Preferire Conjugation in Italian
preferire means “to prefer” in English, and it is one of the first verbs Italian learners meet — it sits at number 175 in VerbFlow’s frequency list for Italian verbs. It is the verb for preferring one thing to another, and it is an -isc- verb: the present, the present subjunctive and the imperative insert -isc- in the singular and third-person plural, so the io form is preferisco. The noi and voi forms keep the plain stem: preferiamo, preferite. This page gives you the complete conjugation of preferire — every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle — with notes, examples, common mistakes and a quiz. Here is the verb in a natural sentence: “Io preferisco il tè ogni giorno.” — “I prefer tea.”
Quick facts
- Infinitive: preferire
- English: to prefer
- Verb type: Regular -ire verb
- Irregular in: none — regular in every tense
- Gerund: preferendo
- Present participle: preferente
- Past participle: preferito
- Auxiliary: avere (all perfect tenses are formed with avere + the past participle)
- Ending: -ire verbs; pattern ireIsc in the verified tables
Pronunciation
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for preferire, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. Learn the spelling of the forms first, and listen to a native speaker for the sounds rather than trusting an invented transcription. The forms below are the ones that matter: once you can read preferire in every tense, you can recognise it in speech even before you can pronounce every form perfectly.
Three things to remember about preferire
- It is regular: every form follows the ordinary -ire pattern, so once you know the stem you can build the whole table. The only work is learning the endings, not memorising exceptions. It is an -isc- verb: the present, the present subjunctive and the imperative insert -isc- in the singular and third-person plural, so the io form is preferisco.
- The perfect tenses use avere: the passato prossimo is formed with avere in the present plus the past participle preferito. The tables on this page give the participle 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.
- The participles are preferente and preferito: keep both in mind as you read the tables, because the present participle appears as an adjective and the past participle appears in every perfect tense. If you know those two forms and the present tense, you already know the skeleton of the whole conjugation.
Full conjugation tables
Every form below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for preferire. Learn the present tense first, then the passato prossimo and the imperfect, and add the remaining tenses one at a time.
Present indicative (presente)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | preferisco |
| tu | preferisci |
| lui/lei | preferisce |
| noi | preferiamo |
| voi | preferite |
| loro | preferiscono |
The present indicative is used for habits, facts and things happening now. For example: “Io preferisco il tè ogni giorno.” — “I prefer tea”
Passato remoto
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | preferii |
| tu | preferisti |
| lui/lei | preferì |
| noi | preferimmo |
| voi | preferiste |
| loro | preferirono |
The passato remoto is used for completed actions in the distant past, mostly in written and literary Italian and in the south of Italy. For example: “Io preferii il tè ieri.” — “I preferred tea”
Imperfect (imperfetto)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | preferivo |
| tu | preferivi |
| lui/lei | preferiva |
| noi | preferivamo |
| voi | preferivate |
| loro | preferivano |
The imperfect is used for ongoing or habitual actions in the past, and for background description. For example: “Io preferivo il tè una volta.” — “I used to prefer tea”
Future (futuro semplice)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | preferirò |
| tu | preferirai |
| lui/lei | preferirà |
| noi | preferiremo |
| voi | preferirete |
| loro | preferiranno |
The future is used for what will happen, for predictions and for probability. For example: “Io preferirò il tè domani.” — “I will prefer tea”
Conditional (condizionale)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | preferirei |
| tu | preferiresti |
| lui/lei | preferirebbe |
| noi | preferiremmo |
| voi | preferireste |
| loro | preferirebbero |
The conditional is used for what would happen, for polite requests and for hypothetical situations. For example: “Io preferirei il tè un giorno.” — “I would prefer tea”
Present perfect (passato prossimo)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | ho preferito |
| tu | hai preferito |
| lui/lei | ha preferito |
| noi | abbiamo preferito |
| voi | avete preferito |
| loro | hanno preferito |
The passato prossimo is used for completed actions in the past, especially in spoken Italian. For example: “Lui ha preferito il tè questa settimana.” — “He has preferred tea”
Pluperfect (trapassato prossimo)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | avevo preferito |
| tu | avevi preferito |
| lui/lei | aveva preferito |
| noi | avevamo preferito |
| voi | avevate preferito |
| loro | avevano preferito |
The pluperfect is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “Io avevo preferito il tè prima della festa.” — “I had preferred tea”
Future perfect (futuro anteriore)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | avrò preferito |
| tu | avrai preferito |
| lui/lei | avrà preferito |
| noi | avremo preferito |
| voi | avrete preferito |
| loro | avranno preferito |
The future perfect is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “Io avrò preferito il tè per domani.” — “I will have preferred tea”
Conditional perfect (condizionale passato)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | avrei preferito |
| tu | avresti preferito |
| lui/lei | avrebbe preferito |
| noi | avremmo preferito |
| voi | avreste preferito |
| loro | avrebbero preferito |
The conditional perfect is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “Io avrei preferito il tè ieri.” — “I would have preferred tea”
Present subjunctive (congiuntivo presente)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | preferisca |
| tu | preferisca |
| lui/lei | preferisca |
| noi | preferiamo |
| voi | preferiate |
| loro | preferiscano |
The present subjunctive is used for wishes, doubts, emotions and opinions after che. For example: “È importante che io preferisca il tè.” — “It is important that I prefer tea”
Imperfect subjunctive (congiuntivo imperfetto)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | preferissi |
| tu | preferissi |
| lui/lei | preferisse |
| noi | preferissimo |
| voi | preferiste |
| loro | preferissero |
The imperfect subjunctive is used in the past for wishes and hypotheticals after che, and in if-clauses. For example: “Era importante che io preferissi il tè.” — “It was important that I prefer tea”
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | preferisci |
| lui/lei | preferisca |
| noi | preferiamo |
| voi | preferite |
| loro | preferiscano |
The affirmative imperative is used for direct commands and instructions. For example: “Preferisci il tè!” — “Prefer tea!”
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | preferire |
| lui/lei | preferisca |
| noi | preferiamo |
| voi | preferiate |
| loro | preferiscano |
The negative imperative is used for prohibitions and negative commands. For example: “Non preferire il tè.” — “Do not prefer tea.”
Gerund
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Gerund | preferendo |
The gerund is used for an action happening at the same time as another action, often with stare for the progressive. For example: “Preferendo il tè, imparo molto.” — “While preferring tea, I learn a lot.”
Present participle
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Present participle | preferente |
The present participle is used as an adjective, describing an ongoing action. For example, the participle preferente is used to describe something that is happening at the same time as the main action, much like an English -ing adjective.
Past participle
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Past participle | preferito |
The past participle is used with an auxiliary to form the perfect tenses, and as an adjective. For example: “Io ho preferito il tè questa settimana.” — “I have preferred tea.”
Example sentences
Ten natural sentences with preferire, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the Italian and try to produce it from the English.
- “Io preferisco il tè ogni giorno.” — “I prefer tea”
- “Tu preferisti il tè ieri.” — “You preferred tea”
- “Lui preferiva il tè una volta.” — “He used to prefer tea”
- “Io preferirò il tè domani.” — “I will prefer tea”
- “Tu preferiresti il tè un giorno.” — “You would prefer tea”
- “Lui ha preferito il tè questa settimana.” — “He has preferred tea”
- “Io avevo preferito il tè prima della festa.” — “I had preferred tea”
- “Tu avrai preferito il tè per domani.” — “You will have preferred tea”
- “È importante che io preferisca il tè.” — “It is important that I prefer tea”
- “Preferisci il tè!” — “Prefer tea!”
Common mistakes
1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form
✗ Wrong: “Io preferire il tè.”
✓ Right: “Io preferisco il tè ogni giorno.”
The infinitive preferire never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form preferisco.
2. Using the wrong person’s form
✗ Wrong: “Io preferisci il tè.”
✓ Right: “Io preferisco il tè ogni giorno.”
preferisci is the tu form, not the io form. Match the verb to the subject every time: io goes with preferisco.
3. Using the present for a finished past action
✗ Wrong: “Io preferisco il tè ieri.”
✓ Right: “Io ho preferito il tè questa settimana.”
Yesterday points to the past, so the present is wrong here. Use the passato prossimo ho preferito for a finished action yesterday.
4. Using the wrong auxiliary in the passato prossimo
✗ Wrong: “Io sono preferito il tè.”
✓ Right: “Io ho preferito il tè questa settimana.”
The passato prossimo of preferire is formed with avere plus the past participle preferito: the io form is ho preferito. Check the auxiliary in the table above before you build a perfect tense.
5. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger
✗ Wrong: “È importante che io preferisco il tè.”
✓ Right: “È importante che io preferisca il tè.”
After è importante che Italian needs the subjunctive, so use preferisca here, not the indicative preferisco.
6. Using the gerund instead of the past participle in a perfect tense
✗ Wrong: “Io ho preferendo il tè.”
✓ Right: “Io ho preferito il tè questa settimana.”
The perfect tenses need the past participle preferito, not the gerund preferendo. The gerund belongs in progressive constructions, never after an auxiliary in a perfect tense.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on preferire. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
What is the io form of preferire in the Present indicative?
- A) preferisci
- B) preferisco
- C) preferisce
- D) preferiamo
What is the lui/lei form of preferire in the Passato remoto?
- A) preferii
- B) preferisti
- C) preferì
- D) preferimmo
What is the noi form of preferire in the Imperfect?
- A) preferivo
- B) preferivi
- C) preferiva
- D) preferivamo
What is the tu form of preferire in the Future?
- A) preferirai
- B) preferirò
- C) preferirà
- D) preferiremo
What is the io form of preferire in the Conditional?
- A) preferiresti
- B) preferirei
- C) preferirebbe
- D) preferiremmo
What is the lui/lei form of preferire in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?
- A) ho preferito
- B) hai preferito
- C) ha preferito
- D) abbiamo preferito
What is the lui/lei form of preferire in the Present subjunctive?
- A) preferiamo
- B) preferiate
- C) preferiscano
- D) preferisca
What is the io form of preferire in the Imperfect subjunctive?
- A) preferissi
- B) preferisse
- C) preferissimo
- D) preferiste
What is the gerund of preferire?
- A) preferito
- B) preferendo
- C) preferire
- D) preferisco
What does preferire mean in English?
- A) to explain
- B) to answer
- C) to prefer
- D) to ask
Answer key
- B) preferisco — the correct form is preferisco. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) preferì — the correct form is preferì. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) preferivamo — the correct form is preferivamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) preferirai — the correct form is preferirai. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) preferirei — the correct form is preferirei. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) ha preferito — the correct form is ha preferito. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) preferisca — the correct form is preferisca. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) preferissi — the correct form is preferissi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) preferendo — the correct form is preferendo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) to prefer — the correct form is to prefer. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
Frequently asked questions
What does preferire mean in English?
preferire means “to prefer”. It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.
Is preferire regular or irregular?
preferire is regular: it follows the ordinary -ire pattern in every tense. The gerund is preferendo and the past participle is preferito.
What are the gerund and past participle of preferire?
The gerund is preferendo — use it with stare for the progressive. The past participle is preferito — use it with avere for the perfect tenses, as in ho preferito.
Which auxiliary does preferire take in the passato prossimo?
preferire takes avere in the passato prossimo: the io form is ho preferito. All four perfect tenses on this page are built with avere plus the past participle preferito.
How do I say “I prefer” in Italian?
Say “Io preferisco il tè ogni giorno.” — “I prefer tea” The io form of the present is preferisco, and it is the form you will use most often.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of preferire — every tense of preferire in one place.
- Preferire in the passato prossimo tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Preferire examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- Italian passato prossimo tense guide — the full guide to the passato prossimo tense in Italian.
- Pulire conjugation — another everyday Italian verb.
- Divertirsi conjugation — another everyday Italian verb.
- Italian verbs — the full hub of Italian conjugation pages.
- VerbFlow home — all languages, tools and verb lists.
- Verb Conjugator — practise preferire with the interactive tool.
- Conjugation Chart Printer — practise preferire with the interactive tool.
- Tense Finder — practise preferire with the interactive tool.