Introduction

Perdere means “to lose”, and this page covers exactly one thing: perdere 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 perdere, 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 perdere in the passato prossimo. 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. For example: “Lui ha perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “He has lost the keys.” Everything on this page uses the forms of perdere exactly as they are conjugated in the passato prossimo, so you can trust every form you see here.

Perdere in the Passato prossimo — full table

Person Form
io ho perso
tu hai perso
lui/lei ha perso
noi abbiamo perso
voi avete perso
loro hanno perso
Gerund: perdendo · Past participle: perso
The gerund is perdendo, which you use with stare to say what is happening at the same time as the main action: “Perdendo le chiavi, imparo molto.” — “While losing the keys, I learn a lot.” The past participle is perso, which you use with avere in the perfect tenses: ho perso 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 perdere is used.
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.

How the passato prossimo of perdere is formed

The passato prossimo of perdere is formed with the auxiliary avere in the present plus the past participle perso: io ho perso, tu hai perso, lui ha perso, noi abbiamo perso, voi avete perso, loro hanno perso. 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 perdere are worth noticing. First, the auxiliary is the whole decision: once you know that perdere takes avere, the rest is the present of avere 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 perso never changes in the tables, the passato prossimo of perdere 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 perdere

The passato prossimo is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use perdere 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 ho perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “I have lost the keys.”

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 ha perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “He has lost the keys.”

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 abbiamo perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “We have lost the keys.”

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 hai perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “You have lost the keys.”

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 hanno perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “They have lost the keys.”

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 ha perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “He has lost the keys”
  • Imperfect: “Lui perdeva le chiavi una volta.” — “He used to lose the keys”
  • 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 ho perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “I have lost the keys”
  • Imperfect: “Io perdevo le chiavi una volta.” — “I used to lose the keys”
  • 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 hai perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “You have lost the keys”
  • Imperfect: “Tu perdevi le chiavi una volta.” — “You used to lose the keys”
  • 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: perdere 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.

  1. “Io ho perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “I have lost the keys”
  2. “Tu hai perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “You have lost the keys”
  3. “Lui ha perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “He has lost the keys”
  4. “Noi abbiamo perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “We have lost the keys”
  5. “Voi avete perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “You have lost the keys”
  6. “Loro hanno perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “They have lost the keys”
  7. “Io ho perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “I have lost the keys”
  8. “Lui ha perso le chiavi questa settimana.” — “He has lost the keys”

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 sono perso le chiavi.” Right: “Io ho perso le chiavi questa settimana.” Why: perdere takes avere in the passato prossimo, not the other auxiliary. The io form is ho perso — check the auxiliary before you build the tense.
  • Wrong: “Io perdo le chiavi ieri.” Right: “Io ho perso le chiavi questa settimana.” Why: Ieri points to the past, so the present is wrong here. Use the passato prossimo ho perso for a finished action yesterday.
  • Wrong: “Io ho perdendo le chiavi.” Right: “Io ho perso le chiavi questa settimana.” Why: The passato prossimo needs the past participle perso, not the gerund perdendo. The gerund belongs in progressive constructions, never after an auxiliary.
  • Wrong: “Io perdere le chiavi.” Right: “Io ho perso le chiavi questa settimana.” Why: The infinitive perdere never takes a subject and never forms a past tense on its own. After io you need the conjugated passato prossimo form ho perso.

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.

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

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

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

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

  3. What is the lui/lei form of perdere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

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

  4. What is the noi form of perdere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

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

  5. What is the voi form of perdere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

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

  6. What is the loro form of perdere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

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

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

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

  8. What is the tu form of perdere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

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

Answer key

  1. B) ho perso — the correct form is ho perso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) hai perso — the correct form is hai perso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) ha perso — the correct form is ha perso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) abbiamo perso — the correct form is abbiamo perso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) avete perso — the correct form is avete perso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) hanno perso — the correct form is hanno perso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) ho perso — the correct form is ho perso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) hai perso — the correct form is hai perso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does perdere mean in English?

perdere means “to lose”. It is a non-reflexive, irregular -ere verb.

How is the passato prossimo of perdere formed?

With the auxiliary avere in the present plus the past participle perso: io ho perso, tu hai perso, lui ha perso, noi abbiamo perso, voi avete perso, loro hanno perso.

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 perdere?

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

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