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) perdiamo — the correct form is perdiamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) perdendo — the correct form is perdendo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. B) perso — the correct form is perso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  10. C) to lose — the correct form is to lose. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does perdere mean in English?

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

Is perdere regular or irregular?

perdere is irregular. perdere is irregular in passato-remoto, past-participle, present-perfect, pluperfect — learn those forms as a set.

What are the gerund and past participle of perdere?

The gerund is perdendo and the past participle is perso. The perfect tenses use avere + perso.

Where can I see the full conjugation of perdere?

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

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